Jackie's Journey "Duty or Devotion?"

My oldest (Catherine) reading to my youngest granddaughter (Megan)…

 As parents, grandparents or parents-to-be one day, it is imperative to understand it is ONLY as we develop others that we permanently succeed.   Have we adequately prepared ourselves and our children to face the world with a godly world view or have we dropped the ball?

  There are going to be distractions and temptations along the way that will make the vital and continual necessity to consider the question,, “am I committed to my heritage or am I sacrificing the permanent on the altar of the immediate?”  What is really important to me?  Are there areas of compromise in my life that are exposing my true priorities?

 Did you know that “parents who read 1 picture book with their children every day provide their children with exposure to an estimated 78,000 words each a year. Cumulatively, over the 5 years before kindergarten entry, we estimate that children from literacy-rich homes hear a cumulative 1.4 million more words during storybook reading than children who are never read to.” 

 Can you imagine the impact of reading Voss’ “Bible for Children” to your child daily would be? Just the time sitting next to you while you read would be invaluable. Time singing and explaining simple truths of right and wrong, could begin to form a character that would one day make you proud.

 Are we aware of the fact that “nothing in all creation is hidden from God’s sight!  Everything is uncovered and laid bare before His eyes and to him we will give an account.” Heb. 4: 13  Personally, these words have always been a “call to action” for me! They have been a strong motivating force all my life.

 Our dedication to see our child prepared to face the worldly chaos with a godly worldview, will take a personal faithfulness to God (we are only stewards of these little ones entrusted to us), and it will be the benchmark of our permanent success.

 Where do your loyalties lie?

Duty or Devotion?

~Jackie Johnson - I am a former tribal missionary to the Kuna Indians on the Colombian border in Central America.  Fluent in several languages, my husband and I currently pastor a Spanish-speaking church in Southern California.  My passion is mentoring and equipping dedicated young women for life, marriage, motherhood, and beyond. I am the mother of two daughters and the grandmother of three Princesses and four young Knights. 

Jackie's Journey "Ignorance is Bliss!"

The Darién Gap: What to know before you go.

Wait… Maybe don't go…too late…

We went!

Inside the Darién Gap,

one of the world’s most dangerous jungles…!

“Ignorance is bliss”.  I’ve heard that said all my life.  Reality struck this week when reading on line about our location in the jungles of Panama. I am  going to share now, what I am sooo glad I did not know…when we headed up the Pucuro river to our Kuna village near the Colombian border in the Darien Gap!

 It all started the day we drove the Pan-American Highway, which is an epic 19,000-mile route that starts in Alaska and terminates in Argentina.  It’s continuous except for a small section missing along the southern border of Panama, often referred to as one of the most inhospitable places on the planet — this is the Darién Gap.

 It’s 66 roadless miles of dense, mountainous jungle and swamp filled with armed guerillas, drug traffickers, and some of the world’s most deadly creatures covering the border of Panama and Colombia. 

Just to mention few:

·       Fer-de-lance pit vipers (killed regularly)

·       Drug traffickers and FARC armed guerillas ( FARC kidnapped and killed our three missionary men out of our Kuna village homes)

·       Brazilian wandering spiders (pictured above; one made its way onto my sheet hanging on the clothes-line and then was carried into my house!)

·       Black scorpions (it took Ralphs size 14 army boot to kill the one under our bed!)

·       Jungle heat and dirty water (95 degrees and 95% humidity!)

 It brings me great comfort to know that God withheld this information from me. The Gap is most famous for: Things that will kill you.!  Who knew??  The list of deadly things inside the Gap is lengthy, and dehydration and starvation are the least of the obvious concerns. Instead, there were very real threats.

 The lawlessness and lack of residents made the Darién Gap a perfect path for drug traffickers of cocaine, fentanyl  and etc.  They passed through our village, using the  trail about 18’ from our house!  We had no idea who these strangers were and  would  offer food, drink and a place to sleep the night. Always with the intent of presenting Christ in the course of the evening.

Active since 1964, FARC (Revolutionary Armed Forces) armed guerillas dropped in by helicopter one day to terrorize us into leaving.  A backpacker from Sweden was shot in the head in 2013 and found two years later. Multiple others have been kidnapped for weeks or months after venturing into the Gap.

 Everything in the jungle is giant sized!  Spiders fill the jungles of the Darién Gap, but one of the most threatening is the Brazilian Wandering spider. “You’re going to have a really bad day if this bites you!”. This family of spiders (there are more than one!) has a leg span of five to seven inches. They wander the jungle floor at night and love to hide in people’s hiking boots, logs, sheets(!) and  banana plants. Bites from this spider can cause death in 2 to 6 hours.

Jungle scorpions look like they’re from another planet.  The black scorpion calls the Darién Gap home.  The one I killed under our bed was 9’-11’ long!  They live under rocks and logs and hunt for larvae and cockroaches at night.

The Darien Gap boasts of malaria carrying mosquitos, burrowing Botflies, Chiggars galore, an unreal volume of disease-carrying ticks, blood-sucking vampire bats, flesh-decaying trench foot, even undetonated Cold War bombs!  And let’s not forget the river crocodiles (I never saw one)…and snakes that hide in the massive tree trunks that grow into the river’s edge.

Even the trees teach a lesson to be learned, as the 8” spikes on the Chunga tree demonstrate. One brush against its spiny exterior introduces all kind of infecting bacteria, plus, a wound full of embedded spines.

So, the Darién Gap sounds downright peachy to visit, doesn’t it?

My husband used to talk to me, his “little much afraid”,  before our first trip to Panama,  about Jesus sending out the seventy-two with specific instructions to “count the cost” and then, he reassured me that they were “given authority to trample on snakes and scorpions and to overcome all the power of the enemy; nothing will harm (them) you.” Luke 10: 19 

With that promise we went and it was better than “peachy”…

It was the beginning of a journey with God that changed my life…

~Jackie Johnson - I am a former tribal missionary to the Kuna Indians on the Colombian border in Central America.  Fluent in several languages, my husband and I currently pastor a Spanish-speaking church in Southern California.  My passion is mentoring and equipping dedicated young women for life, marriage, motherhood, and beyond. I am the mother of two daughters and the grandmother of three Princesses and four young Knights. 

Jackie's Journey "What's Worth Dying For?"

During the reign of Maximian in the third century(A.D. 286), repeated persecutions were brought against Christians.  Yet the greater the persecutions, the more  the early church grew.

 One day Maximian ordered  all his armies to assemble near the city of Gaul.  Tens of thousands of soldiers were there.  They stood at attention to give a loyalty oath which included the killing of Christians.

 The captain of 6,ooo men, known as the Thebian Legion replied to this oath by saying, ”We  will fight and die for Maximian in battle, but we will not kill Christians.  We, ourselves, are all Christians.”  

 Maximian became infuriated.  He ordered their ranks to be decimated.  Every 10th man was killed by the sword.  The remaining legion still refused!  More men were killed until the entire legion was martyred for their faith!

 The tens of thousands who watched saw men who had something worth dying for.  Soon, thousands became converted, and in A.D. 313 the entire Roman empire adopted the Christian faith.

 These men were strong in God’s Spirit.

Their faith was grounded in conviction, not preference.

 We live in a time when our fear of God is at an all-time low and our love of the world and all it offers, is at an all-time high!  God wants us mighty in spirit, “’To be strengthened with might by HIS SPIRIT in the inner man.’”

 This means God’s Word is dwelling richly in us, we are sensing His presence and recognizing His promptings. We are alert to spiritual dangers that would draw us away from Him and His purpose in our life and we are discerning of wrong attitudes and ideas that would neutralize our ability to make decisions with godly convictions and His blessing.

If HE is worth dying for…

HE is worth living for…

~Jackie Johnson - I am a former tribal missionary to the Kuna Indians on the Colombian border in Central America.  Fluent in several languages, my husband and I currently pastor a Spanish-speaking church in Southern California.  My passion is mentoring and equipping dedicated young women for life, marriage, motherhood, and beyond. I am the mother of two daughters and the grandmother of three Princesses and four young Knights. 

Jackie's Journey "Faith Stroll?"

My granddaughter, Alexandra Grace, gave me the “Faith not Sight” and with its message comes, a promise of a walk unlike no other. It is in my kitchen and the daily reminder of a march of faith…like Abraham of old, “He went out, not knowing where he was going!”  When we left the United States and headed for the mission field , we had no idea where we were going.  We only knew that God had moved in our hearts to be His hands and feet to reach an unreached tribe in the jungles of Panama. With two little girls we, by  faith, found ourselves separated from family, friends and civilization.

 Faith became a series of “realizations “of  unknowns…and me, learning to see Him only…not my circumstance.  I got in the habit of asking myself…was God in control, or was I in His way? My    faith was becoming a daily stroll, rooted in his taking the lead and me learning to follow, without resistance, rationalization or excuse!  “Faith never knows where it is being led,  but it loves and knows the One Who is leading. It is a life of knowing Who makes us ‘go’”. Oswald Chambers

 Whether your faith journey is a health issue,  finances, a job loss, relationship divisions, or like me, a loss of a loved one,  the root of faith is the knowledge of a Person and his divine purpose in all that is going on around us.  For me the Person is my focus and the attainment of useful character for the benefit of His glory is the goal.  Will I be more profitable for the cross?

 “The life of faith is not a mounting up with wings, but a life of not fainting.” Oswald Chambers From  my early Christian life my faith has been tried and proved and because of His faithfulness…has stood the test.  Like Abraham…I believe God.  He’s got the plan.  My job…keep in harmony with Him!

 Have a great “faith walk” this week…

~Jackie Johnson - I am a former tribal missionary to the Kuna Indians on the Colombian border in Central America.  Fluent in several languages, my husband and I currently pastor a Spanish-speaking church in Southern California.  My passion is mentoring and equipping dedicated young women for life, marriage, motherhood, and beyond. I am the mother of two daughters and the grandmother of three Princesses and four young Knights. 

Jackie's Journey "A Divided Heart?"

Sometimes, don’t you just wish you knew the future?  Just a little heads-up?  Life is so full of obstacles, decisions, and the unexpected, it would be nice to know a little ahead!  Shortly before God called my husband home, he texted me Psalm 86:11 with the note…”Prayer for our family this week”.  This was the verse…“Teach me your way, Lord, that I may rely on your faithfulness; give me an undivided heart that I will fear your name (the beginning of wisdom).  I will praise you, Lord, my God, with all my heart; I will glorify your name forever.  For great is your love toward me; You have delivered me from the depths, from the realm of the dead.”

 In a way, this was prophetic.

He left this earth for his heavenly home the following week!

Ralph had given me the verses I needed to begin to journey on… before he left!

 An undivided heart is one that uses difficult and impossible times to demonstrate our commitment to God and those HE has called us to serve.  This is called LOYALTY. Loyalty is the bonding of individuals in a long-term commitment of sacrificial support and defense. Infidelity or unfaithfulness is total betrayal to God and our designed purpose.

 Each of us has loyalties to certain people or things.  We are all loyal to something!  We are loyal to things on earth(family, friends, money, job…) or we are loyal to things in heaven (rewards, abstaining from sin, godly relationships, walking in holiness, faithful in our witness and service). Loyalty is one thing a leader cannot do without.

 All day long we are making decisions that tell us where our loyalty lies and to whom!  It reveals what our mind is focused on.  We are to make our decisions based on two things:

1 – Am I loyal to the authority responsible for me?

2 – Am I standing with those I am serving in their time of need and making them first, more successful than myself?

 I guess the question is: 

Do we doubt God’s sovereignty during adversity

or do we draw nearer to HIM?

 Hence, my prayer for us this week…

“Relying on HIS faithfulness, give us an undivided heart”…

~Jackie Johnson - I am a former tribal missionary to the Kuna Indians on the Colombian border in Central America.  Fluent in several languages, my husband and I currently pastor a Spanish-speaking church in Southern California.  My passion is mentoring and equipping dedicated young women for life, marriage, motherhood, and beyond. I am the mother of two daughters and the grandmother of three Princesses and four young Knights. 

Jackie's Journey "Listen Up!"

Are you a mom?  Not yet?  I have been thinking about my life spent as a mother, first and then, a grandma and I am, as I am sure you are, desperate for our little princesses and young knights to be equipped to face the world waiting to devour them!  They will be required to be wise and disciplined, ones who understand the words given for help in direction and insight, able to willingly receive instruction in prudent behavior, ever learning to discern good from evil and accept guidance in making right choices, etc.

 Are we not urgently seeking answers in preparation?

 We get on google (the new ‘how to’), read books on how to love and nurture our little ones, etc.  We get pre-occupied with how our friends are raising their children. We join groups of young moms desiring instruction.  We ask, “What should be our goal for their benefit?  What works best in this  or that situation? What words should I use? How should I address this?”

 It is a huge responsibility!

 When all the time the tools are readily available and written in uncomplicated and straightforward terms…the work has been done for us, ladies.   It calls to us every day and screams for our attention to its clear teaching.

 Where…you say?

These tools are found in the Word of God.

If you feel you are too busy to spend time studying the Bible…

you ARE too busy!

I started reading Proverbs this morning and the first verses

give the key to attaining these desired goals mentioned above and

are written in one long sentence!

 “Listen children to your father’s instruction and do not forsake your mother’s teaching.  For attaining wisdom (is seeing life’s situations from God’s point of view and acting in harmony with HIM) and discipline (accepting trials as God’s fastest path to growth and giving thanks for it) for understanding (applied wisdom) words of insight; for acquiring a disciplined and prudent (projected wisdom; a person who thinks consequences!) life, doing what is right and just and fair; for giving prudence to the simple (without wisdom), knowledge (familiarity gained by insight to truth, experience and accumulated facts and reports) and discretion ( the God given ability to understand why things happen) to the young…let the wise child listen and be discerning (seeing through surface problems to root causes).”Proverbs 1:2-4, 8

 The definition of a word has a way of putting feet to its purpose.  God calls us to get in HIS Word, to call out for insight, to cry aloud for understanding and to search for wisdom as for hidden treasure. Proverbs 2: 3

 The reward is we will understand what God says is right and just and fair…”for wisdom will enter our heart andknowledge will be pleasant to our soul (our mind, will and emotions).  Discretion will protect us and understanding will guard us!  Proverbs 2:10

 I will meet you in the morning…

 Let’s read Proverbs this month…31 Chapters…one chapter a day

~Jackie Johnson - I am a former tribal missionary to the Kuna Indians on the Colombian border in Central America.  Fluent in several languages, my husband and I currently pastor a Spanish-speaking church in Southern California.  My passion is mentoring and equipping dedicated young women for life, marriage, motherhood, and beyond. I am the mother of two daughters and the grandmother of three Princesses and four young Knights. 

Jackie's Journey "First Impressions!"

HERE WE ARE! Address: El Rio Pucuro,

Nowhereland!

A year or so after moving into the Darien Gap in the jungles of Panama, I was asked to jot down my first impressions by our field leaders. To my surprise I read my notes in our New Tribes Mission Brown Gold Magazine (now called Ethnos 360) months later in May 1973.  A few days ago, I was going through some photo albums and found that same article.

 The purpose of the writing was to call attention to the desperate need to reach these unreached people tucked into little corners all over the world.  H.A. Roberts said, “The toughest challenges lead to the greatest triumph’s”.  The call is as imperative now, as it ever was then.  Here is that quoted article reproduced:

 Our village carved out of dense jungle.  My house has a tin roof in the foreground.

 Only 26 days ago we flew into El Real in an eight-passenger plane and we were picked up by the same dilapidated jeep that had met us 6 months before.  We headed to the waterfront, a short ride on a dusty, pot-holed, bumpy road that I viewed between my feet through the holes in the floorboard! 

We got as close as the jeep could go and then hobbled ¼ mile with 3-month-old Kim in my arms, 3-year-old Christina hanging on to my dress, three suit-cases, an infant seat to use in the floor of the dugout, and boiled water!

 We traveled an hour by dugout canoe to Yavisa for the night.  Next morning, at 5:00 a.m., we loaded the piraguas (dugout canoes) for our village on the river Pucuro.  We ate fish and rice for breakfast and began our 11-hour trip upriver.

 The winding river Pucuro!

 Hours passed and I couldn’t believe the beauty I was beholding.  The jungle is plush, full and spattered with green and yellow blankets of butterflies all along the way.  The first six hours were quick and, other than cramped arms and legs from protecting Kim from the beating sun and being sandwiched between our household belongings, we all fared well.  The last six hours were a real battle against our dry river and a swift current!  No less than twenty times Ralph and the others jumped into the shallow water to push us over rocks, etc. that worked like a barricade to delay our long-awaited entrance into the land of the Kuna people.

 Dry Season means shallow waters!

 Just before dark I looked up and saw brown bodies silhouetted along the sandy break in the jungle.  My heart began to pound as I realized I was about to face a people that had consumed our hearts and minds for over three years!

Would they accept us?

Would they grab my baby and run into the dark?

What should I expect?

 “My grace is sufficient…” flooded my mind as I yielded to His soft voice and relaxed!

 As we pulled into shore at 6:30 p.m. the people swarmed all over us. My fear came upon me, as somebody took Kim out of my arms and stepped away into the dark jungle.  In the confusion Christina lost her shoe and I felt Ralph tug on my arm to head up the bank to our house.  I called over and over in the dark for Kimi and at long last, somebody abruptly laid her in my arms while the others laughed.

 As we meandered up a narrow, overgrown muddy path to glimpse our jungle house, all I could hear was little Christina in her Daddy’s arms asking for her lost shoe! 

 Oh, for the simple trust of a child!

 In a few moments we stepped into our new home.  The dirt floor was cold, mainly because we were wet from our trip in, but too, it was dark and the river had filled the air with moisture.  The following morning, I opened my eyes to what looked like a storehouse with boxes, tanks, mosquito netting, etc.  Soon we were busy greeting people, finding suitcases with dry clothes, and hunting through canned goods and paper sacks for food to eat.

 Now, 26 days later, I’m looking back to the first “Congreso” (village meeting)where I drank my first Indian “chicha” (banana drink) from communal cups, the first days of helping women sweep the village where I obtained my four blisters on one hand, the initial jolt of a hairy tarantula spider on my laundered sheet, the adjustment to the intense curiosity of the people, the initiation of washing clothes in the river, the perpetual problem of children urinating in our house, and the mixed emotions of a protective mother.

 This evening, less than a month interior, we find ourselves with tape recorder in hand and a house full of Indians, struggling again to communicate the precious Gospel of Jesus with these still in heathen darkness.”

 Will you join me this new year?

Will you pray for tribal missionaries?

Will you pray for the need in the many still unreached tribes?

~Jackie Johnson - I am a former tribal missionary to the Kuna Indians on the Colombian border in Central America.  Fluent in several languages, my husband and I currently pastor a Spanish-speaking church in Southern California.  My passion is mentoring and equipping dedicated young women for life, marriage, motherhood, and beyond. I am the mother of two daughters and the grandmother of three Princesses and four young Knights. 

Jackie's Journey "WATCH OUT!"

In 2008, Angela Ramsey, a sweet friend, sent me these thoughts.  “We so easily forget the control our thoughts have over our lives, and the impact our words have on others.  By simply changing our thought process, our lives will become better and our words can positively influence the lives of others.

 As believers, some of us tend to have the idea that God should control our thoughts while we are on auto pilot.  Our free will tells us otherwise.  We should strive to be like Him and not allow our flesh to destroy us with the sharpest weapon we own......our tongue!”

 “Life and death are in the power of the tongue.” Proverbs 18: 21  Our words have the power to create conditions in our lives. In Panama when I was verbalizing my fears, my husband gave me a warning in a verse that spoke volumes to me because of all the unknowns surrounding me.  It is taken from the book of Job (3: 25).  Job said, “What I always feared has happened to me.  What I dreaded has come true.”

 What do you dread?

“Your words, which spring from your thoughts, have power to create conditions in your life.  
If you keep saying you can't stand your job , you might lose your job. 
If you keep saying you can't stand your body , your body can become sick. 
If you keep saying you can't stand your car , your car could be stolen or just stop operating. 
If you keep saying you're broke , guess what? You'll always be broke. 
If you keep saying you can't trust a man or trust a woman , you will always find someone in your life to hurt and betray you. 
If you keep saying you can't find a job , you will remain unemployed. 
If you keep saying you can't find someone to love you or believe in you , your very thought will attract more experiences to confirm your beliefs. 
If you keep talking about a divorce or break up in a relationship , then you might end up with it. 

Convert your thoughts and conversations into God-filled, power packed action of trust, faith , hope , and unconditional love. Stand back and wait for  your circumstances and situationsto change when you change the way you think and speak.”

Watch your Thoughts , they become words. 
Watch your Words , they become actions. 
Watch your Actions , they become habits. 
Watch your Habits , they become character. 
Watch your Character , for it becomes your Destiny .

 Have a great week!

~Jackie Johnson - I am a former tribal missionary to the Kuna Indians on the Colombian border in Central America.  Fluent in several languages, my husband and I currently pastor a Spanish-speaking church in Southern California.  My passion is mentoring and equipping dedicated young women for life, marriage, motherhood, and beyond. I am the mother of two daughters and the grandmother of three Princesses and four young Knights. 

Jackie's Journey "IT'S CHRISTMAS DAY!"

Illustration  from “A Royal Christmas to Remember” from The Princess Parable Series

 There is a story of a little princess who anxiously waited for the day of the Christmas pageant.  She was so excited about her part that her parents thought she must be one of the main characters, though she had not told them what part she would play. 

 The day finally arrived and her parents enthusiastically entered the auditorium and watched as each of the children was called to take their place.  The shepherds nervously waited in the corner of the stage holding two sheep.  Mary and Joseph were placed near the manger.  In the back were the three Wise Men eagerly waiting with a small camel.  Each and every child was placed in position…except for the little princess.  She contentedly sat quietly.

 The music started and the director began the narrative.  “A long time ago, Joseph and Mary went up from Galilee to be taxed. It was there that Mary and Joseph had a baby and they named Him Jesus,” the narrator began.   “And when Jesus was born a bright star appeared over the stable.  That was her cue!  She quickly jumped up from her chair, picked up a large, sparkling star and walked behind the manger, holding the star up high for everyone to see.  It flickered in the lights and all eyes were drawn to baby Jesus in the manger.

 The story continues and finds the shepherds in the field with their sheep.  That was her cue…the little princess moved into position on stage, wiggling the shiny star to show the shepherds where to arrive at the manger.  When the director mentioned the Wise Men…the little princess quickly moved to meet them and lead the way to the Christ child.  Her face was beaming as bright as the star she was carrying!

 The play ended with a round of applause and a standing ovation.  In the car on the way home, the little princess was happily chattering, “I had the main part, did you see?”   “You did?” her mother questioned.  “Yes” she said enthusiastically,

 “I showed everybody how to find Jesus!”

 This could not have been truer!  Showing others how to find Jesus Christ, the Savior of the world and to be the light that would draw them to Him has got to be the finest role we can play in life!

 May the Light of the Christ Child be your focus

this Christmas Season and throughout the New Year…

Payton, Jackson and Alexandra, Ralph and I, Catherine and Nikita, Christina and Philip, Philip’s parents, and Christopher

~Jackie Johnson - I am a former tribal missionary to the Kuna Indians on the Colombian border in Central America.  Fluent in several languages, my husband and I currently pastor a Spanish-speaking church in Southern California.  My passion is mentoring and equipping dedicated young women for life, marriage, motherhood, and beyond. I am the mother of two daughters and the grandmother of three Princesses and four young Knights. 

Jackie's Journey "It's Beginning to Look a Lot Like Christmas1"

♫ It’s Beginning to Look a Lot Like Christmas ♬

My granddaughter, Megan Joy reading “A Royal Christmas to Remember”

 In life we cannot anticipate what our future holds but we know who holds the future.  In the Princess Parable Series, our Christmas book, “A Royal Christmas to Remember”, finds our 5 princesses and 5 young knights blissfully busy preparing for the upcoming Christmas festivities.

 Opening the castle doors over the holidays is a tradition that opens the hearts of the entire village to the message of Christmas.  In an instant all their plans are dashed when a message of imminent danger arrives at their front door! The King instantly leaves with his knights to protect their kingdom.  The real meaning of Christmas quickly comes into focus. The girls choose to seize the moment of turmoil,  changing their destiny and bringing joy to their father and the whole kingdom.

 December has arrived here in California and the events and activities of the season are already in full swing.   Having our “castle doors” open to family, neighbors and friends is a tradition we welcome each year. 

 ♫ It’s truly beginning to look a lot like Christmas… ♬  

 In the midst of preparations and a very busy afternoon, I received an urgent call from Kim, my youngest daughter, who was teaching at an Elementary School a mile or so from our house.  The school had abruptly been put on “lock-down”!  There were policemen on campus and helicopters were swirling in circles overhead.   She was yet to be informed of the circumstances…was it a bomb threat, someone with a gun, …what??

 Her daughter Megan Joy was in the classroom next door huddled down behind locked doors and desks!  The teachers and students had been in this imposed silence and been inaccessible for almost two hours!   Frantic, my mind immediately went to pictures of Columbine in Colorado…

 Now that… is a wake-up call!  In an instant my holiday plans took second place to the more important, as my priorities slipped back into a more realistic focus.  Dr. Bob Jones, Sr. used to say, “Don’t sacrifice the permanent on the altar of the immediate!”  No chance of that happening here.  What could I do?  Where was I needed?  When would we know my daughter and granddaughter were safe? 

 As I watched and listened to the helicopters circling, hovering overhead, my curiosity overwhelmed me.   A song that comforted me in the jungles of Panama immediately came to mind. 

 ♫ He is my hiding place, He always fills my heart with songs of deliverance

whenever I am afraid, I will trust in Him … ♫   Psalm 32:7   “

 God is our strength and power and makes our way perfect.”  2 Sam. 22:33   Our sovereign God was in control and He brought His “peace that passes understanding” in the turmoil.  I began to pray “the God of hope fill you, Kim, with all joy and peace as you trust in Him, so that you will overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit!” Romans 15:13  

 One week from today families will gather to rehearse and celebrate the birth of the Savior of the world.  Christians will pause to praise their blessed promise and hope fulfilled in a manger bed.  Many will kneel and pray together giving thanks for His coming, His life and His sacrificial death in our place and His glorious resurrection.

 Will you be one of these?

 Somehow… that particular Christmas a few years ago

 was a singularly outstanding one for our family…

 A Christmas to Remember!

~Jackie Johnson - I am a former tribal missionary to the Kuna Indians on the Colombian border in Central America.  Fluent in several languages, my husband and I currently pastor a Spanish-speaking church in Southern California.  My passion is mentoring and equipping dedicated young women for life, marriage, motherhood, and beyond. I am the mother of two daughters and the grandmother of three Princesses and four young Knights.