Divorce, Trauma, and Church Hurt—But Still Called to Greatness

COLORING HOPE AFTER BROKENNESS: TONI COLLIER’S MESSAGE TO THE WORLD
PERSONAL BEGINNING

For Toni, brokenness is not the end of the story. It is the beginning of a new one. As a speaker, author, and founder of the international women’s ministry Broken Crayons Still Color, Toni has made it her mission to show women that even after pain, trauma, and disappointment, there is still hope, healing, and beauty to be found.

Her own story began with crayons. “I was in such a hard season, walking through a divorce(From a pastor who was serially unfaithful,) leaving a church home I loved because of spiritual manipulation, and just feeling sad and broken,” Toni recalls. “I bought my daughter a 64-pack of crayons and coloring books, trying to create some beauty in our world. She was two at the time and she destroyed everything—broke the crayons, ripped the clothes off the dolls, made a total mess. Later that night, I saw a random graphic on Instagram that said, ‘Broken crayons still color.’ I just knew it was from God. I preached a message on it, and people started calling me saying, ‘Do that at our church.’ And it became my rallying cry. The rest is history.

THE BIRTH OF BROKEN CRAYONS STILL COLOR

That phrase grew into a global ministry. Through Broken Crayons Still Color, Toni helps women process trauma with honesty and faith, reminding them that brokenness does not disqualify them from being used by God.

“There are women who are brave and loud with their stories, but there are also so many who think, ‘If I tell the truth, people will leave me. They’ll never see me the same,’” Toni explains. “I wanted to go after those women, because I was one of them. I wanted to show them through my story that when you’re honest about your brokenness, God’s power shines through in such a beautiful way. That honesty also lets people step in and help fill the gaps. It creates a cycle of brokenness, honesty, healing, and freedom. And I want every woman to experience that.”

DON’T TRY THIS ALONE

Her latest book, Don’t Try This Alone: How to Build Deep Community When You Want to Hide from Your Pain, expands this message even further. Toni knows how easy it is to isolate when you are hurting, but she insists that healing requires a trusted community.

“It’s very difficult to heal in isolation,” she says. “We don’t see everything. But when we have trusted people around us—counselors, friends, prayer warriors—they notice what we miss. We trust doctors to operate on us, trainers to make us sweat, even eye doctors to dig into our eyes, but when it comes to friendship, we suddenly don’t want to be vulnerable. That’s backwards. We were designed to let people see us, to help us. Real community is where true healing happens.”

Don’t Try This Alone equips readers to build those communities, recognize safe people, and allow others to walk with them through the valleys.

EMBRACING PAIN AND HOPE

Central to Toni’s message is the belief that we were designed to hold both hurt and hope.

“Our brains are literally designed to hold grief and gratitude, pain and joy,” she says. “If we teach people they can only feel one thing at a time, it crushes them. But if we give people permission to grieve and be grateful, to hurt and still be hopeful, they survive more. They actually stay. That’s what saved me in my darkest seasons—being able to laugh with friends even while grieving, to wake up and still see things to be grateful for.”

Her message dismantles the false choice between sadness or joy, showing that both can coexist and that permission is what allows people to move forward.

LASTING IMPACT

At the core of Toni’s ministry is the belief that life is meant to be lived in full color. “A colorful life is an honest life,” she says. “We get to be honest about our feelings, red for anger, blue for sadness, yellow for joy. When we are honest about where we are, we become more human and more honoring of others. Even in my darkest moments when I felt like I had no color left, I remembered my daughter on the floor with broken crayons, still creating beauty. That is how I want to live—still coloring, even with broken pieces.”

Through her books, podcast, speaking, and ministry, Toni has become a voice of honesty and hope for women everywhere. Her life proves that scars can become stories, pain can lead to purpose, and even broken crayons can still color a masterpiece.
 

For more information on Toni Collier or purchase her books! click the LINK!  

CREDITS

Founder: International women’s ministry and organization Broken Crayons Still Color, which helps women and children process through brokenness, find hope, and pursue healing, Speaker: Regularly speaks at major conferences and events including North Point Community Church, Chick-fil-A, IF: Gathering, Orange Conference, and MomCon, Podcast Host: Creator and host of the Still Coloring podcast, Author: Don’t Try This Alone, along with several other resources centered around trauma, faith, hope, and healing, Consultant: Worked with organizations on creative marketing, leadership, student ministry, and strategic planning.