The duo faced its first test in the fourth grade when Abby became consumed with jealousy after reading Joni's unpublished manuscript for a short story about a kangaroo. (Joni claims she doesn't remember writing this opus, but Abby is just happy to report that she got published first.)
The friendship remained in tact throughout high school, held together by the unexpected glue of Scouting. Miraculously, both graduated without receiving a bathroom swirly (though there is the chance they kept their Scout status mostly under the radar). Their proudest feat as Scouts was the time they desecrated the camp to make it look like Satanists had killed the entire troop. (Hey, those were convincing ketchup stains.)
Surprisingly, they even survived the adolescent right-of-passage whereby Joni tells Abby that it is never okay to sniff your almost-but-not-quite boyfriend's hat at school ...even if it does smell like pot and his hair gel.
A week before returning to their respective colleges for sophomore year, their lives took a turn for the serious. In a scene Hollywood couldn't script, an undignified breakup, a KOA campground, and a Wiccan witch converged, resulting in both Joni and Abby giving their lives to Jesus on the same day. Brushing their teeth in the crowded shower house that night, the friends caused quite a stir trying to find the words for something they were feeling for the first time in their lives: joy.
Since then, Joni has lived all over the country before returning to the town they grew up in. During this time a strange thing began to occur: no matter how much time passed or how many miles were between them, when they did reconnect, God always seemed to be teaching Joni and Abby the same lessons at the same time.
After awhile, they started referring to each other as Spiritual Twins because though the external circumstances of their lives differed tremendously, on the inside, these best friends were clearly on the same journey.
These days hardly a week goes by that they don't talk. And it's not just because they love each other, it is because Joni and Abby know that when they call the other, Jesus often picks up the phone instead.
* * *
Since our friendship has been such a powerful tool in allowing our hearts to be shaped and transformed by God's Truth, we wanted to share with you the lessons he is teaching us—in real time, through a blog.
We're still not the cool kids, but we've learned we're better than that: we have been hand-picked by the King. And he's teaching us what it'll take to inherit his kingdom.
We have no idea where we're headed, but we invite you to come on the journey with us!
-Joni & Abby
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