Jackie's Journey "Beware of Batting Your Wings!"

My husband has an office in the garage and occasionally a tiny hummingbird will fly in and spend two days fluttering frantically to get out!  We have both tried to gently coax its darting frame out the door, fearful that it might break its flickering wings, but it persists in batting itself higher and higher against the ceiling, until we finally give up and it drops to the floor exhausted!  Its continual struggle to get free is heart-wrenching to watch…but they are little soldiers…they never give up!

 Our current world-wide disorder, confusion and contradiction clearly defines the obscure position we are finding ourselves in.  Like the hummingbird, our brains struggle to make sense of it all and we look for a way out. With the national chaos in Afghanistan and local talk of “defunding the police” in various cities across our nation, I am curious to know how we will govern our country, homes, schools, churches, communities and lives.  We are at war and don’t even know it!  The greatest battle we are facing is in our minds.  It is easy to think we are just victims to our circumstances, BUT WE HAVE A CHOICE!  The panic, disrespect and anxiety that has over-taken our thinking is running amuck in the rhetoric of lie after lie. 

When I mention the terms “Law, Statutes, Commands, Ordinances, Judgements and Precepts” …what comes to mind?   Do you bristle at the thought?  Ever wonder what these are for or why God counts them important?  Are they necessary?  They are referenced all through scripture.  Lawlessness is becoming common place in California, with permission to steal as much as you can carry up to 900.00 dollars with no consequence.  Marijuana is legalized! There are is no law protecting the homeowner from breaking and entering, criminals are walking out of court and released from serving time and child trafficking is off the charts…need I go on?  

 What am I to think?  It’s all so negative and toxic!  How are we to cope with all the turmoil and uncertainty?  It doesn’t help that from the very beginning in Genesis, the fall brought broken fellowship with God and man, broken thinking, broken emotions, fear of death, rebellion, lies and much more.  We are told by self-help guru’s that “we are awesome”; this or that medication will take the edge off the mayhem and “we are beautiful and the world is getting better”! 

SAY WHAT???

 “All stress and anxiety can be traced back to three basic lies: (1) I am helpless (2) I am worthless (3) I am unlovable.” 2 Thess. 2: 9   There are more suicides among young people than ever before.  They believe one or all of these lies!  Scripture answers those lies with: (1) the power of the Godhead dwells in us…we are not helpless! (2) I was worth dying for…I have great value! (3) I am accepted in the beloved…I am VERY loved!  

 We are at war.  “Transform your thinking and you will transform your life.”  We are to “take captive every thought to make it obedient to Christ.  We demolish arguments and every pretension that sets itself up against the knowledge of God.” II Cor. 10:5     This is the battleground.  It’s a war.  We are warriors.  The choice is ours.  We are not victims. 

 Get to know these terms…they frame our thoughts…they are the remedy…

Line your thoughts up with God’s truth…

 “The law of the Lord is perfect…restoring the soul (the mind, will and emotions); the testimony of the Lord is sure, making wise the simple.  The precepts of the Lord are right…rejoicing the heart; the commandment of the Lord is pure…enlightening the eyes.  The fear of the Lord (fearing the consequence of sin) is clean, enduring forever; the judgements of the Lord are true and righteous.  Your servant is warned, in keeping them there is great reward.”   Psalm 19: 7-11

~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 "War-Torn, but Inimitable!"

On May 14, 1989 my two, then, teen-age daughters gave me an NAS monogrammed black Bible for Mother’s Day, that I have loved and protected, as a dear friend for over thirty years.  It carries within its once blank pages a wealth of notes as God spoke to my heart and taught me life-long lessons.  I am a prolific note-taker and this Bible is packed with names, stars, highlighting, hearts and steps of action searing its pages. I read the Bible through each year so you can imagine what it looks like!

 Four men arrived carrying a paralyzed man on a mat.  They couldn’t bring him to Jesus because of the crowd, so they dug a hole through the roof above his head.  Then they lowered the man on his mat, right down in front of Jesus. (Mark 2:3-4)   The note I have in the margin…” Who will you carry, Jackie?”  A simple reminder of a given responsibility.  

 J.B. Philips (my favorite Bible that carried me through college) wrote, “The danger to professing Christians lies not in more glaring and grosser temptations and sins, but in a slow deterioration of vision, a slow death to daring courage and willingness to adventure with God.”  If I have lost sight of my responsibility…. I have a definable loss of vision…and the notes go on…calling me into accountability.

 Whether you are single woman, a mom or grandmother, we each carry responsibility for the short life we live here. Life is simple…a stewardship, not an ownership; a trust and not a gift.  With a gift you can do as you please, but with a trust…you must give an account. (Eph. 2:10)

 As I slowly bend the pages of this war-torn Bible, I am reminded of the privilege we have been given to yield to HIS purpose and will in this life and how HE has given us everything we need to live a life that pleases HIM. (II Peter 1:2-3) No excuses for loss of vision or misuse of HIS gift.  His Word is the path through this maize called life.  The other choice…chaos and loss.

 What is your choice?

 “…every mouth will be silenced and the whole world 

held accountable to God.”  Romans 3: 19 NIV

~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 "The Battle of the Mind"

How many of you are struggling today with life?  Rest and relaxation have escaped your grasp and you are longing for relief. Your mind will not rest! The unknowns have overwhelmed you and you are confounded by the whole process of mentally resolving whatever is weighing on you. Preoccupation and worry have become your bedfellows and patience is a non-existent entity.  Would a vacation from your troubles do it?  Or maybe just a few hours alone, sitting on the warm sand at the beach? Whatever comes to mind with the word “escape” is where we are going this morning.

“I have been a long-distance runner for 6 years now. I run for the physical benefits, but even more for the mental benefits, a complete and total escape from my own thoughts. As I set off on my run early Tuesday morning, I found myself crippled with thoughts of uncertainty. As I began to feel like I couldn’t breathe, I walked a bit and then sat in the sand. My mind raced between focusing on the music playing loud in my ears and the beauty of the crashing waves in front of me. A woman walked past me, grinned, and then sat in the sand to my left. She introduced herself as Deception and proceeded to say, “I can see you are overwhelmed; it must be tough feeling like you can’t catch a break; everything just keeps going wrong.” 

I looked at her in disbelief. I thought to myself, “what an intrusive comment to make”. I then said, “You’re right, I am feeling overwhelmed, but I have so much good I can be focusing on.” The silence was deafening, as I began to mentally list out the ways God has blessed me greatly. 

A few minutes passed and another woman came walking up the shoreline. She, too, smiled at me and then, serenely sat down in the sand to my right. She introduced herself as Peace and then proceeded to say, “I can see that you are overwhelmed; you must find so much rest in knowing that God’s plans are currently at work and that even though you feel this way, you are exactly where He wants you to be.” I smiled at her and responded, “Thank you! That is a reminder my soul was craving to hear.” 

Then a third voice rang through my head, “Trust me” it said, with complete and total calmness. I leaned forward expecting to see a third person coming to sit by me, but I saw no one. As I shifted my gaze from the ocean to my left and right sides, I saw no one. 

Deception and Peace were not physical beings but rather the voices in my head. One fostering a mentality of self-pity and the other empowering me to lean into the Spirit. But who was the third? 

The voice of God. 

A voice so calm,

yet so powerful

that the other voices residing in my head were now silent.”

Most of us live our lives in “whirlwinds” of varying degrees of tolerance.  My granddaughter, Alexandra Grace, has again captured the battle we face within our over-taxed minds.  Deception is screaming at us from every side. God offers HIS peace to govern our lives, if we will let HIM. Col. 3: 15 The daily renewed mind, saturated in HIS Word, will lead us into peace that passes understanding in the midst of our chaotic lives.

I am submitting to that “still voice” this morning…

Will you?

Alexandra Grace graduated this past June, Summa Cum Laude in Business. She is pursuing her MBA from Liberty University in Lynchburg, Virginia.  The allegory was written by her for Professor Dracott at Biola University this past year.

Jackie's Journey "Eating Crow!"

Eating Crow is never fun!  If we never opened our mouth or spoke, we would not have to eat our words.  Words have the power of life or death. Pro. 18: 21 They can bless or curse.  They can encourage or bring despair.  

 William Boetcker was a Presbyterian minister in the early 20th century.  He once spoke on the seven “Mischievous Misses” of the tongue.  They were misinformation, misquotation, misrepresentation, misinterpretation, misconstruction, misconception and misunderstanding. I think he pretty well covered for all of us the areas responsible for our tongue troubles!  

 James, the half-brother of Jesus in the New Testament called the tongue a “fire, a world of iniquity”.  He compares it to the bit of a horse and a rudder of a ship. Both of these control and influence direction. We are to keep a tight rein on our tongue. Bridled speech manifests maturity.  Impulsive speech manifests the opposite. We all stumble in our speech at times.  We may say something unintended or maybe we meant to say it, but it created trouble and we want to take it back.

 Just like the bit and rudder control the horse and ship, our speech needs to be under control.  “How can you, being evil, speak good things. For out of the abundance of the heart, the mouth speaks.  A good man (woman) out of the good treasure of his(her) heart brings forth good things, and an evil man(woman) out of the evil treasures brings forth evil things.  But I say to you that for every IDLE word we speak, we will give account of it in the day of judgement.  For by our words we will be justified and by our words we will be condemned.” Jas. 3:34-37

 The point is we cannot “just share what is on our heart, as long as, what we say is what we really believe.”  “The heart is deceitful above all things and desperately wicked”. Jer. 17: 9 Our intent should be to speak as we are led by a gracious God who has our best interest at heart and has the success of the person we are attempting to help in focus. Advice is cheap, but if not regulated and controlled by His Spirit, we can be assured of having to “eat crow”. We are admonished to ‘let no corrupt word proceed out of our mouth, but what is good for necessary edification, that it might impart grace to the hearer. Eph. 4: 29  

 We can control Shamu, the whale at Sea World, but fail to take control of our own tongue!

We can either nurture blessing with our tongue 

or cause damage that cannot be undone.

 Which will it be 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 "Have You Run with the Footmen?"

As moms, we often find ourselves overextended, fatigued and distracted.  Having the schools open again would be a reprieve from the current state of continual answerability.  We find ourselves finding comfort in conversations with others in the same circumstances.  Overloaded and feeling out-of-control…these are the words that express our position, with blame and misunderstanding, the key tones for our troubled attitude.  The very word “endurance” conjures up more “long-suffering” with constant noise and activity! How does one reconcile the given responsibilities with the “tangle” we often find ourselves in?

 “If you have run with footmen and they have tired you out,

then how can you compete with horses?

If you fall down in the land of peace,

how will you do in the thicket of Jordan? Jeremiah 12: 5

 Failing to see the opportunity in our circumstances is paramount to “missing the motherhood-boat” entirely!  The sisterhood of our commission to the success of our children is a concentrated obligation with the job description written into it.  The task is hardy and we will be accountable.  The fruit of our investment and labor is known and read by all who come in contact with us and our children.  

 Frustration and failure are a part of the package.

 When the Confederate army retreated after Gettysburg, General Lee wrote: “We must expect reverses, even defeats.  They are sent to teach us wisdom and prudence, to call forth greater energies, and to prevent our falling into greater disasters…”  This is true of the individual life. There is no retreat.  We are at war for the hearts and minds of our children.  

 Thankfully, failure is the line of least persistence. Determination and perseverance are engraved on the heart of every loving and dedicated mom.  They are scripted with a call to excellence and excellence is never cheap.  It is costly. Constant care, serious preparation and continual application are required.  Excellence involves desire plus discipline plus determination.

 Let’s be found “running with the footmen” this week.

True to our calling and committed to enduring the course

for the benefit of those that will carry the banner into the next generation.

~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 "Life Unraveling!"

 “Though he slay me, yet will I hope in Him…Job 13:15”                               

Today we have the privilege of setting aside time to remember those who have laid down their lives for us to be able to live in the freedom that we experience daily.  I live with an army 82nd Airborne veteran and I am abundantly grateful, as we celebrate the liberties we have here in America. We need to note the sacrifice and do our part in seeing that those freedoms are not lost.  Today I was transported back to a day in the Darien jungles that brought thePanamanian Military into our remote community…

 Our village was tucked away near the Colombian border and we lived in the silence of the jungle and its peculiar sounds.   One late morning there was an unfamiliar roar in the distance.  A large military helicopter appeared and began circling our village, dropping low, looking for a place to land.  Before we knew what was happening, dust flew and the door slid open.  Men dressed in full military uniforms with machine guns jumped out and stormed into our house. Guns drawn, pointed directly at us, they began shouting commands with accusations!

 My life started unraveling before my eyes!  I quickly grabbed little Kim from her high chair and Christina came running, clutching my legs.  I reached down to reassure her, as Ralph stepped in front of us, whispering to me, “Remember, Jackie, this touched God’s hand first”.  

 We were being falsely accused of being spies for the United States and they demanded we turn over our only means of communication to the outside world…our humble two-way radio! 

I was trembling, imagining every plausible scenario of how we could be easily disposed of in the river and no one would know for months!  The truth that came surging into my consciousness was Job 13:15, “…though he slay me, yet will I hope in HIM”. 

 Still standing between the enemy and us, Ralph appeared calm and was resolutely responding in Spanish… “We are not spies from America.  We have permission from your government to bring medicine to help this isolated group of people.”  

                              How had this happened?  

What could we do?

 The next few moments stood still…their shouting gestures and my seeing no way of escape brought the verse in Job home to my heart.  I, purposefully, accepted His will, whatever that was going to be and instantly, peace prevailed.  What happened next was beyond belief!  To our utter astonishment, as abruptly as those militant soldiers arrived…they hastily, mid-sentence, without another word, turned and left!!  They did not ask for our passports or visas, nor did they take our rifles that were in plain view, hanging on the wall!  God had blinded their eyes and in an instant, redirected their path.

 In the aftermath of my processing through this current event, Ralph gave me a definition for “tribulation” that comes to mind every time I am faced with a trial and I just want it gone…no processing…just gone!  “Tribulation is God’s fastest road to maturity”.  Well… missionary life had definitely put me in the fast lane to grow up!  The more life I live, the more I realize how much growth I need!

 This is that definition in a “mathematical” formula that changed my life and the way I look at trials, inconveniences, suffering and contentment.  It goes like this:

 Trials + Acceptance of the trial with joy and thanksgiving = Growth/Maturity/Contentment

 I have two choices. I can respond to trials by:

(1) Benefitting from them! 

          The pressure of trials produces: (Jas. 1:2-4): 

§  Faith 

§  Patience

§  Perseverance

§  Maturity

§  Wisdom

§  Lacking Nothing! 

                                          OR

 (2) Reacting negatively to them emotionally, and locking down with:  Impatience, Fretfulness, Why me?, Depression, Complaining, Rebelliousness or Bitterness. 

  I choose to yield with gratefulness this morning and to recognize any form of tribulation, as a means to fulfill a greater purpose for my growth and the benefit of others.  

  What is your response? 

~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 "Stumbling Block!"

Stepping Stones

 We live in a world where we are bombarded with “acceptable sins”.  Almost anything is considered a “gray area” and totally appropriate in most Christian circles.  The philosophy that we address amoral things as normal is pervasive in our current culture.  Biblical truth is in direct contrast to this false viewpoint.

 As moms, we take great pain to ensure our little ones understand right from wrong. It is not a relative thing.  It is a God thing. He set the standard and they are unchangeable and inflexible.  There is no altering what He has established.  If we fail in our attempt to teach the difference to those following us (whether our children or people we are mentoring), we are called “stumbling blocks” and are guaranteed failure. 

 Where are the “gray areas in life?  Any area that we consider “gray” will be revealed as good or evil when we stand before the judgement seat of Christ. II Cor. 5: 10   There are choices in life that are not clearly defined in Scripture as right or wrong and are left to our own discernment.   We know that God is light and in Him is no darkness at all. I John 1: 5  Gray is a mixture of darkness and light and therefore does not qualify as part of God’s realm.  In fact, God condemns any darkness and exposes the reasons we are attracted to it and our need to reject it!  

 Scripture presupposes the fact that there are difficult decisions in life.  We are to “abstain from all appearance of evil”. I Thess. 5: 21-22  It is evil when my liberty becomes your stumbling block.  Our choices are to be based on what is right and what is wrong. The only way to discern good and evil is to be very familiar with God’s standard through His Word, understanding confirmation through prayer and getting counsel from wise and godly people.  If we “drop the ball” and negate our given provision, we become stumbling blocks and can be certain of wrong discernment and decisions. 

 Often, those who insist on “gray areas” are offended, defensive, argumentative, contentious, competitive and accusatory to those who would question a right or wrong activity.  It is a serious matter to realize that disregard for harmony between believers hinders the world from believing in Christ. There is, currently, division in churches and families over the last election and the controversial vaccine. Social drinking, legalized drugs, grounds for divorce, use of pornography, music, childhood behavior, life goals, family life patterns, defining moral purity in our current culture, …..are some of the battlegrounds of disagreement.

 Paul spoke of certain liberties that hindered another and would violate the law of love and therefore would not be good.  He says, “for you have been called into liberty; only don’t use liberty for an occasion to the flesh, but serve one another.”Gal. 5: 13 Our focus should be on how this activity will affect others, not what is good for us!  Light cannot have fellowship with any amount of darkness.

 “Let those who hope in You, not be disgraced because of me …

or those who are seeking You, not be put to shame because of me.

 (King David Psalm 69: 6).”

 Stumbling blocks will come, but don’t let it be us!

 Make us “stepping stones”…

~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 "Empowered Women!"

Today is International Women’s Day.  Women’s empowerment is a coined phrase that pops up and is used to describe our potential of influence.  Have you thought about your power of influence, lately? It’s a prevailing and formidable factor when realizing the promise of its reach!

 Because we are mom’s, we have the biggest responsibility and privilege of schooling and equipping our children in how to maneuver through life and one day be equipped with the character to be able to teach their own children.  Biblical wisdom will bring the fear of the Lord and the beginning of knowledge that will guarantee you and your child protection and success in life.  Proverbs is a textbook for truth regarding a person’s relationship to God, Oneself and Other’s.  It supersedes personality type and is designed to teach us to contemplate the fear of God and what it is to live by His wisdom.

 Each year I read the Bible through.  I read a Proverb of the day…there are 31 Proverbs…so in a month I have completed reading the book of instruction in Wisdom, Knowledge, Discernment, Discretion, Understanding, Righteousness, Justice, and Equity.  The purpose would be that understanding comes from increased learning which allows me to acquire Biblical wise counsel in knowing how to live as a godly mother with the power of positive influence. Proverbs 1:1-7  

 When the Author and Creator of All that is…gives me a manual or workbook, you can bet I’m in…and I’m on it!  My course was set many years ago and the simple comparisons between common, concrete images and life’s most profound truths has challenged me to look at life through another-worldly lense.  “Proverbs are simple, moral statements (or illustrations) that highlight and teach fundamental realities about life.” (John MacArthur)

As chaotic and divisive as our world is at this moment, there is still a book that is packed with help, instruction and teaching! The author, Solomon, gives insight into the tricky issues of life facing us today. I love this book because it clearly addresses the importance of imparting a pattern of undeniable absolute truth from generation to generation.  That speaks to this Mom!  

 What will I leave behind?

Did I do a good job with what was entrusted to me?

 My heritage (children and grandchildren) is “my truth”, to coin the popular phrase today…

How did I use “my empowerment” for the success of my heritage, to coin another popular phrase…?

 In the end it will ONLY be:

 Did I seek and find HIS TRUTH?

and was I EMPOWERED by HIS Spirit??

~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 Roadmap to God's Heart!"

Who wouldn’t want a roadmap to God’s heart in this day and age?  I was typing this study for my husband this week and thought you might like to peruse it.  It certainly put the “rubber on the road” for me.  It is so easy to get caught up in the “tyranny of the urgent” and lose sight of the permanent!  Since we will all give an account one day, this “roadmap” was a “wake-up” call…

 If I want to come to you, Lord, I understand that I must deny my selfishness and pride, take up the cross and follow You. Luke 9: 23 These are the biblical terms of Salvation. My husband proceeded to define this verse in these 14 statements:

1.     I surrender all my future plans to Your will.

2.     I turn my back on all the plans and hopes I have made for myself.

3.     I will do whatever, go wherever and become whatever you have in store for me.

4.     I, totally, shut the door on my old life to submit to the plan daily You have had for me from the beginning of time.

5.     I give up comfort and convenience to focus on Your will and purpose.

6.     I will, as the apostle Paul did, die to myself and my desires, to serve You and others.

7.     I will submit to the Holy Spirit to live the Christian life and to allow Him to do Christian service through me.

8.     I will take my place, as a slave of righteousness, an ambassador, a priest… in service to the You, the King, to pray for others.

9.     Sin, then, is defined as “not having our heart set on seeking the Lord”.  II Chronicles 12: 1

10.  “Direct me in the path of your commands, for there I find delight”.  Psalm 119: 35

11.  Thank you for the secret of growth and maturity. “Counting it all joy when I am passing through troubles and trials, so that my patience develops and matures me, so I do not lack anything.”  James 1: 2-4      

12.  Thank you for recreating me and having a plan for my life that really fits my deepest longings for fulfillment and joy. Eph. 2: 10

13.  Thank you for the clarity of Your will: “to love the Lord our God with all our hearts, mind, soul, and strength and our neighbor, as we love ourselves.”

14.  I know your Word says, “You reject all who stray from your degrees (laws), for their deceitfulness is in vain.” Psalm 119: 118

 (His NOTE:  This”roadmap” is beneficial in helping me effectively make known to people where they are spiritually.  They sense the conflict between the two natures and see how much they are personally resisting God.)

 Where do you see yourself and your need?

~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 "Unexpected Changes!"

We have certainly experienced vacillating shifts this past year.

How well do you react to unexpected changes in life?

Have you ever thought about the collapse of time? From the days of the Lord Jesus Christ until about 1830, man could not travel any faster than a horse. In 1960, a man went into space and traveled at a speed of 18,000 miles per hour. Look how far we have come in so short a time! Sometimes when I read the papers, I think we are trying to run the Space age with horse-and-buggy moral and spiritual equipment. Technology, you see, has no morals; and with no moral restraints man will destroy himself ecologically, militarily, or in some other way. Only God can give a person moral restraints and spiritual strength. While our world is shaking and crumbling, we need to realize that one thing will NEVER change and that is God. He is the same today as He was ten million years ago, and He will be the same ten million years from today. We are like grasshoppers; we appear and hop around a bit on the earth and then we are gone.” Billy Graham

  After Solomon’s death…there was division among the people because of their rebellion against God and the kingdom was divided into the Kingdom of Israel and the Kingdom of Judah… (sound like any nation you know?)

  “Then godly King Jehoshaphat stood in the assembly of Judah and Jerusalem, in the house of the Lord before the new court, and he said, ‘O Lord, the God of our fathers, are You not God in the heavens?  And are You not ruler over all the kingdoms of the nations?  Power and might are in your hand so that no one can stand against You…” II Chronicles 20: 5-9; 12b

 His prayer…Power and might are in Your hand, O God, and no one can withstand You…IF calamity comes upon us, whether the sword of judgement or plague or famine, we will stand in your presence and we will cry out to you in our distress and You will hear us and save us.”  He acknowledged, as we do today, that…

We have no power to face the unknown

We do not know what to do

BUT our eyes are on You, O God.

 When facing the constantly changing circumstances of life, we always have a choice.  Realizing change cannot be avoided and that it is not always comfortable or convenient is the first step.  Then understanding that God has a plan and that the fulfillment of His purpose comes when our trust is solely and confidently placed in Him alone.

 How will you deal successfully with the changes coming your way this year?

 “For I know the plans I have for you, declares the Lord, plans to prosper

 you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.” (Jer. 29:11)

 The next time you find yourself in a bad situation or are perplexed by a difficult decision, remember…

“Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid or discouraged…

there is a greater power with us.

This battle is only the arm of the flesh, 

BUT with us is the Lord our God to help us

and to fight our battles. 

 Our confidence is in God!” (II Chronicles 32: 7-8)

…The God who NEVER CHANGES!

~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.