April 4, 2022 -

EPISODE 20

Love of Neighbor Flowing From Love of God and How to Begin the Real Good Work

Danielle Coke

We are joined this week by author, illustrator and advocate Danielle Coke. Better known as Oh Happy Dani, she tells us about her experience of coming face to face with Jesus’ mercy and grace and her journey to discovering present purpose. We also dive deep into Oh Happy Dani’s work on how to love our neighbors well in a moment of tragic injustice. We discuss moving from apathy and performative allyship to finding our starting role and beginning the real good work.

Notes

@ohhappydani Illustrations referenced in this episode:   

Watch: Your Present Purpose: Four Steps to Unlocking Your Calling with Danille Coke

Episode Reflection

Invitation to Explore

Whether or not you have a platform, leadership position or large following, the Lord has created each of us for good works to walk in. We all have a role to play. Yet finding out what our unique role is can often feel like a daunting and overwhelming task. In this episode, Danielle leads us in discerning what God might be calling each of us to in this specific moment and time. In order to guide us in this process, she challenged us to consider what our present purpose is. What are your skills, passions and sphere of influence? What is a need that you see in the world? Your present purpose is found at the intersection of those things. As you think through those questions, what do you feel the Lord stirring and drawing your heart toward?

Scripture to Study

“For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand that we should walk in them.”  Ephesians 2:10, ESV

Wise Words to Consider

“I do know that I love God and I love his people. And wherever I can make justice happen in my sphere, I’m going to make it happen … I will mess up. I will slip. But if God is calling me to this, I am equipped and I am capable. And as I try to wade through what this looks like for me, there is all the grace in the world. All the grace in the world.” -Danielle Coke (Oh Happy Dani)

A Prayer to Lead You

Father, you have uniquely created each of us with a passion and a purpose. You have intentionally designed us to pursue justice and do good. When we are tempted towards apathy and passivity, would you remind us that love is what calls us to action. Thank you that you don’t ask us to be perfect but instead to be faithful. Would you help us to trust you as we pursue our present purpose and to remember that you will equip us and provide us with all the grace we need to navigate our callings. Amen

A Practice to Begin

Identify what prevents you from pursuing and taking steps toward your present purpose. We all have things that tempt us toward apathy and passivity, reasons why it feels hard to continue doing the work. Take time to honestly consider what things tempt you toward inaction. If it feels helpful to you, ask a trusted friend to speak into this and help you process. Make a list and reflect on this question: How can love propel and motivate you toward action and the good work that God has called you to?

Questions to Answer

How do we do this good work that God has called us to? What does it look like for us to be people who pursue God’s mission? As we experience the deep love of God, it should flow out of us into a love for our neighbor. This love calls us to take a stand against injustice and make a change; it’s a love that we cannot do on our own without an encounter with Jesus.

Resources to Help

Transcript

Michele Davis  00:03

You are listening to the Created For Podcast. We believe that everyone was created to make a unique impact in the world.

Created For is a podcast to explore ideas around purpose, calling and discovering how God is inviting you to influence the world in your own way, right now.

I’m your host, Michele Davis. Today Emma Tautolo and I get to sit down with Danielle Coke. Dani is the artist, Illustrator and activist behind the viral Instagram account @ohhappydani, and yes, she’s all those things. But she is also a spirit-filled and prophetic voice that is just so needed in this cultural moment. Emma and I love this conversation with her and we know you will, too.

Just a heads up, we’re going to be talking about a few of her illustrations that we think might be helpful for you to look at as we talked about them. So we’re going to link those in the show notes. So just pull that up real quick. And then keep listening.

Dani, I’m so excited to have you join us on the Created For Podcast.

Dani Coke  01:11

I’m so excited to be here. Thank you for having me.

Michele Davis  01:14

I can’t wait to talk about all the things. Oh, absolutely. Emma and I are thrilled to get to know you more, and we have, like, a lot … You have so many amazing things that we’re going to talk about. But I want to like actually first ask you about your time working at Disney.

Dani Coke  01:36

A lot of people don’t realize that I did that. But my last year of college, I’ve always been very, very much obsessed with Disney. And so my last year of college, I got an invite to the Disney College Program. And I was like, Okay, I’m a graduate and then I’m going to Orlando. It’s going to be great. And it was great. They work us to the bones.

Michele Davis  01:59

What?

Dani Coke  02:01

Oh, they work us so hard. I remember New Year’s Eve, I worked maybe 12 hours.

Michele Davis  02:06

Oh my gosh!

Dani Coke  02:07

I was inside a shop while the fireworks were going off for the New Year. But it was fun. I worked in Epcot at merchandise, which means I worked at different stores. So I worked at seven different stores on rotation. Seven different costumes.

Emma Tautolo  02:31

Whoa! Did you think, like, I’m graduating from college? I might have a career and Disney, like, when you accepted the program?

Dani Coke  02:39

I think because I studied Business Administration but concentrated in hospitality, I knew I was gonna go into the hospitality industry in some capacity. And I really wanted to do events like being an event planner. And so I was like, well, this is the hospitality experience. I can just do this and why not? Because I guess, I basically wanted to do it. And it just worked out that it happened to match my field of interest. I guess, I could say. I was really excited to do it.

Emma Tautolo  03:06

It was fun. That’s so fun.

Dani Coke  03:08

Yes.

Michele Davis  03:09

Yes. I mean, Disney is known for their general happy hospitality vibe and isn’t it kind of true that there’s like, no mosquitoes and it tastes or everything smells really good? Like there’s some sort of like magical… I don’t know like, …

 

Dani Coke  03:26

Okay, I have never seen a bug now that I think about it.

Michele Davis  03:33

Yes, there’s no mosquitoes.

Emma Tautolo  03:34

Well, wait a second. You are talking … Okay. I was like this is Florida. What do you mean there’s no bugs?

Dani Coke  03:40

I bet there’s bugs in the air, maybe because I worked outside. But thinking of like when I’m in a restaurant or in a store, I have never seen a bug in there.

Michele Davis  03:50

Okay, I hope I’m not spreading Disney misinformation or something. But I’m pretty sure I read somewhere or something that there’s something that Disney does to the air to make mosquitoes not be at the park. It sounds like some sort of magic.

Dani Coke  04:09

They didn’t tell us. But I don’t recall any bugbites.

Emma Tautolo  04:09

That is a truly Magic Kingdom. And I’m from the land of Disney.  I’m from the Disney Land land.  I’ve never even been to Disney World because I’m like, we’re the original, but now I’m really like, I got to go.

Dani Coke  04:31

You gotta go. I’ve never been to Disney Land. We can swap stories.

Emma Tautolo  04:35

We can totally swap. I’m shook right now a little bit that you guys just said there may be something in the air that keeps all mosquitoes away. [laughter] I did not know that.

Michele Davis  04:46

Okay, everybody’s like already … they’re all googling it right now. Okay, but Dani I’ve been really excited to interview you today. And I’ve been telling all my friends like, I get to interview the woman behind the viral Instagram account @ohhappydani. And she has a Target line! And those things are actually … They’re both true about you. But maybe not the best way to describe your current occupation. How do you describe what it is that you do?

 

Dani Coke  05:18

Well, I like to say that I am an illustrator and activist. And I use art to encourage faith, inspire justice and help people love their neighbors well. And so it’s really all encompassing because I never really know exactly what kind of art I want to make on any given day. But I do know that I want to create art that takes complex ideas and makes them more digestible and easy to understand for the everyday person that might not be holistically engaging with justice or activism work without changing the integrity or watering down the message of the causes that I’m talking about. And so it is quite the line to walk. But this is the only way that I can do it. And so it’s been really rewarding to see people feel more equipped or inspired by the artwork. And it’s my prayer that people are spurred into doing something whenever they come into contact with it.

Emma Tautolo  06:22

Yes, it’s beautiful art. It’s like informative, beautiful art. And I’m like, if you go to your Instagram page, the color … I’m a color girl. My bedroom looks like a Crayola box threw up.

Dani Coke  06:40

Yes.

Emma Tautolo  06:40

When I go to your Instagram page, I’m like, this is where I want to hang out on Instagram. Informative, it’s inspiring, it’s actually teaching and educating. And it’s so beautiful.

Dani Coke  06:54

Thank you so much. I really appreciate that. And it’s funny, a lot of people ask, why are you called Oh Happy Dani when you talk about like the hardest stuff. And I don’t ever intend to make artwork that takes these tough topics and just makes them cute, right? I just happen to have a naturally joyful outlook on life. I just happen to, like you say, just love all sorts of colors. I love a good color explosion in my bedroom and being able to use that to talk about the hard topics. Once I noticed that it started to disarm people, I was like, Oh, I’m doing this. This is really what I want to talk about, like all cute colors aside, like, I really want y’all to hear us break down inequity, injustice and how you have a part to play in changing this. And so if it’s cute, that’s a bonus, I’m glad that you are more inclined to engage with it because it looks good. And I don’t think that that’s a negative thing at all. I don’t think it’s negative that people are more inclined to engage with hard things if they’re pretty to look at because we are just inundated with so much information on a day-to-day basis. And then we’re dealing with our own overwhelm in our own lives, not just on a global scale but on a personal scale with our families and our loved ones and just hard times that we face in general. And so if this helps somebody engage with something that they otherwise would not have had the capacity to even think through looking into on their own, then I feel like I’ve done my job.

 

Emma Tautolo  08:28

It’s so good.

Michele Davis  08:29

I really appreciate that a lot. And one thing when I think about your artwork that I’ve felt … I think like a lot of people have been following you a lot in the past couple years and have re-shared a lot of your posts on my Instagram stories because you have a way of really succinctly getting both to the heart of a difficult subject and also having hope. And I think that that’s maybe even part with your artistic style and color. And there’s this undercurrent of hope I think in celebrating something and like creating beauty in the midst of something hard — and that seems to at least what I’ve reflected on in my experience, it gets me in a deeper heart place, you know, because I want to know how to engage with hard things and have true hope, not like a false hope because I haven’t dug in or I want to like be there but also know and experience love and God’s love, right? And your faith is really central. I know what you do and I wondered if you could talk more about the spiritual experience for you in creating this art in having this platform, connect it more with your spiritual journey.

Dani Coke  10:01

Yes, absolutely. I actually kind of love sharing this part of my story because I don’t get asked about it as often. But it is, like you said, very essential and was very formative for me. So I don’t know how much you know about my background, like with church or faith, but I can just go out and go ahead and just say it. Yeah, I grew up in a denomination known as Apostolic Pentecostalism, which, first and foremost, is heretical in nature; it teaches a lot of the wrong things about God, and a lot of the wrong things about what it means to live a life of faith. And so basically, a very legalistic environment where we couldn’t wear jewelry, makeup, cut our hair, couldn’t wear pants, that kind of situation. But then also, just faith-wise, they basically denied very fundamental tenets of the faith as in like, the personhood of Jesus, denying the presence of the Trinity, denying very fundamental things like saying you have to speak in tongues to be saved, you have to be baptized a certain way, or you’re not saved.

And so I found myself always reaching and striving and trying to attain this impossible standard of what I thought it meant to live a holy life. And so I think that that’s when perfectionism was born in me, or at least, I think that’s where it came from. And I struggled with a lot of anxiety because of that. And it wasn’t until college, honestly, before I went to Disney World … interesting how that came full circle … where I had a moment with God. I remember sitting on my bed at my parents house where I was still living at the time. And I was like, what I’ve come to know about You can’t be all that there is. I see verses that talk about growing in grace, and the beauty of a life lived with Jesus. And I felt like Jesus was always mad at me. And so I was just like, you got to show me like, what we’re really doing here. And I did one of those super cliché, but honestly what happened to me, moments where I opened the Bible, and I was like, you know, I’m going to just read this, I’m going to read this, without these additional commentaries that are telling me how to think and how to feel, I’m just going to read this book, and trust the Holy Spirit to guide me in my interpretation of what you’re actually saying here, and I opened to Romans. And that was the very first time I read about grace, what grace is, and what mercy is. And I’ve heard those words, but the definitions never made sense to me, because I was like, you’re saying that grace means this, but we live a life that makes me feel like grace doesn’t exist, which is why we always have to live so perfectly.

So I came face to face with mercy and grace. And it filled me with such an overwhelming love for God. And I know like some people … this could go one of two ways: You find out everything you believe about God is pretty much a lie. You can either leave it all forever, or what happened to me, like, run into the arms of Jesus. Because you’re like, Oh, this is who you are. Thank goodness. Thank goodness, this is who you are. And that changed my life completely. Because not only was I filled with an overwhelming love for Jesus, in this moment, more than I’d ever known, but that love almost immediately translated to an overwhelming love for my neighbor. Almost instantaneously, it happened at the same time. My favorite verse is Luke 10:27: “Love the Lord your God with all your heart, all your soul, all your mind, all your strength, and then ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’”

And it happened for me just the way I read it.

That love for God overflowed into a love for my neighbor. And I was just so passionate about justice and whatever that looked like. And in that moment, I was a black girl who after I got back from Disney got a job at an event planning agency, which if you remember was kind of the goal all along with event planning. I got a job at an agency, and it was a predominantly white institution. I was the only black woman working there. And I didn’t really see justice take on … I don’t know, I didn’t really feel like I was walking it out in the fullest extent. But I didn’t know, like, even if I don’t know what that looks like for me right now, I do know that I love God and I love His people wherever I can make justice happen in my sphere. I’m going to make it happen. And I can go on to share that story with you as well about how I think that experience at that agency shifted everything and kind of is what landed me to be doing what I am now. But yes, I could go on and on and on. So I’m going to pause for air.

Emma Tautolo  14:58

Well, Dani, what you just shared, I think that’s what comes through in your work, is like you are someone who’s had this genuine encounter with the face of Jesus. And just hearing you say like, “Thank goodness,” this is who you are. When you come to know the character love of God that overwhelms you. And you said it. I’m, like, that type of love pours out of us in neighborly love. And love of neighbor and enemy love, this type of love that is actually so not … it’s unnatural. Right? We cannot do it without an encounter with Jesus the way that you’ve just had it. And so I’m like, I think that’s what really comes through in your work, which is why I feel like I’ve read and interacted with it. And I’ve learned so many other people. I’ve learned so much from it.

And one of the things, and I know this is something you get asked about a ton because I’ve also heard you talk about it in different spheres. But I think it’s really helpful. And so I want to ask you because I’ve heard you talk about the Cycle of Inaction. But I think why it’s so good, right? Why people are like, “Dani talk to me about this, talk to me about this,” is because we’re in an age where it’s like, clearly things are not the way they’re supposed to be. They’ve been like this forever. But now it’s like this stuff is bubbling up in the surface. And the world is starting to see something is really not right. It’s not just a certain amount of people complaint, like there’s something wrong with what’s going on. And I think so then we’re in the age of social media. And so people are like, let me post about it. Let me be super vocal about it on my social media. But what I think you expose when you talk about your Cycle of Inaction is like, that’s not the good work that you’re necessarily talking about. So can you tell … for those who haven’t heard about it, who will be listening to this podcast … what is the Cycle of Inaction?

Dani Coke  17:16

Yes, absolutely. I love that you set it up this way. Because it’s interesting, as someone whose platform obviously grew because of social media, it’s just as important for me to recognize, although it’s got its benefits, like, this is dangerous, and it’s also not as effective of a tool as some people believe in certain contexts. So I love that you brought this up.

So basically, the Cycle of Inaction goes like this. So a horrific injustice takes place. And when I drew this specific cycle, it was in direct response to January 6, the insurrection at the Capitol. So this was in direct response to that because outrage followed, obviously online. And so I was like, okay, a horrific injustice takes place. And then we’re shocked and confused. And the shock … I always ask myself, why are we shocked, we can be disheartened, we can be upset and affected, angry, but shocked. It makes me wonder where you’re at and where you’ve been. And so after the shock and confusion, it normally leads us to an emotional response. And so that’s the outcry you see on social media, that’s even offline, just be upset, which is fine. But it’s not fine if it leads you into performative allyship, which is the next spot on the cycle, where people’s emotions, they don’t know how to properly channel it into change. So they channel it into, okay, everyone needs to know that I’m on your side, I want you to see … It starts out with good intentions for a lot of people. But for others, it’s like, oh, I’m being called upon to say something, I better just post this or re-share this. So it can look like I’m doing something. And so as a result of that performative allyship, it doesn’t feel good when you know you’re doing something just for the sake of showing that you’re doing something.

So it leads often to guilt and fatigue, which causes people to be like, oh, man, well, I’m exhausted by this. And I actually don’t feel like I’m doing much of anything. So now I’m sad. And that leads to inaction and passivity, where we’re just kind of like, well, yeah, I guess I won’t do anything, which can often result in apathy, which is the last step on the cycle until another horrific injustice takes place again, and we’re back in the same circle. And I remember putting this together, not having a single desire in my body, any bone to draw anything. And I think contrary to popular belief, my reaction to a horrific injustice is not, “let me make this pretty and go viral.” It’s like, “I don’t even want to be online for the next several days.” I do that. Even recently with a piece I just drew [phonetic 20:00], but that’s another conversation.

So I do that Cycle of Inaction. And then I flipped it on its head. And I basically said, this isn’t the way it has to be, even if our body and society is naturally moving in those rhythms, you can see it and not move with it in that way.

So I basically said, revisiting the cycle, when horrific injustice takes place, we won’t be overtaken by shock and confusion as if the fruit of systemic oppression is surprising, because it’s not. Instead, our emotional response should be marked by empathy and compassion, leading to a reduction of performative allyship and exchange for the real vigorous work. And so this is the offline inner work, this is the communal work towards liberation. It’s just community; this is individual. And then I said, and should give them fatigue, try to settle in, will re-center the needs of those yearning for liberation, remembering that inaction and passivity are detrimental to justice. And that apathy is the antithesis of unconditional love. And me writing that is coming from someone who’s come face to face with unconditional love and knows what it causes us to do. And it doesn’t cause us to fall into a cycle of doing nothing. It calls us to take a stand against injustice and make a change.

Emma Tautolo  21:21

This is why everyone asks you to share that. That’s it.

Dani Coke  21:31

Let us collect ourselves.

Michele Davis  21:34

It’s heavy. And it is just replete with the Spirit of God. And it’s so evident that this is … like your platform and your art and even like, your words are an outpouring of your relationship with God. And it’s so beautiful. Dani, it just makes me rejoice.

Dani Coke  21:58

Oh, I love [crosstalk]

Michele Davis  21:58

It really does. And it also stirs something in me spiritually to, like, want to root out the ways that I can fall into apathy and inaction, I can feel that overwhelm, I can feel … I mean, I feel like I feel all the feelings and I get overload, and then I shut down, you know, and I kind of keep going through that kind of cycle, and I’m wondering for you, especially being like a public figure with a platform, and your work centering around, you know, education about justice, and all of these hard things like, how in the world do you like care for yourself well, so that you can stay engaged in the good work that God has given you here? What are the practices that are helping you to play out and live this out?

Dani Coke  22:35

Yes, absolutely. I think this is really important to talk about, because even after hearing something like the cycle of inaction, or hearing that call to take action, what can happen is the same kind of legalism that I came out of, can start to call me back kind of like, okay, so you have to do all these things in order to not just make a difference, but also to be worthy, or to measure up with your platform or constantly cater to the needs of your audience in all these actions. And I think one of the first things I had to realize and really cement into my brain, and I did this early on, was to remind myself and my audience, I am not a resource, I am a person.

First and foremost, I am a person, I love that. And so that means I’m not a news site. I’m not breaking news to all of you. I’m not even talking about everything on my platform that you might deem urgent, not because it’s not urgent, but because I’m a person, I don’t have a huge news network of hundreds of people. You know what I mean? And so I say my work is a reflection of who I am, in my context at this point in time, and it won’t serve all of you and that’s okay. Because it’s not meant to. So I had to realize, and remember that first and foremost, like, I can’t be all things to everyone, just as Dani. So that’s the first thing.

And the second thing. I recently did an interview with Tyler Burns from The Witness. And if you’re familiar with The Witness doing such incredible work for Black Christians who operate in these spaces, but he asked me, we talked about Black joy. And he asked me what do you think is the future of joy in this work for black people in that context? But I also think that this can be helpful for other people as well. I think I told him that the future of Black joy as a Black woman is going to be me no longer being willing to divide who I am from what I do.

And so this might sound contradictory to what I just said about how I’m not a resource, I’m a person. But what I’m talking about here is saying, I’m not willing to strip away parts of my identity to fit in any kind of box or fulfill anyone’s expectation. And so a way that practically plays out for me would be if I’m in a season of rejoicing and celebration, like I have happen with this Target collection that will exist, while I’m creating resources about hardship and trauma. It must … because for me to retain joy and take care of my mental health, they must coexist. And so I’ve been giving myself space to do that. I’ve been in therapy regularly.

The past six months, I’ve been in regular therapy, and that’s just a way that I’ve had to make space for myself. But also like bringing who I am to the work that I do is a big part of me staying sane.

Emma Tautolo  26:18

Showing up fully who you are unapologetically. I don’t think about that enough, how just being able to do that is like an expression of joy, hope, resistance, therapeutic, just showing up fully you, unapologetically. Yeah. I vibe that. That’s good.

Michele Davis  26:50

Yes. Super important.

Emma Tautolo  26:52

Yes. I was thinking Dani as… I don’t remember if you said it on this, or if I’ve heard you say it on something else, which you said, like, you want people to be able to do good work to become better neighbors. But we don’t always know how to do that good work. We don’t always know what that is.

Dani Coke  27:13

Yes.

Emma Tautolo  27:15

And I’m like, man, that’s so true. You know, I feel in all of our churches, that’s something I’m talking about a lot is like, what does it look like for us to be participants in God’s mission? But yet, it’s like, okay, well, where do I do that to be someone who pursues justice? And so I guess my question to you is maybe like, how would someone do this good work? How would you encourage someone to find out about the good work they can give to the world to become a better neighbor? Maybe talk about that, like, what are the things they need to connect within themselves to begin to do this, the good work that you talk about?

Dani Coke  27:59

One thing that I think is super important to consider is your present purpose, or what you feel like that is … Basically your present purposes, set out at the intersection of your skills, your passions, your community, and a perceived need that you see in the world. And so identifying what are my skills? What am I good at? What am I consistently affirmed in by other people? And I would say, if you’re taking notes, I would write that down and write what are my passions, what lets my heart up because of life experience, or things that I’m personally close to. It has been something that I’ve become passionate about, like, so for me, because I’m a Black woman in my proximity to racism, that’s just happens to also be something I’m passionate about. But whatever that means for you, identifying those passions, and then your community where you’re planted is so important. I talk all the time about your sphere of influence, how I touch people with my work that you may never know. And you also have people in your community who I may never know or reach or talk to. And so that makes both of our roles in this life equally important.

So I think that’s very important for people to hear, like, having a platform does not change the amount of impact you can have on your neighbors. So that’s something I think it’s super important to identify. And then a need you see in the world. For me, I was looking around during 2020, when we were talking about Black Lives Matter front and center on a national level. And I saw a need for information about race that was digestible but didn’t sacrifice the integrity of the subject matter. And so that’s what I decided to fulfill. And so I think, finding what you should do now with your gifts and things you’re passionate about is found at the intersection of those four things, and I call that present purpose because it’s a little less scary than purpose. Tangible to the here and now because two years from now, I could be doing something completely different, but the end goal will be the same. So that’s that.

Dani Coke  30:07

And then, I know you mentioned a post that I recently got to do about Finding Your Starting Role, like when the world is going wild. And it’s all hands on deck in response to a global tragedy.

Michele Davis  30:19

Yeah. So I loved that post. And I wanted to hear more about it. It was so timely yesterday for some things I was processing. So I want to hear more: where did that come from? Because it felt like it came from the Holy Spirit into my phone.

Dani Coke  30:35

Yes, I’m so glad I was helpful to you. I looked back into my iPad yesterday because I was thinking of what was going on. And it had been about five days since everything was happening with the conflict in Ukraine, and I told you before, I do not rush to draw things like, this is not what we’re doing here. But I was sitting and trying to contemplate what are we to do? You know, what are we to do? And my mind went back to September, and I looked at my iPad. And the sketch of this idea was created in September of last year, when I was walking with people through what it looks like to pursue antiracism in their sphere given their scope. And so two things that I really wanted to draw out was the idea of context and capacity. And this is the very first time, as you’re probably aware, that I’ve talked about this piece outside of drawing it. And I’ve been so excited to verbally dissect it because it’s so important. But I think when it comes to doing work in response to global crisis, we have to remember that there’s absolutely no way that we can do everything. And for many of us, we can’t even do a lot, we have to be honest about that. Because you will drive yourself wild, thinking about, “Oh, I’m not doing enough, or I wish I could do more.”

So the idea of capacity is an honest assessment of your time, space and ability at this point in time. Think about what you are currently doing. For you know, your present purpose, personally, the things you’re already walking out, but also your family, your job; assess that. And honestly, assessing your capacity is important, because some of us know that we have more capacity than we let on, we have more capacity than we press sometimes.

So being honest about that, and then context; and I think context is very important. Because it’s not just about how much you know about something, it’s about your proximity to it, your lived experience, and how that relates. So that’s why during 2020 especially we were having a problem with people with not a lot of context concerning racism wanting to rise up and create content and lead in a space that they did not have the context to lead in. And when that created sometimes misinformation, which is what it can create right now, it can lead to you raising your voice over the voices of people who should be amplified, in that case, Black people.

So understanding just because you know a lot about something does not mean that you are called to lead in that area, in that point of time. So, context of capacities isn’t that people really have to wrestle with first concern in like a breaking news thing. So that’s number one.

Secondly, I broke this into four different quadrants based on your level of capacity and context.

So if one has high context with what’s going on, and high level of capacity, you are called to be an educator right now, you are called to lead with what you know. And just do the darn thing. We need help. And you’ve got the information. For me in 2020, I was an educator when it came to race because I had all the time in the world. And I knew a little bit of stuff about racism, you know, so that’s number one. And then I want to take forever.

So I’ll go through the other two, if you have low context, but high capacity, you are not necessarily called to educate, you are probably called to learn a little bit more, eventually, will you be able to educate possibly, but you have to consider the fact that you may know facts, but not enough to lead and disseminating information across the worldwide web. Like that is a very scary type of thing, if you don’t exactly know what you’re talking about. So, learning is crucial, something that we all should be doing, of course, but if you don’t have the context, and half the time learning is your next best step.

The third quadrant: high context, but low capacity. You may know a lot about what’s going on but you don’t really have the time to dive in and be an educator. You are called to advocate right now, or that can be a good first step for you. So, you know the organizations that we should be donating to so just tell us, tell the people in your circle, like, “Hey, this is going on, I have context about this, maybe you should donate to this person, read this article that covers it really well. I have some talking points based on my lived experience, I could lend itself well to this conversation.” That’s your role. And you’re very, it’s very helpful to be a supporting person helping kind of rally everyone together and be like, This is what is going on. And we trust them to believe you because of your context.

And then the fourth quadrant: the amplifier, the person with low capacity and low context, and I did not want to demonize this quadrate. Because amplifying, as we know, is so important. And so just because you don’t have a lot of time on your hands and you don’t know a lot about the subject doesn’t mean that you are rendered helpless. This is an opportunity for you to amplify the voices of people who are educators or advocates. These are trusted people you know and love. They’re recommending resources, you can cosign with that and be like, “Oh, yeah, I love this person, know what they’re about, trusting their lead on this, you guys check this link out,” or listening to the experiences of people around you, or doing the work of sending a quick donation, encouraging someone who’s up close and personal with this subject. And so with this framework, I want to remind everybody that no matter where you find yourself, your role is very valuable. And once you’ve done what you can do, that’s all that was asked of you. Don’t be legalistic on yourself. There’s grace. There’s mercy. I know that . So that’s something I always want to encourage: people like you don’t have to be perfect to do something. And once you’ve done it, don’t beat yourself up.

Emma Tautolo  36:47

Amen.

Dani Coke  36:48

I feel like I just keep throwing so much.

Michele Davis  36:57

I love it.

Emma Tautolo  36:58

You know why,  it’s the hydrant. It’s the water fire hydrant. I’m sitting here, like, you’re the host, stop taking notes. What you doing? I’m over here like furiously writing things down.

Michele Davis  37:22

But it resonates so much what you’re saying Dani, and it makes me think too about the body of Christ. What we learn in the New Testament about how we have different parts and roles. But when we work together, we are like one and we’re one community, and so there’s something to be said about, you know, if I’ve been put into a place and I’ve been given the context and the capacity, like, how you frame that out, I need to do that role, and not try to do be something else that I’m not in the place for right there. But I can like, cheer on, cheer on the others. And I like how you’re talking about especially that amplify role of support and encourage and spotlight. Yes, I think it takes a lot of knowing yourself and knowing God to do that really well.

Dani Coke  38:31

Yes, you got to be honest. You have to be honest with where you are and what you know because it can quickly become performative. And I think that’s super important.

Emma Tautolo  38:46

I was even thinking, Dani, as you were saying, all that, I wonder too, if I’m having a hard time self-identifying really honestly. I’m like, okay, this is probably where I need to really ask my community, the people who really know me who work with me, who know this, what I have expertise in and where I kind of don’t. To help me honestly be able to self-identify, like, maybe what quadrant I might be in.

Dani Coke  39:14

Yes, absolutely. And that’s beautiful, too, because this is a collective communal type of thing. This liberation does not happen in isolation. So I think it’s so important that you brought that up because there are people, they know more about us than we think they do, our community.

Emma Tautolo  39:33

Yes, they watching me! They know!

Dani Coke  39:40

They like, Girl, did you just work all night long for the last 10 days?!

Emma Tautolo  39:44

They are like, Girl, did you know that email came in at 3:00 a.m.?!

 

Dani Coke  39:50

Exactly,  it’s not a bad thing if that’s where you’re at. It’s not. People need to understand that you are no good to the world if you’re unhealthy and unable to contribute anything.

Michele Davis  40:07

Yes.

Dani Coke  40:08

And so this work obviously requires levels of self-sacrifice. But we also would like to exist as healthy humans experiencing the quality of life that the Lord wants us to experience. And so part of that involves working to make sure other people can experience that as well. And making sure that we’re okay. We’ve got to be okay.

Emma Tautolo  40:08

Yes. So good.

Michele Davis  40:34

That’s so good.

Emma Tautolo  40:36

Okay, there’s one question I really do want to ask you. And I know we’re out on time. But I was like, I gotta get this one in. Do you know where I’m going? Okay…

Michele Davis  40:45

Go there.

Emma Tautolo  40:46

Because I want to know basically, who are you reading or listening to these days? But essentially, it’s because I was like, what are the voices or the people that have formed and shaped you the most in the work you do? So it could be like who you’re listening to today? Or who you listened to five years ago?

Michele Davis  41:05

[crosstalk] My Amazon so I can just order all of it.

Dani Coke  41:11

I love this question, and normally, I want to preface this by saying my answer is not always super satisfying. And it’s nothing but the truth. Growing up, I did not immerse myself in a lot of reading, or writings about this stuff. All I had was my lived experience, the denomination I grew up with, extremely racist. And so I had a lot of experience just front center with that. And I’ve been a writer and an artist, all those years as well, just not online. And so it wasn’t until college and post-college where I really started to get into reading, and I still don’t even do a lot of it. And so the answer is kind of mixed. I’m going to tell you who I do read, but I also want to be like, I don’t really … I don’t know if, okay…

 

Dani Coke  42:03

– It’s all been a lot of me and Jesus and Jesus saying this, and I’m writing it, drawing it. I can tell you a specific piece in particular, where it was a direct download. I literally saw it in my eyes. And I was like, that’s happened to me once, once. But anyway, so, Dr. King. I have his entire collected works. And I sit in that stuff . That man knew what he’s talking about! And the way that he did not disconnect the impact of his faith with the work. That is a blueprint. When you think civil rights, you think Dr. King. When you think like Dr. King, you think about the reverend. And so that’s important for us to realize, like the church should be on the frontlines of all this. So that’s number one.

I also read Maya Angelou. I love her collection of poetry. I’m just very inspired and always happy by her poetry. Toni Morrison, I love the way that she calls us to action in times of turmoil, especially as creatives. I really am encouraged by her work in that regard. I have her book, “The Source of Self-Regard.” And that’s a full collection of all her stuff. And so that’s Toni Morrison, and then I feel like there’s one more. I do read like, it’s modern day, amazing voices, like, I sit up under Dr. Christina Edmondson. That is my girl. I was like, please mentor me. And the past couple of months, she has done just that.

Michele Davis  43:36

Oh, that is awesome.

Dani Coke  43:37

Oh, yeah, her work. Y’all Listen, she got a book. Y’all got to go get that.

Michele Davis  43:40

I know. She has a book coming out.

Dani Coke  43:42

“Faithful Antiracism.”

Michele Davis  43:44

Yeah.

Emma Tautolo  43:45

Come on.

 

Dani Coke  43:46

I’m so excited. So I love her, her work, her husband’s work is incredible. Micah Edmondson, and then Jemar Tisby, and Tyler Burns, I really look at and I’m motivated, inspired by. Eugene Cho. These are just people who are around that I see across the way. And it’s like, I know we’re on the same lineup right now. But I’m actually 100% inspired by you and would sit under you any day. I’m like, don’t let this talk that I’m about to give about art make you think that I’m not obsessed with all of your work.

 

There’s many people like that, who I just see across the way and I’m like, Yes. Like Latasha Morrison. Yes. Those are some names. Both modern and a little bit older but, yes, I really pay attention to the leaders around me. And I’m like always listening.

Emma Tautolo  44:40

Dude, that’s brilliant. That’s a dope list of people.  To be to be influenced, inspired by, being shaped by … holy crap, that’s an all-star lineup.

Danielle Coke  44:56

That’s a conference I’d go to.

Emma Tautolo  45:00

I’m like, I’ll go to that conference. Where’s it at? I’ll sign up for all those people. Dr. Christina Edmondson. I live in Phoenix. And we’re bringing her out here to speak at an event we have. And I’m like, I cannot wait. Who can I bring from around the country of my friends to come?!

Michele Davis  45:18

I just started listening to the Truth Table Podcast where she’s just reading the Bible to me every morning. And it is like magical.

Dani Coke  45:27

Oh, yeah.

Dani Coke  45:28

It’s something about Black woman reading the Word. I didn’t realize how much I needed that. Wow. I’ve never really heard … outside of my mommy.

Emma Tautolo  45:28

It’s so good.

Michele Davis  45:43

Well, Dani, this has been truly inspiring. And literally filling up my tank with hope, and with challenge. And I’m really thankful for you. And I’m thankful for what the Lord has done in your life, and how, as he has filled you up with his love and grace that is spilling out to literally impact the whole world, I hope that … I really believe in that about your work. And I think one of the things that I’m really struck with too is what you keep going back to about living out who you are, and that you’ve done that. And you’ve demonstrated that really well, like, you have responded to the moment with the gifts God has given you. And that’s one of the things that’s really foundational to this podcast and platform we’re trying to create over here at Created For is to help encourage people to find their place in God’s story and to take what He has given them and build a better world. And so as we’re closing out today, I wonder what might be your final word of encouragement for that listener who is beginning this journey of figuring out what they’re created for in God’s story? What might you want to leave that listener with to think about today?

Dani Coke  47:02

I love that. I would say, I probably say two things;

The first thing I would say is, “Don’t be afraid of the moment when you get it wrong. Because you will, you’re going to get it.” But I think that’s beautiful. And that’s what I learned after an upbringing where I was consistently striving to be loved by God.

And then in a field now where one wrong move and you are canceled. You know, I think one thing I’d encourage someone to do is to remember missteps will happen, but you don’t have to be perfect to get started. And the whole existence of being a human, like, perfection is unattainable. My therapist told me that we’re living between two gardens, the Garden of Eden where we were perfect, and then heaven where we will be made perfect. And you are occupying the in-between; perfection is not attainable here. And as soon as you can let that just sink in and you accept and move forward, you will see, “Oh, I will mess up, I will slip but if God is calling me to this, I’m equipped and I’m capable. And as I try to wade through figuring out what this looks like for me, there’s all the grace in the world, all the grace.”

Michele Davis  48:26

I am just praising the Lord for Danielle Coke. Just so encouraged to hear her testimony about what God did in and through her life and how that’s brought her to where she is today.

 

You know, I have one of her designs on my wall, and it says;

“Diversity is the fruit, equity is the root.”

These wise words are even more meaningful to me now, having heard her talk about her testimony, how God has given her such a vision to use the gifts that He gave her to shine a light on what’s on His heart, and thinking about the power in the gospel to achieve true racial reconciliation. You know, Dani’s art is on shelves and Targets nationwide and on Target.com and it’s selling out fast. When you see it, you’ll know why; it really is beautiful and meaningful. And you’re going to want to pick up a journal or a calendar or a print today. That’s your to-do for the day.

Created For is hosted and produced by Cru. If you enjoyed this episode, subscribe, rate or review it wherever you listen. For more resources to continue your journey to living out your impact. Check out the show notes on our website cru.org/createdfor, and follow us on Instagram @_createdfor.

Thanks for listening.

 

 

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