The Christian comedian and actress is reaching out with a message of encouragement in the midst of the coronavirus pandemic.
Chonda Pierce has about had it with social distancing, stay-at-home orders and the rest of the coronavirus-inspired restrictions that have turned normal life upside down. In fact, she even admits recently confessing to the Lord in prayer that she is "tired of this."
Not that she is sitting back just complaining about it, mind you. Last month - before the illness-related restrictions became so rigid - she put on an impromptu show from her living room couch together with fellow Christian comedians Jeff Allen, Ken Davis and Bone Hampton. The performance, which they dubbed Quarantined Comics, went out via social media and drummed up an audience of 60,000 people, and now she's up to four episodes.
Known as the "Queen of Clean" for her uplifting style of comedy that eschews the use of vulgarity or offensive humor, Pierce has been at it for decades and is at the top of her game. She is America's best-selling female comedian, according to the Recording Industry Association of America, with five certified gold DVDs and three that have achieved platinum certification...50,000 and 100,000 units sold, respectively.
That is not to say that her journey through life has been an easy one. As she mentioned in a recent interview with Pure Flix Podcast, both of her sisters died before she finished high school, her parents got divorced, her own late husband battled alcoholism at the end his life - she has been a widow now for nearly six years - and she has confronted serious depression, joking now that she got through it "with Jesus and my meds."
Pierce sums up her life experiences by saying, "I know what it's like to fight the dark." She also has not fought it alone, as alluded to above, relying on God and her Christian faith, and has always viewed the humor she delivers in shows and movies - she's got two of those in the offing: Selfie Dad with fellow Christian comedian Michael Jr., and Roll with It from faith-based director Chris Dowling - as a way for God to touch others through her.
"When Jesus really captured my heart and my soul, and I fell so in love with Him, I wanted to use it to open a door and use it for people to know Him."
She adds that while she is not big on technology, she is particularly grateful right now for the connectivity it brings. It is one more way for her to stay in touch with her fan base, letting them know, "they're not alone" during these uncertain times.
If you'd like to listen to the entire interview with the Pure Flix Podcast, and we recommend you do, just click this link. And you can check out Pierce's aforementioned Quarantined Comics performances over at her Facebook page.