Meet Patti Rokus

Contact: 

Contents:

  • Bio
  • Speaker Sample
  • How Rock Art Emerged
  • Interview Questions
  • Images

————————————

Bio:

Patti Rokus is a nature girl who celebrates God by telling His stories through rocks and pebbles.  (more below)

Watch the rocks come alive as Patti tells her story:

An accidental artist and best-selling author, she creates simple but profound rock art that brings the timeless stories of Jesus to life, uncovering unexpected beauty and meaning in nature’s humble stones. When she's not in the mountains with God, looking for more rocks that want to tell of Jesus, she serves as an international nature guide, soul coach, and transformational speaker. 

Jesus said in Luke 19:40, “If the people go silent and stop praising God, the stones will cry out.”  Patti carefully gathers rocks that seem to "speak" to her as she hikes through the Pacific Northwest, of the USA.  She arranges them into images that celebrate God’s love and healing power, telling the stories of Jesus in a way that feels as ancient and eternal as the rocks themselves.

Patti's art invites everyone to see themselves as cherished children of God—eternal and powerful; feeling the joy and contentment of discovering who they truly are. Since nature is where she feels joyfully connected to heaven, Patti believes that God has given her rocks and pebbles as her unique way to share the precious truths of life. 

Her best-selling book series, published by HarperCollins/Zondervan, brings the Bible to life in a simple, visual way—from the Nativity to the Holy Week, and the unlikely heroes of the Old Testaments. The third book in the series uses the ancient stories to encourages readers to discover the power of walking with God in trust and love.  Currently, she’s creating the artwork for her next book, focused on the miracles of Jesus.

Born and raised in the woods of Oregon, Patti’s earliest memories are of wandering among trees and streams, falling in love with the wonders of nature. Although her career path led her to manage tech projects for companies like Nike and Microsoft, her heart eventually brought her back to her true loves—God and nature. She still regularly heads out on solo camping trips to the most beautiful places in the world to walk with God and gather more art supplies – rocks and pebbles, and the occasional pinecone or twig.

Patti’s greatest hope is to help others feel their true worth as children of God, experience healing, rediscover joy and be who they really are. She loves songwriting, animals, and any moment spent outdoors, where she can re-discover God again and again, surrounded by the artistry of His creations.

PattiRokus.com

Bring Patti to Inspire Your Audience: 

Patti is committed to helping us love God and partner with Him to find greater peace and power in our lives. Her speaking engagements and online presentations are filled with rock art demonstrations and stories of unexpected serendipity that has led to a very unexpected life. She is also a singer/songwriter, and a personal coach.

Watch Patti Tell Stories with Rocks:

The Chosen and Rock Art:

Patti tells how the rock art emerged:

The first rock pictures came together in 2016.  Each one of those rocks called out to me as I hiked through the forests and streams of the Pacific Northwest during a solo camping trip. I couldn’t resist holding each one, and soon my pockets were heavy with treasures that eventually filled my bucket. I didn’t know why I felt so compelled to take them home, but I did feel like a child again, reveling in the beauty of simple things.

Finishing my trip with a visit to Mom’s house, free from the regular routine of life, I indulged in a morning of no expectations, and quiet, childlike wonder as I dumped out my bucket of rocks on Mom’s back porch and mindlessly pushed them around. One rock looked distinctly like someone kneeling, so I put a round rock above it as a head—and saw Mary bowing before an angel.

Surprised by this obvious likeness, I wondered what an angel would look like as an ordinary rock, and there in the pile it emerged. With six ordinary rocks, a miracle shined through. I ran upstairs to find Mom and show her my discovery. We spent the morning together moving rocks around until we found the entire Christmas story in that one bucket of rocks. 

I wondered if each rock was shaped over time for this very moment—to represent Mary or Joseph, an angel, or even our Savior. Jesus Himself told the Pharisees that if His disciples “should hold their peace, the stones would immediately cry out” (Luke 19:40) to testify of Him. And so they do in this book and in all of nature.

Could it be that we’re like that too—designed for significance that we cannot begin to imagine, and that will inevitably be so, not by our own making, but by a power much greater and more loving than we ever imagined?

Nature with all her beauty, diversity, and majesty will always be an important source of my connection to God. I start feeling small and disconnected when I’m too long from a walk in the woods. The wonder I feel among the trees and the earth cannot be explained and is reserved only for the soul who steps foot and heart onto her ground. Anyone can share in the abundance of the outdoors and be filled up with the peace and contentment of becoming part of her grandeur. 

"Into the forest I go to lose my mind and find my soul." -John Muir

Glacier National Park (Avalanche Lake)

Interview questions with Patti to spark meaningful conversations and stories

General Questions

  1. You went from the corporate world to making Bible stories out of rocks. That’s not a normal career path — how did that happen?
  2. You’ve said that sometimes rocks seem to call to you when you’re hiking. What is happening in those moments, spiritually and emotionally?
  3. You've experienced miracles in finding just the right rocks for a specific story—could you share one of those stories?"
  4. How did you feel when you discovered the scripture where Jesus says the stones would cry out (Luke 19:40)?
  5. What is the most surprising or unexplainable experience you’ve had while creating one of your rock art stories?
  6. Have you ever had a moment when you realized your art was reaching someone who normally wouldn’t listen to a sermon or read scripture?
  7. What advice would you give to someone who feels like they’re searching for purpose or meaning? How can nature play a role in that journey?
  8. What excites you most about your new book about the miracles of Jesus? What do you hope readers will take from it?
  9. You hope to help people experience healing and rediscover joy. What role do art and nature play in the healing process for you and others?
  10. You’ve created 4 picture books and hundreds of videos with rock art. What keeps you going?
  11. What is the most surprising or unexplainable experience you’ve had while creating one of your rock art stories?
  12. You say that rocks and pebbles are God's art supplies. Why does that matter to you?

Book-Specific Questions

Easter Book:

  1. When the publisher asked you to create an Easter Picture book, to explain the atonement of Jesus Christ to children, were you overwhelmed?
  2. What was the hardest, most emotionally taxing scene to make?
  3. You’ve said that God was teaching you important life lessons through the rock art.  Can you share what you’ve learned?

Old Testament Book– How to Walk with God and be Powerful

  1. With all the stories and possibilities to choose from, why did you choose the Old Testament for your 3rd picture book?  Why not stories of the NT, the New Covenant of Jesus?
  2. What stories brought you the most joy to create?

New Testament Book – The Miracles of Jesus

  1. Your 4th picture book is coming out this Christmas—“The Miracles of Jesus.”  You say it’s your favorite of them all.  Why?  (John 14:12. After showing us who He is and what He can do, he said, “Greater miracles than these will you do.”)
  2. Tell us how God helped you create a picture of one His miracles, with rocks.

Images

  • Patti’s Head Shot
  • Patti with Children
  • Book Images
  • Art Images
Patti Rokus Headshot

 

 



     

     

     

     

    Why do rocks matter? The Deeper Meaning

      Create Calm in Turbulent World

    Overwhelm and underwhelm are depressing us.  Our lives are over stimulated and under purposed.  We’re bombarded with constant engaging content, and yet we’re unsatisfied. Like cotton candy, it tastes good, but the huge ball of yumminess disintegrates into nothingness once we eat it.

    This lack of emotional, mental, and spiritual nourishment has consequences.  We see the effect in the increased anxiety, depression, self-harm, rebellion, and illness all around us.  There is a remedy.  The more we can quiet our minds, reduce the constant noise, limit the shallow connections to others, and connect with our hearts and with God, the more we find peace and contentment. And once we find that connection, we will desire to love and find ways to give of ourselves.  Authentic connection to God, ourselves and others is what we all hunger for.  A life of constant motion and noise will not get us there.

    Nature and her gifts, such as rocks, can be a catalyst for us to find wholeness again.   Rocks can be a way to deepen our connection to God and to ourselves.

    Patti Rokus offers a simple way to play, relax, and reconnect to ourselves and to God. Finding, organizing and creating with common rocks and pebbles is a calming activity that opens space in our hearts for God to enter and fill us with love.