Life, Values & Legacy: Our Chat with Cynthia Jones

We recently had the chance to connect with Cynthia Jones and have shared our conversation below.

Cynthia, it’s always a pleasure to learn from you and your journey. Let’s start with a bit of a warmup: What is something outside of work that is bringing you joy lately?
Joy is my grandson. I work from home and everyday I get to take time out, especially when he insists on playing, just for him. His smile lights up a room and his laughter makes the frustrations of the day fade away. He finds “funny” in pretty much everything. At 3, he is a complete jokester, from taking my hands of the keyboard when I’m working, to just staring at me until I stop working.

The work I do is important and I always feel like I moving from one deadline to another but my grandson doesn’t care about any of that. He just wants to sing “Itsy Bitsy Spider” or go outside and play in the dirt. It is a constant reminder of what is really important. Deadlines come and go but having the joy of my grandson around is priceless.

From the day he was born I remember thinking, “This is a totally different kind of love right here”. I love my son but my grandson stole the show. I felt that way three years ago and I feel the same way today. This little boy, came into my life and gave me what I didn’t even know I needed. That’s pure joy!

Can you briefly introduce yourself and share what makes you or your brand unique?
My name is Cynthia A. Jones and I am the CEO of Cee-Jay Ministries, Inc. We began feeding the hungry during the Pandemic. We were able to find other ministries and nonprofit organizations to get food and we then distributed it to those in need. We did this for about two and a half years. However, we were forced to distribute the food immediately because we had no place to store it, as much of it was perishable.

We are now working on getting our own building with everything we need in one place. We are planning fundraisers to help us on this next phase. Our biggest fundraiser so far will be our Community Yard Sale, which will be held in the Spring of 2026. Divine Design by CeeJay is our online t-shirt business. We sell faith-based and inspirational t-shirts and 10% of the proceeds goes toward opening our food bank.

Collecting food from other organizations is good but it is now time for us to have our own building, so we can collect, store and distribute food to those in need.

Great, so let’s dive into your journey a bit more. What did you believe about yourself as a child that you no longer believe?
When I was a child, I was very shy. I would have been perfectly happy, being invisible. I guess I just wanted to fit in, like most young people. I certainly did not want to be different. However, from some of my earliest memories, I did not fit in. I was always different and always singled out. At the time, I didn’t realize the uniqueness about who I was created to be.

I eventually found my place working in the background. Helping others achieve their goals by supporting and encouraging. When I had become quite comfortable doing that, things changed. I soon found myself being pushed into the spotlight, which was not where I wanted to be at all. First, it began with a request to teach a Sunday school class. My first reaction was, “WHAT”? “Are you crazy”? “I can’t do that”. He asked me to think about it and I did. I would have thought about it for decades if he would have let me! Eventually, he convinced me to be his assistant teacher; and yes, you guessed it, I taught my first Sunday school lesson.

It didn’t end there. A few years later, I heard a call to preach. Again, my reaction “What”? However, I surrendered. I have been working in ministry in some way for more than 30 years now. I’ve come a long way from that little girl who just wanted to be invisible. Being in the spotlight is still not my favorite thing to do but as long as I am following the path that Jesus has set, I surrender.

Was there ever a time you almost gave up?
Absolutely, yes! Almost everyday. Giving up is never an option though but it doesn’t mean I don’t think about it. Starting a business while running a ministry is no small feat—it’s a constant balancing act between vision and reality, faith and fatigue. The financial hurdles alone are a daily challenge and the constant search for new fundraising ideas requires creativity, persistence, and a whole lot of prayer. It’s a constant tug-of-war between vision and reality, from finances to emotional exhaustion, the challenges have been real and relentless.

People often see the public side—the events, the products, the outreach—but they don’t see the sleepless nights, the prayers whispered through tears, or the times I questioned whether I was truly called to this. However, I’m doing this because I was called. The call of God on my life is the anchor which holds me steady when everything else feels like it’s drifting. It’s the reason I show up, even when I’m tired. It’s the fire that keeps burning, even when adversity tries to blow it out. I can’t give up—because this isn’t just a dream, it’s a divine assignment. Therefore, giving up is never an option.

I think our readers would appreciate hearing more about your values and what you think matters in life and career, etc. So our next question is along those lines. Is the public version of you the real you?
Yes. I am about as real as it gets. The public version of me is simply an extension of who I am at my core. I don’t wear masks—I wear purpose. Whether I’m preaching, feeding the hungry, writing words of encouragement, or building my business, I show up as the same person: genuine, faith-driven, and committed to making a difference. I believe people deserve the real me, not a performance. So what you see publicly is just me living out my purpose, one act of service, one word of hope, one step of faith at a time.

Okay, so let’s keep going with one more question that means a lot to us: If you knew you had 10 years left, what would you stop doing immediately?
About 25 years ago, I was diagnosed with a serious heart condition and I was basically told to prepare to die. I wasn’t upset or discouraged because I knew I had a call of God on my life. My destiny hadn’t even really begun. So as far as I was concerned, this was not the end of my story.

However, after recovering, I realized life is just to short to worry about things that don’t matter. Slowly, I began to walk away from some things, some people and some relationships. If it didn’t line up with the call of God on my life, it had to go. For me, it was time out, for wasting time. If things were draining, exhausting or just no benefit anymore, it ended.

I wanted then and still do today, to fulfill my purpose. When I left the hospital for the last time, my commitment to the Lord was stronger because of all I had been through. The reason I survived is because of purpose and He still is not through with me yet.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.cee-jayministries.org/ https://divinedesignbyceejay.com/
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/pastorceejay/ https://www.instagram.com/divinedesignbyceejay/
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/cynthia-a-jones-26a540144/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ceejay471 https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=61576813433925