Jackie's Journey "BROKEN HEARTS!"

“This past Wednesday was Valentine’s Day. The “heart” narrative and symbols of that day got me thinking.  We are told that it is totally acceptable to trust and follow our heart.  In fact, we are taught that our heart can decide what is right for us! A person will leave a church and say, ‘I did not feel right in my heart there’. A man may leave his wife and children for a younger woman saying, ‘My heart was not in my marriage any longer’”. (Letgdbetrue)

 What about the young couple who is confident of a life-partner because they are “following their hearts”? The phrase “I’m going to follow my heart” is used regularly to validate violations of moral, ethical and scriptural principles when decision-making.

 I recently listened to an audio, sent by my granddaughter, Alexandra Grace, that was so on point regarding the use of the word “heart”. How often do we hear the advice, “just follow your heart” when facing difficult decisions? Or “You can trust your heart”…

 This past week was Valentine’s Day. It seems appropriate to address issues of the heart.  This blog is taken from Proverbs 28: 26 and “heart” is used as a metonym for affections, inclinations and thoughts.

 “He that trusts in his own heart is a fool:

but he who walks wisely…will be delivered.”

 “Your heart is your internal set of desires and needs that affect your decision-making.  This is not your conscience.  This is your anti-conscience!  This is the set of passions that drives most men and women. God has spoken about our heart.   He said, ‘The heart is deceitfully wicked above all things and desperately wicked: who can know it?’” Jer. 19:9 (letgodbetrue)

 The fact that our heart has an opinion and passion about everything and reacts instantly to what it wants, should be our first warning sign in decision-making.  “If you follow its direction, you are a fool! If you listen to your heart, you are a fool.  If you follow your heart, you are a fool.  If you make decisions even partially influenced by your heart, you are a fool.  You are submitting to the most deceitful, depraved and dangerous source of information on earth.”

 Now that we have stated the obvious…it is clear that 

we are our own worst enemy…

 What are we to do?

 At the fall of man in the garden, all affection for God, spiritual truth and wisdom died. Our desires became corrupted…no longer a desire to seek God, please God or obey God. We took on a new leader who is bent on destroying us; who came to do three things: steal, kill and destroy us.. (Jn. 8: 44)   Steal our joy, opportunity…; kill our bodies…; and destroy our relationships, vision and destiny.  He tells us our heart, which is led by feelings, lust and arrogance of our own thoughts, will lead us. We are fools to believe that plan, let alone follow it! “We do not have the right to our thoughts; but we do have a responsibility to right thoughts”! (Letgodbetrue)

 “True wisdom is learning to mistrust your heart, reject its voice, and make all decisions on the basis of absolute and objective truth.

 Where is the source for such fabulous decision making?

 In the inspired words of the living God recorded in the Bible! It is learning God’s words and training yourself to make decisions based on them that you can be wise and saved from the deceitful impulses of your depraved “heart”. (letgodbetrue) Fearing God and asking God to direct our footsteps according to His word is the beginning of wisdom. (Psa. 119: 133) This is the key to being delivered from the pitfalls and obstacles that clobber and confuse those who have chosen to “follow their heart” … “The degree of our wisdom is the degree to which we can crush our ‘heart’ to submit to the words of God in the Bible”! (letgodbetrue)

 How wise are you?

~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 "NEVER-ENDING CHALLENGE!"

Wednesday is Valentine’s Day!

Women all over America look forward to this day

that is set aside to receive and to share

our devotion by gift-giving and celebratio0n.

 A child is the most undeniable gift given to us…and “to him who is given much, much is required”. This verse from Luke 12 is a call to action and we, women, are being given the endless challenge of our lives!

 My first child, Christina, was born during our missionary training in Boot Camp. I sat on an imaginary precipice with a volume of great practical and biblical preparation and instruction, facing a world of unknowns and in my arms…the unbelievable responsibility of a new, beautiful, precious child that was pure magic…

 That tiny loving and compliant daughter brought such joy into my life.  I was sure my heart would burst!  She also brought a fear of failure, because I know me…the real me…and I knew I could not do this job right.  God gave me a wonderful promise verse during this time that I claimed for my own.  “Faithful is He who called me, who will also do it (ifI get out of His way!).”

 Over the years, I have drawn strength from God’s promise in that verse and I have journaled these truths… both my failures and God’s faithfulness.  The only part of us that goes on and carries us into the future when we are gone is found in our heritage.  They “will pass the baton” of our beliefs, our character, our philosophies, our ideologies, etc., into the next generations.

 Motherhood is the most significant investment we will make in our lifetime!

 “Without a vision, the people perish.”  What is your vision for your child?  Do you believe that God laid out a plan for your child’s life, taking into consideration his personality, engiftment, talents and abilities?  Are you convinced that God knows best? 

 What goals and priorities have you set in order to see that vision fulfilled?  Does your husband share that vision? “We have been created in Christ Jesus for a life of good works that HE has already prepared for us to do.” Can you hear the intention and resolve in that verse?

 Each child God has entrusted to us has a personal destiny and designed purpose.

 What is your commitment?

 Our investment today will determine the fulfillment of tomorrow.

“…to whom much is given, much is required.” (Luke 12)

 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 "Don't Worry...I've Got Your Back!"

A protective Panamanian sloth high up in the tree-top!

 “I’ve got your back”…we love those reassuring words. Mom’s are great, aren’t they? They always have our back.“ God said, I will show them ‘my back’ and not my face…”  in Jeremiah 18:17.  NOT reassuring words.  In fact, I can’t think of any words more distressing than to have the Creator of the universe turn His back on me!  The Israelites had exchanged their first love of God, forgotten Him and chosen instead disobedience and idolatry.  They were proud, stiff-necked and against God’s ways…

Sound like anyone you know?

 Jeremiah, the weeping prophet, speaking from the Potter’s house to the people of Judah and those living in Jerusalem, receives a message from God.  These people had ignored God and the consequence of their sin came with the words, “I will scatter them before their enemies and ‘I will show them my back’ and not my face in their day of disaster”!! Jer. 18:17

 In those days people from many nations passed by and asked, “Why had the Lord done such a thing?’  And the answer was: “Because they have forsaken the covenant of the Lord their God and have worshipped and served other Gods.’”

 In this day the “song and dance” is the much the same.  Our very culture is full of seekers of pleasure, people of entitlement, and the masses consumed with their own ways.  Our biggest enemy is…US!

“How do I know?” you ask.   Look around.  What do you see?  Wars and rumors of wars, international uncertainty, disorder, lawlessness, absence of strong biblical leadership, broken homes and relationships, independent and divisive spirits, debates on gender, spiritual deadness, lethargy toward good works and service, self-first mentality, absence of hospitality, (me first…gimme’ mine!)…just to mention a few…

 What did God do when the Old Testament nation of Israel decided to walk contrary to His plan, purpose and way?  My grandson, Christopher sent me a verse from Proverbs from Chapter 1.  God said, “…they will call to me but I will  not answer; they will look for me but will not find me, since they hated knowledge and did not choose to fear the Lord and would not accept my advice and spurned my rebuke…” 

 We all want the protection and safety, but often choose the consequence of disobedience and compromise.  The day is coming when we will be held accountable, as individuals and as a nation.

 Do our convictions line up with what God gives us in His Word

or has the world drawn us away to drink the cool-aide?!! (Jim Jones)

My grandsons, Payton telling Maverick while attempting to climb the stairs…

”We can do this…I’ve got your back…let’s go!”

~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 "Imperceptibles!"

There is a group of people that are basically

imperceptible in our culture…

 Do you know who they are?

“Is not wisdom found among the aged? Does not long-life bring understanding?” Job 12: 12

 Regardless of our involvement in the lives of our children and grandchildren, they reach an age of development (if we have done our job) where their need for us lessens.  They now have their own friends and activities that occupy the time that was once ours!  Life is a whirlwind of academics, team sports, community outreach, horses, piano lessons, theater and musical practices and performances, tennis coaches and tournaments, swim practices and meets, church youth group activities, bible studies, revivals, camps, mission  trips, etc.…!

 Finally, one day… they get drivers licenses, go to college and… get married!

 Keeping pace with all of this is a tremendous challenge…for all of us!  I am a grandmother of seven; my mother, at 101, was a great-grandmother of 25 great-grandchildren! She lived on her own, cared for herself and was alert with a memory that would put an elephant to shame!  She gave new meaning to the verse in Job 12.  There are very few topics that have applicability to our everyday life, that if asked, she could not wisely put in perspective, yet she often felt invisible and spoke of her sense of loneliness and need to keep relevant.

Christina, my eldest daughter, Mom (100 years old) and I

 I have thought about her statement and Job’s proclamation and wondered why in our 21st century culture the advanced in age feel they are being set to one side, listened to less and invisible in a large group of the younger generation.  

 These vital soldiers have earned their place among those that should be the most honored, respected and valuable in our culture. Titus 2: 3-5 admonishes “the older women to be reverent in the way they live and to train the younger...”  There is so much to be gleaned from these seasoned veterans that have gone before us, paving the way.  We will quickly step into the print they have left behind!

 Our local churches defer to the younger generation. The young fill the jobs in women’s ministry and teach the even younger.  They no longer turn to the older generation.  They have been replaced with quick and empty answers found in the latest technology, social media and their peers.

 BUT…“Is not wisdom found among THE AGED”?

 While in Panama, our good friends, the Jenkins, a couple with perfect pitch and harmony, put this definition below to music.  I have been humming it for years and sing it out loud when my natural inclination to think “I’m all that!” overrides what Scripture says should be my godly point of view!

 Reverence is acknowledging that God is using in my life,

people and events to produce the character of Christ in me”. (Gothard)

It is wisely looking at life’s situations (all of them!) from God’s point of view, not my own.

 THEN… the warning:

 Soooo… be wise my son (daughter), heed my instruction (instantly placing myself in harmony with Him and His will and directives), leave that road that leads to destruction, hallow my name don’t walk in shame…Proverbs 23: 17,18

 I want to be a wise mom, wife, grandma and whomever else I am purposed to be.  That means I am commissioned to look at all of life’s situations from God’s point of view and get out of His way. There is no way I can produce reverence and wisdom apart from Him.  He uses the people and events in my life to produce His character in me!  My job is to wisely yield all circumstances with a grateful heart, regardless of how it looks, seems or feels to me.  He knows what He is doing…It’s His plan…

The reward is Wisdom!

 Will you join me in applying reverence

to your life this coming year?

 It’s a win…win.

~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 a New Year 2024!"

Time Flys Away Fast!!!

The question I am asking myself, “Is what I am doing currently with my life worth dying for?”

 If I cannot answer the question, then it is not worth living for!

 We are called to live a supernatural life.

We do not have the power in ourselves to live it…we need divine power.

The gift of this power is given in the exchange of our self-life for unconditional surrender.

 How  do  we measure  the effectiveness of the last year of our life?  It has been said the things we have done with the last twelve months must have been reasonably important: we have traded  hours,  days, weeks for them that we will never again  have.  

 Do you have a test that you can apply to discern if 2023 was a triumph or failure?

 Ask yourself:

 1.      Do you know God better today than you did a year ago? (This can only be a result of time spent witHIM, in His word and in prayer).

2.     Are  you more effective today as a Christian (woman, mom, mother, grandmother…), both in your living a practical Christian life, and in your ability to communicate your faith to others? (This comes as a result of a disciplined life, doing those things that do not come naturally).

3.     Are there people who have been brought closer to God because of your influence in their life? (This generally demands open involvement with people, not “undercover” Christianity).

4.     Will the course of eternity be any different  because of this past year of life God gave you to invest? (This is the continual test of good stewardship).  “Life is simple, a stewardship and not an ownership; a trust and not a gift.  With a gift you may do as you  please, but with a trust you must give an account!”

This uncomplicated test taken periodically through the year will  keep us focused and on track on our eternal-journey, which will one day be called into account with God, who  is trusting us to  walk humbly and make right choices.

 Let’s face this New Year, together, with new determination…

~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 "Action Demanded...NOW!"

The holidays can be exhausting!!  It’s already the 1st of January 2024!!  The new year approached us with stomping feet demanding ACTION!  As women, we have ceased to be operational from guests and entertaining, late nights, early mornings, continual activity, meal preparation, decorating – undecorating, gift-giving …you know the drill.

 “Life is easier than we think.  All we have to do is accept the impossible, do without the indispensable, and bear the intolerable.”  The New Year presses us to restate our goals and priorities and take a peek back and measure what we have done by what we could have done!  Weary and recuperating we ask ourselves:

 Have we achieved the full potential of what God had planned for us?

 As we start this first month of 2024 with the Princess Parable Series, and the preparation of The Knight Series, we take care to define our priorities and use them to pursue the goal we see in each area of our lives filled with purpose and direction. The secret to getting ACTION: “What the mind attends to, it considers.  What it does not attend to, it dismisses.  What the mind attends to continually, it believes and the will is set (when was the last time you read the Bible through?)  And what the mind believes, it eventually does.”  Success is not determined by the intellect, but by the will…set your sights on the goal…

 In the New Year 2015 I had never had a Website, Facebook page, Pinterest, Twitter or a Blog, or even read a blog.  I officially welcomed a new world of technological communication with the opening of all five at once!  With its availability came a huge responsibility to use them wisely…they are consuming! “Our greatest danger in life is in permitting the urgent things to crowd out the important… to sacrifice the permanent on the altar of the immediate!” Dr. Bob Jones, Sr.

 Everyone receives an equal supply of time.  The only difference is in the way we spend it.  Each week brings us 168 golden hours.  We spend approximately 56 hours for sleep and recuperation.  We spend approximately 28 hours for eating and personal duties.  We spend 40-50 hours earning a living.  We have 30-40 hours left to spend, just as we wish.  But…how do we spend them?

 How many hours for recreation?

How many hours for family communication?

How many hours for regular worship (devotion, fellowship, Bible-reading)

How many hours for personal service in the name of Christ?

Will we rob God?

 We can and we do!  As women, it is easy to get busy with good things, yet too busy for the best things. What kind of stewards are we of the time God gives us?  “Today is, for all we know, the opportunity and occasion of our lives.  On what we do or say today may depend the success and completeness of our entire life struggle.  It is for us, therefore, to use every moment of today, as if our very eternity were dependent on its words and deeds”. Henry Clay Trumbull

 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.