Bestselling author, speaker, and ministry leader Annie F. Downs let her followers know Monday, Feb. 16, that she has “met a really good man” whom she loves and who makes her “so happy.” Downs said that navigating how to reveal being in a relationship as a public figure is a new experience for her, but she and her boyfriend, JW Jaeger, decided it was the right time to share the news.
“I’ve never done this before and I’m not sure how to now,” Downs said in a social media post. “So bear with me as I navigate having a private life and a public life too. But I’ve met a really good man and I want you to know.”
Downs said that she and Jaeger, who is a DJ and a touring drummer with Christian singer Charles Billingsley, met last spring at a Women of Joy event when bestselling author and speaker Lisa Harper introduced them.
“He slid in my DMs, tale as old as time,” Downs said. “We’ve spent tons of time with friends and met each other’s family.” She noted, “This relationship hasn’t been a secret.”
“I’ve never had this much fun in my whole life,” said Downs. “He’s the most humble, silly, kind, loving, hilarious, brave man I’ve ever met. He loves Jesus and fun and me. I love him too. It’s the best.”
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Annie F. Downs: ‘This Is a Hard Launch’
New York Times bestselling author and speaker Annie F. Downs, 45, is known for her popular “That Sounds Fun” podcast and a ministry centered on everyday spiritual formation and encouragement.
Downs has openly shared about her own experiences with dating, disappointment, and faith while single. In an episode of the “Heart of Dating” podcast that aired in April 2025 (right around the time Downs would have met Jaeger), she shared how in 2023 God gave her a clear invitation to be open with her experience as a single person and told her that her singleness was going to be for a season.
Downs said she did not assume that meant that she would for sure get married—because the season could end if she died or if Jesus comes back—but she clearly understood that God wanted to use that part of her life in a special way while she remains single.
