BIO

Jessie Kinjo is a scientist researching and experimenting in molecular biology and flow cytometry. The research involves stem cells with properties that have the potential to help to cure diseases and quicken the healing of injuries. He is also involved with a prison ministry where he assists in church services for prisoners, Bible Studies, and more. Jessie Kinjo currently resides in California.

For more information on Jessie’s research, click here. For more information on the prison ministry, click here. 

INTERVIEW

Tell us a little bit about the path to where you are today.

I grew up in a stereotypical Asian home. It was always a huge culture clash growing up in California. My parents wanted me to stick to my roots but I really wanted to embrace my new home here. They always encouraged hard work and patience in everything I did. I learned very early that if you wanted something you had to compete for it with everything you had and no one was going to give you any handouts in this life. Spiritually I was raised first by my great aunt who was a missionary and then later by my parents. My teenage years to my young adulthood were just filled with rebellion. School took a backseat and I just barely made it through. God redirected me when I was in the midst of getting high and drinking almost every day. I barely graduated college but through his favor still landed a job. Since then He has been renovating my mind, cleansing my soul, and basically turning me into the man I was supposed to be. When people see me today they don’t believe I work in my industry because I am all tatted up and looking like a misfit. They see me as a tatted Jesus freak but when people hear what I have to say I hope they hear the words of a disciple of the Messiah, Jesus Christ.

What does a typical day of work look like for you?

A typical work day usually starts off with me brainstorming at my desk for an hour just to make sure I have everything prepared and ready for my day’s experiment. Then I throw my lab coat/biohazard suit on and get to it. Whether it is working in cell culture to model what is happening in the human body or doing molecular biology I try to do my best to answer the world’s burning questions through science. My work day doesn’t usually fit into the normal confines of a nine to five and could change from one week to the next. While it is exciting it always pushes my mental abilities to the fullest.

Did you have a specific moment when you realized that you wanted to work in science?

I was always kind of a science dork as a kid but it didn’t become a real career choice until college. I was in between jobs so a friend of mine hooked me up with a job in his lab and I have been working in science ever since!

What risks or hard decisions have you had to make to live unashamed?

In my industry there are not many believers. My faith in God most of the time is not welcome or appreciated. Sometimes I even get ridiculed. My faith gives me the strength to bear it all. A lot of times I have to exclude myself from certain projects and experiments just because they don’t line up with my morals and beliefs. While this creates a lot of friction and awkwardness between me and my coworkers I have to stick to my guns and do what I need to do. I try my best to remain confident that as long as I work with integrity God will continue to show me His favor.

What does the unashamed life look like in your context?

To me the unashamed life means being uncompromising, transparent, and genuine. I am uncompromising in my lifestyle in the sense that I won’t allow the world to define who I am. I am transparent because I know that I am cleansed by the blood of Jesus Christ, therefore have nothing to hide. I am genuine because I am proud that I am an adopted son of the Kingdom of God.

How have you worked through success? Failure?

I know that every step of the way God has been with me. I can honestly say he has taken care of my every need. In my success and failure He shows me how to be humble. I remember a time when I was unemployed and having a real hard time making ends meet. I was in a situation when I was on my last $50 and just really in a hopeless state. I was so discouraged because none of the jobs I was interviewing for seemed like it would work out. I remember after one interview I just sat in my car afterwards stunned and hopeless because the people had just asked me the hardest questions in the world. I didn’t even feel like driving home because I was embarrassed and convinced I had blown the interview. Just in the nick of time God blessed me with a job following those events.

Have you had any mentors along the way?

My ministry leader Arnold Carraway has been my mentor, brother, and friend since I have been going to my church Crossroads. He really takes discipleship to the umpteenth level so I am always appreciative that he has been investing the time to help me grow.

Do you have any favorite books?

I just finished reading Boundaries by Cloud and Townsend and I loved it. I think it will help anyone trying to balance their life. I also enjoyed Crazy Love by Francis Chan and Love Does by Bob Goff. Other books that have helped me are The Flinch by Julien Smith and a couple of Mark Batterson’s books. I am not ashamed to admit my weakness in different areas of my life. We are constant works in progress so I go and read how a fellow believer has experienced victory in that area of life. Their testimonies help me build mine!

What verses or passages in Scripture have sustained or encouraged you?

John 16:33 always brings a smile to my face. When I am down I get snapped back right to reality that Jesus already has overcome and that He desires nothing but peace in my life. Revelations 19:11-16 is a second favorite of mine. Jesus first came down humbly as a small child but this time he is arriving in all His glory!

Can you offer some encouragement to other unashamed believers out there?

I would say to be bold! When God gives you a dream or a vision for your life and community I say take hold of it and not let the naysayers get you down. We owe it to God and the people around us to shine brightly. When we bravely go out there it points to our Savior, Jesus Christ and makes His name famous.

“Therefore, my beloved brothers, be steadfast, immovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, knowing that in the Lord your labor is not in vain.” 

1 Corinthians 15:58

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