Jackie's Journey "Never Sacrifice the Permanent on the Altar of the Immediate!"

I heard this quote while in college and I remember the impact it had on me then… and still has on me now.  Life is short…man’s days are determined;(God) has decreed the number of months and has set limits we cannot exceed. Job 14:5 Our time is ordained by God.  We can’t presume on the future and we can’t change the past.

Life is a series of continual choices.  Each choice determines the direction of our developing character.  Convictions make us who we are.  The difference between a conviction and a preference is what it takes to stop us from doing the right thing in the light of what we know is right by what the Word teaches.

We are continually making decisions, both good and bad, that influence our destiny and the direction our children will take when given similar circumstances.  In a world filled with immorality, drugs, alcohol, and compromise at every corner, we are faced most often with the only biblical option…to stand alone.  Standing alone defines our loyalties toward others and also, defines the loyalty others have to us. 

But, most importantly, it defines our loyalty to God.

In a world where having friends, fitting a certain mold for popularity, defining our own values in a world with no eternal values and having to accept the inevitable consequence of our decisions,  often leaves us baffled with only two options…. standing alone on God’s side or the alternative, compromise, which will offer immediate gratification, but the cost will be on the altar of the permanent.   

Which will it be?

 The decision you make will infinitely influence those who are following you…

 Compromise means you sell out what you are…

for what you hope to get.

BUT

What you hope to get is not what you want

because you have been destroyed in the compromise process.

Who you were…you no longer are!

The permanent has been sacrificed on the altar of the immediate!

~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 discipling 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 "Do You See What I See?"

Where were the Tem Commandments first written?  Some people say Exodus; others say Deuteronomy.  What about Romans 2:15, where they were written on our hearts!

With this in mind, the following standard clearly illustrates the choices we make with Social Media between obeying and violating the Ten Commandments.

Exodus 20: 3-17

1.     Turn it off when you start spending more time with it than with God.

2.     Turn it off when you have more interest in the activities of your peers or Hollywood personalities than you do in God.

3.     Turn it off when God’s Name is taken in vain or Godly morals are mocked.

4.     Turn it off to honor the Lord’s Day.

5.     Turn it off when the authority of parents is challenged, belittled or neglected.

6.     Turn it off when someone is murdered or when anger and hatred are accepted and excused.

7.     Turn it off when lust or adultery are accepted or when you or others are tempted to lust.

8.     Turn it off when someone steals.

9.     Turn it off when someone tells a lie or misrepresents the truth and makes an excuse or rationalizes the offense to God.

10. Turn it off when someone covets or when you desire something that God does not intend for you to have.

What did God have in mind when He wrote

the Ten Commandments on our hearts?

 They are rules to live by, though we fail miserably.  They reflect to us our great need for Him because of our great failure to live righteously.  It’s so easy to say,  “Everyone is on social media…I have to keep up!”; “It is the “new” millennial culture, Jackie, get with the program!”; “How would I maintain my relationships or be able to keep pace with what’s going on in the world without Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Pinterest, iPhones, YouTube, T.V., Virtual Video Games, etc.,etc.?”; or “It would be impossible to keep up with life, if I gave God equal time”, .….

We live in a world consumed with social media.  Just checking in with all its networking tentacles keeps us occupied daily.  Setting it aside for an entire day would require intense willpower.  We observe each other... on the streets, when we are walking our dogs or children in strollers; in our cars, in the marketplace, at the family table when we gather to eat, in the bathtub; during times of entertainment or when guests are in our home…you get the picture…everywhere, all the time.  If we are not looking at a screen, we are carrying it…we read a book on it in a waiting room or in an elevator.  Being engaged in a face-to-face conversation with facial expressions and an opportunity to read the spirit of the person with whom we are speaking is a lost art and laborious in the light of a collection of abbreviations incorporated into less than two sentences.

It has been said that the eyes are the windows to the soul.  We are accountable for what we put before our eyes.   He’s watching.  Job made a covenant with his eyes…“Does he (God) not see my ways and count my every step.” Job 31: 4; 36: 7 “He does not take his eyes off the righteous.”

~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 discipling 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 Hills are Alive..."

Driving home one crisp and clear Monday morning, I looked up from the traffic to view an astonishing sight!  The hills were alive with masses of green flora!  “…He is like brightness after the rain that brings grass to the earth.” II Sam. 23:4   I live at the top of a valley and we have been in a drought for years.  The hillsides on both sides are either vibrant green or latent brown.  When green, the vegetation is thick and the variation of colors is almost more than the eye can bear in beauty.  When brown, it is as if the earth has closed its doors and left the ground dead, blanketed in weeds and dust.

“We know that the whole creation has been groaning as in the pains of

childbirth right up to the present time.” Romans 8: 22 (NIV)

The dry earth lies in wait.  It is dormant as the season’s come and go.  It patiently waits for the Creator to open the floodgates of heaven with rain to saturate the soil once again.  “He provides rain for the earth and sends water on the countryside". Job 5: 10    After months of “dry bones” the response to the nurturing dewdrops of the night past had been instant!  The blades of grass were standing straight up and immediately beginning to show signs of new life.  “The earth had burst into jubilant song… Psalms 98:4   ♫The hills are alive with the sound of music ♬ and covered in a magnificent lush green hue again!

I was so fascinated; my inclination was to burst into song!

“He calls forth songs of joy.” Psa.65: 8

“The earth is the Lord’s, and everything in it, the world, and all who live in it…” Psa.24: 1I   All creation obeys God!  I was thinking what a difference this world would be if the “human” world, like the flora world, would instantly respond to the initial promptings of the Creator. What if we would immediately stand up tall with an eager response and dedicated conviction to be and do whatever our Creator asks of us?  We would change our world, as we know it!  Wouldn’t we?

When God speaks to you, what is your response?

 Is it instant obedience or is it a contrived excuse? 

Kim, our youngest daughter with Megan, our granddaughter,

Climbed to the top for a clear view of the green valley…

~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 discipling 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 Kingdom is Coming...Are You Ready?"

You know, when family gets together you never know what to expect!  A few weeks ago we celebrated Easter with half of my family in the home of my treasured 98-year-old Mother.  Between my youngest sister and I there were 13 young knights from ages of a few months to 16!    These "men-in-the-making" are distinctly programed differently than little princesses.  The 5 princesses present (ages 2-18) had elegant attire, all color coordinated.  The little ones were in ballerina shoes and fancy dresses; all had long silky blond hair, and gentle soft voices.  Yes, definitely princesses! They were quietly engaging all of us in conversation and the littlest one was dancing and throwing a ball with her loving and very patient grandpa. 

Those knightly little boys were busy from the moment they entered the room, glad to have someone to chase, throw a ball with, tackle and wrestle.  The pool became a focal point for all the hyper activity and competitive pursuits.  They were fast and focused, eagerly keeping up with all the action around them!  I have to admit that little boys are completely entertaining!  The continual motion and hilarious interaction made for an extremely pleasurable afternoon.

I  love the differences, as well as, the similarities between little girls and little boys.  Both were kind and respectful with each other and with those of us watching.  They both showed maturity for their age groups.  The fact that there was very little dissension of any kind was a joy to witness.  In the pool the girls were as athletic as the boys and the brothers and cousins were protective of the girls and each other. 

Families are little kingdoms being prepared for the kingdom that is to come.  As a mom, watching and listening with my own mother, observing the generation “in-the-making”, I found myself engulfed with numerous kingdom analogies.

The Old Testament is full of kingdoms that came and went, some righteous; some wicked.  Reading through the generations of families in times past, I observed a pattern: some started well and finished poorly; some kings sought God first; some kings were even acknowledged by God as diligently righteous like their forefathers before them.  Then again, there were many that were murdered and rejected…in some cases an entire family of sons was murdered by a new king or a family member!  Often a godly king was followed by his ungodly son who took the throne and destroyed everything God had done in his father’s generation.

Where will our children and children’s children take us?  Are we preparing them to stand alone in a geo-political world that is controlled by information from UTube, Twitter, Internet News, etc?  Can our young people discern truth from all that is out there? 

Are they biblically discerning or terminally distracted?

 The pull of the world is undeniable. Little princesses and little knights in shining armor are destined to be a part of God’s kingdom.  Our diligence and example will prepare them to boldly stand alone in an increasingly dark environment.

 What steps of action are you taking to prepare your little ones

for the kingdom coming?

“In love He destined us for adoption unto himself.” Ephesians 1:5

~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 discipling 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 "Can You Hear His Voice?""

There is a little boy in the Old Testament that teaches my heart every time I read his story.  His entire life was lived in the truth of understanding that God is Sovereign and his ultimate authority.  He was a servant in the temple and he became a mighty prophet.  His mother was a woman of virtue and demonstrated her loyalty to God by keeping her promise to bring her son to the temple at a very young age and leaving him there!.  It was one dark night while living in the temple that this little child heard the voice of God calling him.  I SAM. 3: 4-10  This boys name was Samuel and Samuel listened when God spoke.

For those of us who call ourselves moms and grandmas there is a flawless message that screams for our attention in this timeless record.  We, like Samuel, need to listen and hear what God is saying to us.  Our busy lives with its multitude ofdistraction finds us sacrificing the permanent on the altar of the immediate. We desperately need to heed the voice of God when He speaks to us. 

It is imperative to tune in:

Ø  Dependently – Apart from the Spirit teaching us we cannot hear His voice. I Cor. 2:12

Ø  Submissively – trusting that whatever He brings into our life is going to be received with gratefulness…no resistance to His will.  If we have no unconfessed sin and no unresolved relationships we are in right relationship with God.

Ø  Expectantly – anticipating His speaking to us…not doubting His ability to talk to us. Heb.11: 6

Ø  Silently- He whispers…we need to be quiet.  Psalm 62: 5   It is vital that we are inaudible and let Him do the talking. Psa. 46: 10   Instead of reading a list of requests…we should be pausing and listening to that still small voice.

Ø  Gratefully – listening carefully and understanding that trials plus acceptance with gratefulness grow us up! I Cor. 4: 7

Ø   Sincerely – eagerly listening to His voice and doing what is right with transparent motives. I Peter 1: 22

Ø  Reverently – Respectfully, even in awe, accepting that God is using the people and events in our life to produce His character in us…regardless of our circumstances.

Ø  Boldly –  God communicates what is essential.  We need to confidently listen and accept what we need to hear.  Matt. 7: 11

Ø  Attentively– showing God His worth and how much we appreciate His words to us by giving Him our undivided attention as He speaks to us. Heb. 2:1

Ø  Joyfully – elatedly listening with the enthusiasm of our spirit as our soul is in harmony with His will. Psa. 16:11

Ø  Patiently – accepting a difficult situation from God without giving Him a deadline to remove it.  Rom. 5: 3-4

This morning I received a phone call from one of the dearest persons I know on the face of this earth asking for prayer for her husband who is in the hospital and has been diagnosed with terminal cancer.  Her heart was heavy but her spirit was accepting with gratefulness God’s Sovereignty.  I had started this blog yesterday and did not realize how valuable it would be to me; personally, as I drop to my knees and begin to listen for His voice and pray…

Are You Listening?

Can you hear His voice??

“He who has ears to hear let him hear…” Matt. 11: 15

“He who belongs to God hears what God says.  The reason you do not hear is that you do not belong to God”.  John 8:47

~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 discipling 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 "LOST...who? Don't Panic!!!"

“LOST…who?  Don’t Panic!!"

Our friends have a five-year-old Downs Syndrome boy who was having a fabulous time at Sea World.  In an instant his parents realized he had wandered off and in a panic they began to run in every direction, calling his name.  After a few minutes others joined in.  Finally, he was spotted…head to toe, wet and muddy…. running to his dad who scooped him up in relief and hugged him reassuringly!  Upon arriving home they tucked him into his warm bed and opened up his backpack…out popped the cutest little live penguin they had ever seen!! True story shared by Yvonne Foust  

We are sometimes like that little boy.  We see or hear something that captures our total attention.  We get caught up in the exciting moment and throw “caution to the wind”.  The “something” may not be bad, but it keeps us from following the best.  God has given our children a safety in times like these by giving them…us!  Parents carry the responsibility to protect IF our little ones learn to choose to stay close where mom and dad can see and hear them! 

Listening and obeying …especially when we are in new places…keeps us alert to danger!  When little ones disobey by slipping away where they cannot be heard or seen, they not only hurt themselves…they hurt others.  That little boy’s daddy and mommy were afraid because they love him.  That little boy had been in water somewhere and could have been hurt!  That little boy took something that was not his (baby penguin!).  That little boy made a bad decision on his own…without asking permission of his parents.  That little boy made it dangerous for the baby penguin… and himself! 

We need to stay under the “umbrella of protection”.   The umbrella keeps the rain and pain of life from hitting us and gives peace and protection IF we stay under its shelter.  When we choose NOT to listen and go off on our own, we walk out from under the umbrella and the protection is gone.

This, of course, is true for us as adults.

Our little ones can certainly identify with this little happy and excited boy

…I know, I can!

Understanding we have an authority in a sovereign God that promises to protect us, as we listen and obey, is a superior plan and renders our responsibility for our little ones full of hope and promise.  We know that “for those of us who through faith are shielded by God’s power” are in the safest Hands imaginable.  I Peter 1: 5

Jackie's Journey "Do You Find Yourself Acting Impulsively?"

“Do You Find Yourself Acting Impulsively?”

Self-control is rejecting my own desires and what I want “right now”.  Regardless of what is going on around me, I set my limits and do what is right.

Lack of self-control is a phenomenon that affects all of us.  Some of us are battling quietly inside or some of us are overtly stomping our feet saying what we think without thought and demanding what we want.  Our natural impulse tells us to act immediately and it seems undeniable in the moment!

My grandson, Maverick, invited us to his eighth grade graduation.  There were no more seats, so my daughter and I climbed the stairs to get a better view of the stage.  As the names were called for each student’s recognition of accomplishment, each one stood and took the long walk to the microphone.  Leaning against the bannister, I impulsively commented on a young graduates very short dress with her extraordinarily long legs. Instantly, a gentleman standing a few feet away, reminded me that my statement was rude and there was nothing that could be changed…this beautiful young girl had long legs!   Being properly rebuked, I instantly realized my unfiltered and rude comment was cause for me to remain silent for the rest of the ceremony!

I can’t say what provoked me to say such a thing, but the thoughtless comment was irresponsible, offensive and impetuous.  “Self – control is instant obedience to the initial promptings of God’s Spirit”. Bill Gothard In this case, a little self-control was in order, and neglected, when the Spirit whispered in my ear, “not profitable, don’t say it”! There was no instant obedience to the prompting of God’s Spirit.

Do you ever find yourself acting impulsively?

Dignity is the capacity to hold back on the tongue what never should have been in the mind in the first place.  Blessed is the woman who having nothing to say, refrains from giving wordy evidence of the fact!  There you have it!

“Even a fool is thought to be wise IF she keeps silent,

and discerning IF she holds her tongue.” 

(Personalized) Proverbs 17: 28

 “She who guards her mouth and her tongue

keeps herself from calamity!”

(Personalized) Proverbs 21: 23

 I am grateful for the stranger who spoke up and reflected my need to take control of my tongue that day. God spoke through him for my benefit…

Thank you, Sir, wherever you are…

~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 discipling 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 "Who me...Accountable?!"

“Who me…Accountable?!”

When I think of a princess my mind goes to the blessing of a precious new LIFE coming in the form of a tiny little girl.

“Life is a stewardship, not an ownership; a trust, not a gift!

With a gift you can do as you please;

 BUT with a trust you must give an account!”

 “Nothing in all creation is hidden from God’s sight!  Everything is uncovered and laid bare before HIS eyes and to HIM we must give an account.” Hebrews 4: 13 Personally, this verse has always been a “call to action”.  It has been a strong motivating force in my life.  Those of you who know me, know that I am the “little much afraid” in the book, Hind’s Feet In High Places.  I am the person who forces herself to walk through the door of fear to find God’s GRACE and freedom on the other side!

The fact that God is holding me accountable has driven me to take the stewardship of my life: as a missionary, a pastor’s wife, a mother and a grandmother very seriously.  This God of love is going to hold me accountable one day!  And there will be no excuses! (“…but you don’t understand, God, there were circumstances beyond my control…etc.)

“…will he not repay each person according to what he has done?” Pro. 24: 12b

Scripture tells us that babies are a gift to us that come with stewardship.  They are entrusted to us for a short time and our responsibilities for that tiny life are enormous.  Our failure to take that trust and do it God’s way (not our own way, which is our natural inclination) will, of course, result in total failure…

I hate failure!  (Apart from HIM I am a failure!)

 We are commissioned by God to guard our every word, thought, action and habit.

“Why?” you ask.  “Why can’t we just “be ourselves”

and say and do what we want?  WE ARE MATURE WOMEN!”

Maybe, because we are bent on evil apart from HIM!  We are not full of grace.  HE is!

We are to:

 Watch our thoughts; they become words.

Watch our words; they become actions.

Watch our actions; they become habits.

Watch our habits; they become character.

Watch our character; for it becomes our DESTINY!

 Your little princess is watching, listening and learning…she was listening before she was born…she is reading your spirit and her destiny is being formed.  We cannot allow the enemy any entrance into her life.  She deserves the opportunity to become all that HE has predestined her to be for His glory and His purpose. Eph.1: 11, 12; Rom. 8: 29

Often, I look into the face of the most precious mama that ever lived and I see her responsibility for me wasn’t just those first years until I went away to college…she still sets the bar for me at 98!  I still watch her words, actions, habits and listen and learn.  Christina and Kim, my two daughters, are still holding my feet to the fire and looking for an opportunity to use me as an excuse for their wrong choices!  And my seven grandchildren are watching their grandma to see if her God is real!

BUT most importantly, God has HIS eyes on me and is listening and HE IS HOLDING ME ACCOUNTABLE FOR EVERY ATTITUDE, THOUGHT, WORD, ACTION, and HABIT!

GRACE IS NOT:

Ø  God’s passive indulgence - letting us do what we want! (Our present cultural philosophy – everyone is entitled and we are the exception to every rule!)

Ø  God’s removal of consequence when HIS laws are broken!  (We reap what we Sow!  No escape!  If we disobey…we pay!) Col. 3:25

Ø  Freedom to reject God’s commands!  (God’s laws are NOT a “Smorgasbord”…I like this command; it works for me; I’ll keep it!  That one does not work for me; throw it out!)

 GRACE IS:

  The desire and power to do what God wants!  It is Active!

 LIFE is a trust that we will give an account to God one day

 and GRACE is the key to its stewardship…

“Therefore, brethren, BE STRONG IN GRACE

(Be strong in the desire and power to do God’s will)

that is in Christ Jesus.”  2 Tim. 2: 1

~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 discipling 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 the Target?"

“What’s the Target?”

“Education is the knowledge of how to use the whole of oneself.  Many of us use but one or two faculties out of the score with which they are endowed.  A man is educated who knows how to make a tool of every faculty…how to open it, keep it sharp, and how to apply it to all practical purposes.”  Henry Ward Beecher

We would not disagree that we need to target “making a tool of every faculty”, but when we talk about our children’s education we are entering “holy ground”.  America’s founding fathers did not intend to take religion out of education.  “Many of the nation’s greatest universities were founded by evangelists and religious leaders; but many of these have lost the founder’s vision and become secular institutions.  Because of this attitude, secular education is stumbling and floundering.” Billy Graham  (i.e. young fraternity pledge that died during hazing recently in Pennsylvania!)

If you are home schooling or have your children in a public or satellite school, or even a prestigious private school, you are aware of the effort, time and money it takes to educate young people today.  Our progressive culture and the technological world have swallowed us up with their demands and the need to excel in every area if you want to triumph in this competitive world.

After all, we want the best for our children, don’t we?

As a young mom I wanted“the best” for my two princesses while living in the jungles of Panama.  My choices were, however, limited, in that I knew I could not send my little girls to a mission school for months at a time and be able to focus on the job we had been commissioned to do among the Kunas.  My hat is off to those who successfully pull this off!  Home school curriculum was limited to ABeka and I was so grateful for this provision.

Jungle school with Christina in Kunaland Kindergarten!

Maybe some of you young moms are busy looking to the future for the education of your child and considering the multitude of options out there today.  For those of you who have set your goals for your children’s education and are preceding as our culture sets the standard, might I suggest an additional target that you can add to your consideration?

As moms, our pursuit is “to find His purpose and make it our goal to please Him first”…because one day “we will all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, so that each of us will receive what is due us for the things done while in the body, whether good or bad.”  II Cor. 3: 2,3 Our focus, so often, separates academic schooling from the instruction of our spirit and soul.  We, frequently sacrifice the spiritual aspect to make sure our children will academically excel.

We want to achieve the full potential God has planned for our children…

and us.

We, so often, compartmentalize academic schooling from the instruction of the spirit and soul, relegating the responsibility of the spiritual aspect to our local church, a good bible teacher or the weekly Sunday school class.

“(God’s) purpose is that (our) children be encouraged in heart and united in love, so that they have the full riches of complete understanding (applied wisdom), in order that they may know the mystery of God, namely, Christ, in whom are hidden all the treasures of wisdom (learning to see life’s situations from God’s point of view and acting in harmony with Him, His will and His purpose for our life) and (lastly) knowledge (familiarity gained by insight to truth, experience, accumulated facts and reports). Col. 1:28, 29

Taking time to educate the soul (mind, will and emotions)

and the spirit of a child is the heart of where

the success of true education really lies.

The instruction of the spirit and soul cannot be taught well from any other place but a godly home from godly parents and it trumps all other forms of education.  It takes personal commitment, learning to be a good student of the Word, time, “walk your talk” determination and dedication to teach the Words of God to an eager little prince or princess…but the reward far out ways anything this world, Christian or otherwise, has to offer.

Which will it be…?

What’s your target?

 His will and purpose found in quiet times of rich Bible reading and then,

teaching your little one, introducing the eternal hidden treasures of wisdom and knowledge

 or

The secular education being fostered in most churches, homes and schools

across America today…?

~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 discipling 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 "Things We Never Graduate from..."

I have three graduating grandchildren this month.  Catherine, my first grandchild, is graduating from high school and Christopher, her brother and Maverick are graduating from eighth grade.  Eighteen years gone…like the snap of a twig!

Most graduates tend to stop thinking, reading and learning when they finish high school or college.  The important part of education is to take what you learn and make personal life-applications that will better prepare you to face the world out there. The goal is to make you successful and a benefit to others in the process.

I was a graduate that went directly into Missionary Training after leaving college.  We entered Boot Camp in Wisconsin and then a year and a half later we graduated again and left for Language School in Camdenton, Missouri to gain understanding on how to break down a tribal language.  The following year we graduated, received all our shots for a foreign country, packed our bags and we were in Panama before I knew it and learning Spanish in the little town of Chepo, while waiting for Kim to be born and building our house in the jungle. 

Still thinking, studying, reading and teaching, we headed interior with the intent of learning Kuna and developing an alphabet for this particular group of people.  I had a six-month-old little girl on my lap when I first started my linguistic box.  I had finished teaching my 4 year old to read and she was sure she was now ready for kindergarten!  So far, no break in the studying, teaching and learning…the thinking part was on overload, but we just kept on…

“Pressing on toward the goal…

Forgetting the past

Reaching toward what is ahead…

The prize for which God has called us

Heavenward in Christ Jesus.”

Phil. 3:12-14

Of course there was a huge need to acquire the language of this group if they were to hear the words of God in their tongue and there was much time-consuming effort put into listening, pointing to objects and note taking, studying phonemes and learning speech patterns…I saw no light at the end of the tunnel!

Before the linguistic work was done we had opened up a small clinic with medicine donated from compassionate Canal Zone doctors who took pity on us and periodically flew in to help us.  More studying, learning and reading!  I loved helping the people when they were hurting and the clinic gave us an open door into their homes and hearts. 

Returning to the US because of my health, we immediately were asked to help pastor a church in Gardena, California.  We trusted the Lord for His timing to return to Panama and began to open the Word, study, teach and disciple in this very special church, as the Lord opened doors. 

It’s been many years and ministries later and we have yet to stop learning, studying, reading, discipling...!  We have pastored and planted churches here in the U.S., Mexico and Panama.  We have worked in retreats, small groups, camps and dorms.  We have seen God establish his work just about everywhere we have been and we have yet to find a place where we finally graduate and have no need to study, read or teach…

Life is the school and trials and struggles are the best teachers,

not the only ones, but the best!! 

We will never graduate from a daily time in the Word.

We will never graduate from a daily conversation with God in prayer.

We will never graduate from the need to “walk in the light, as He is in the light”,

instantly obedient to His will.

We will never graduate from hearing and following His leading, as we reach out to

present the truth of His birth, death and resurrection to a dying world.

We are never meant to graduate!

We will never finish until the curtain closes the final time…

~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 discipling 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.