When I first created Walking with Jordan, I wasn’t thinking about writing books.

I wasn’t thinking about launching a ministry, creating devotionals, writing children’s stories, or developing Bible study resources. I certainly wasn’t imagining that a cancer diagnosis would reshape not only my life, but the direction of everything I would eventually write.

I was simply trying to make sense of what was happening.

After being diagnosed with primary myelofibrosis, life changed almost overnight. There were specialist appointments, bone marrow biopsies, genetic testing, scans, medications, discussions about stem cell transplants, and more questions than answers. Everything happened so quickly that I struggled to process it all.

The blog became my journal.

It became a place where I could organize my thoughts, keep family and friends informed without repeating the same difficult conversations, and maybe—just maybe—offer a little hope to someone else facing a season they never would have chosen.

That was the entire plan.

Or at least, I thought it was.

Lessons in the Waiting

As the whirlwind of appointments settled into what so many chronic illnesses eventually become—a long season of waiting—I found myself with fewer medical updates to share.

Waiting for lab work. Waiting for scans. Waiting to see if medication would continue working. Waiting to learn whether a stem cell transplant should happen sooner or later. Waiting quietly became part of everyday life.

For a while, I wondered what I was supposed to write about next. Then I realized something. God had been teaching me long before cancer ever entered my story.

Some of those lessons happened while repairing a chicken coop. Others came from watching our horses graze in the pasture, walking across our little farm, driving to work before sunrise, or noticing the beauty hidden in moments I once would have overlooked.

The more I paid attention, the more I realized that God rarely wastes the ordinary.

So I started writing those stories. Not because they were extraordinary. But because they pointed to an extraordinary God.

Those posts quickly became some of my favorites, and before long another thought quietly began to grow.

What if these stories belonged together?

From Blog Posts to Something Bigger

At first, I imagined collecting them into a simple inspirational book.

But as I began organizing the stories, I realized they weren’t just individual reflections. Together they told a much larger story—a testimony of God’s faithfulness through one of the hardest seasons of my life.

That realization became the memoir.

Unlike the blog, which captures moments along the journey, the memoir tells the complete story—from life before diagnosis through uncertainty, fear, waiting, and the countless ways God has faithfully sustained me.

My hope isn’t that readers finish the memoir knowing more about me. My hope is that they finish it knowing more about the God who carried me.

While outlining the memoir, another idea naturally followed.

Many of these stories already pointed toward Scripture. They weren’t just stories about life—they were stories about what God had been teaching me through life.

Originally, I imagined writing a ninety-day devotional. The more we planned, however, the more I realized that longer wasn’t necessarily better. Instead, we chose to create a focused thirty-day journey.

Each day begins with a true story from my life before connecting that experience with God’s Word. Together they explore themes we all eventually face: waiting, fear, trust, suffering, perseverance, hope, joy, and learning to recognize God’s faithfulness even when life doesn’t make sense.

Could there be a 365-day devotional one day?

Maybe.

But that’s a dream for another season.

From Encouragement to Discipleship

As we continued building the devotional, I remembered something from my own walk with Christ.

There was a time when reading the Bible felt overwhelming.

I wanted to understand Scripture, but I often found myself confused by unfamiliar customs, historical events, or passages that seemed difficult to apply to everyday life.

Everything changed when someone helped me understand the context. The culture. The history. The audience.

Suddenly passages that once seemed confusing came alive. That experience stayed with me.

It also planted the seed for what has become one of the projects closest to my heart—a companion study guide.

While the devotional is designed to encourage, the companion guide is designed to disciple.

Every five devotional days become one larger journey. Together they explore Scripture more deeply, explain historical and cultural background, connect passages across the Bible, encourage thoughtful reflection, and help readers develop confidence studying God’s Word for themselves.

I want to pause here and say something that is very important to me.

“Not many of you should become teachers, my fellow believers, because you know that we who teach will be judged more strictly.”
— James 3:1 (NIV)

That verse has stayed with me throughout this entire process.

I am not a pastor. I am not a theologian. I am not a Bible scholar. I don’t pretend to have all the answers.

Writing about God’s Word is a tremendous responsibility, and because of that I spend countless hours studying Scripture, comparing translations, reading historical and cultural context, and checking my understanding against trusted evangelical scholarship.

Not because I want to sound knowledgeable. But because I never want my opinions to overshadow God’s Word.

My goal has never been to replace someone’s personal Bible study. My goal is to help people become excited enough to open their own Bible and continue discovering God’s truth for themselves.

Connecting the Pieces

As all of this unfolded, I finally realized these weren’t separate projects anymore.

They were different parts of the same mission.

The blog introduces people to God’s faithfulness through ordinary life.

The memoir walks beside those facing suffering and uncertainty.

The devotional encourages daily time with God.

The companion guide helps readers grow in understanding Scripture.

Then another unexpected opportunity appeared.

Children.

Some of my favorite stories involve life here on our little farm—the chickens, the horses, the dogs, and the countless lessons God has hidden in ordinary moments.

Chris and I began talking about how those same stories could introduce children to biblical truths in ways they could understand and enjoy.

Before long we found ourselves outlining children’s books, beginning with one of our favorite little hens, Teensy.

Around that same time, something else happened.

When I was diagnosed, Walking with Shadows was still unfinished.

Ironically, it was writing this blog that reminded me why I loved telling stories in the first place. Week after week, as I sat down to write, my passion for storytelling returned. That momentum gave me the determination to finish the manuscript and finally publish it after my diagnosis.

Now, what began as a single novella is growing into an entire series.

Although it isn’t classified as Christian fiction, readers will notice that themes of redemption, sacrifice, courage, forgiveness, hope, and light overcoming darkness become increasingly woven throughout the story. Those themes aren’t forced into the narrative—they simply reflect the faith that has become such an important part of my own life.

Looking back now, I realize none of these projects were competing with one another.

They were all pointing in the same direction.

Seeing the Bigger Picture

During a recent sermon at church, something happened that I still struggle to fully explain.

As our pastor preached, I wasn’t thinking about books or blog posts.

I was simply listening.

Somewhere in the middle of the message, it felt as though God quietly began connecting dots I hadn’t even realized were there.

One story led to another.

A blog became a memoir.

The memoir naturally led to a devotional.

The devotional revealed the need for a companion guide.

Farm stories became children’s books.

Writing the blog reignited my love for fiction and helped me finish Walking with Shadows.

Then it hit me.

I hadn’t been building several different projects. God had been building one ministry. It was never really about writing books. It was about discipleship.

When Jesus gave the Great Commission, He didn’t simply tell His followers to make converts.

He said,

“Therefore go and make disciples of all nations… teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you.”
— Matthew 28:19–20 (NIV)

The more I studied Scripture, the more I realized there is a difference.

A crowd may hear about Jesus. A disciple learns to follow Him.

A crowd may be inspired for a moment. A disciple is transformed over a lifetime.

That has become the heartbeat behind everything we are building. Not creating more content. Helping people take one more step toward Christ.

Maybe that first step is a blog post written during a difficult diagnosis.

Maybe it’s a devotional read in the middle of someone else’s waiting room.

Maybe it’s learning how to study the Bible for the first time.

Maybe it’s reading a farm story with a child before bedtime.

However someone arrives…

My prayer is always the same.

That every path eventually leads them closer to Jesus. And that one day, they will help someone else do the same.

Holding Today with Open Hands

I know that from the outside, all of this seems to have happened incredibly fast.

Only six months ago I was processing a cancer diagnosis.

Today I’m talking about blogs, memoirs, devotionals, study guides, children’s books, and a growing fiction series.

The truth is, none of this was part of a master plan.

Writing simply became how I processed reality, and one faithful step naturally led to another.

My cancer has not become any less serious because life has continued moving forward.

Primary myelofibrosis remains a rare blood cancer with significant risks.

Right now, I am incredibly thankful that medication is working and my spleen has gotten smaller. That is an answered prayer I don’t take for granted.

But I also know this waiting season could change. A stem cell transplant may still become necessary. Waiting too long also carries risks.

This is still a very real journey. Some weeks are encouraging. Others are difficult.

This week has been one of the difficult ones. The fatigue has returned. The weakness is noticeable.

Like many people living with chronic illness, I’ve become fairly good at smiling through days when I don’t feel my best.

But I refuse to let cancer become the loudest voice in my life.

If God gives me today…Then I want to use today.

For His Kingdom

Looking back over these past six months, I can finally see something I couldn’t see while I was living it.

God wasn’t showing me the entire picture.

He was simply asking me to take the next faithful step.

Start the blog.

Write the next post.

Finish the novel.

Tell the story.

Study My Word.

Teach what you’re learning.

Keep walking.

Looking back now, I can see that every one of those small steps was leading somewhere I never expected.

Isn’t that often how God works? We ask Him for the map. He gives us the next step. We ask Him for certainty. He teaches us trust. We ask Him to show us the destination. He simply invites us to walk with Him.

If someone had told me six months ago that a cancer diagnosis would become the beginning of a ministry, I never would have believed them.

But that’s the beauty of following Christ.

He has a way of bringing purpose from pain…

hope from heartbreak…

and ministry from seasons we never would have chosen.

If one person finds hope through a blog post…

If one reader opens their Bible because of a devotional…

If one family grows closer to Christ through a children’s story…

If one believer gains confidence studying God’s Word…

If one person comes to know Jesus because God used something I wrote…

Then every late night, every draft, every edit, and every difficult day will have been worth it.

That is the mission of Walking with Jordan. To meet people where they are. To encourage them through authentic stories. To equip them to understand God’s Word.

And above all else…

To point them to Jesus Christ.

Because every story should ultimately lead to Scripture. And every resource should ultimately lead to Him.

Thank you for being part of this journey. Whether you came here for health updates, farm stories, or encouragement in your own waiting room, I am so grateful you are here.

A Question for You Today:

Looking back at your own life, has God ever taken a season you never would have chosen and turned it into a purpose you never saw coming? I’d love to read your story in the comments below.