Shemaiah Gonzalez

Shemaiah Gonzalez is a writer with degrees in English Literature (B.A.), Intercultural Ministry (MAPS), and Creative Non-Fiction Writing (MFA). She thrives on moments where storytelling, art, and faith collide. Her work has appeared in Busted Halo and America Magazine, among others. Her essay collection, Undaunted Joy: The Revolutionary Act of Cultivating Delight, was published with Zondervan/HarperCollins in 2025. A Los Angeles native, she now lives in Seattle with her husband and their two sons.

Waving to a Stranger

Standing in a piazza in Lucca, Italy, dappled sunlight shining down on me, I licked gelato al limone while my husband peeked in storefront windows. Our boys traded licks...

Imaginative Prayer: Lunch with Christ

As a child I felt God’s presence strongly. I remember digging in my sandbox with Jesus or reading a picture book with him. It seemed every good thing was...

Finding God in the Birds

Growing up in Inner City Los Angeles, I hadn’t really seen a bird that wasn’t a pigeon unless I went to the beach. You know what they call pigeons...

The Light of Grace Is Always Shining

A couple of afternoons a week, I bring my work to a local coffee shop. It gives me a chance to get out of the home office, attack a...