Posts filed under spiritual growth

Jackie's Journey "Unexpected Changes!"

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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)

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…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. 

Jackie's Journey "Follow Your Heart...?"

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“Today it is totally acceptable to trust and follow your heart.  In fact, we are taught that our heart can decide what is right for us. One man 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”…

 Yesterday 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, your 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; 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 your wisdom is the degree to which you can crush your ‘heart’ to submit to the words of God in the Bible”! (letgodbetrue)

 How wise are you?

Are you facing this New Year 

with a commitment to True Wisdom?

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~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 "Unbearable Pain!"

I am writing this blog through tears.  I am reminded this morning of the gravity of life, time and opportunity.  My heart grieves for the child left behind, as she stands on the threshold of her life alone. She faces the inevitable future without the joy of being accompanied by her mother, her cheerleader and friend, who left us abruptly, this morning!  Yesterday, this 50-year-old mother was active, vibrant and healthy.  A mother that understood giving, serving and sharing.  It is unthinkable to realize she is no longer with us.

 In the night her heart stopped and she was quickly taken.  We all stand here, confounded and in deep pain, but none like the daughter who was left behind.  January 15th is the day this young college student was to fly to the other side of the USA and enter University.  Her mom was excited to accompany her and get her settled into the dorm, meet her new friends and share in this new step of her daughter’s life. How can this be?  In an instant…all lives have changed. “

“The real problem is not why some pious, humble, 

believing people suffer, but why some do not”. (C.S. Lewis)

 What now?

 Life is more than Covid-19, masks, elections and consuming daily activities.  Although these are important, death makes us cognizant of the eternal aspect of all life and re-aligns our perspective.  It seems to be the great leveler, if we are brave enough to face it.  “There is nothing permanent but change”! We are not always prepared for the unexpected.  We are often overwhelmed by the shock.  The goal is to keep in harmony with His will and direction through the maze. 

 We see things not as they are, but as we are.  How we respond to the unexpected or the seemingly impossible reveals the all of us.  We can alter our life by altering our attitude of mind. To see God in everything makes life the greatest adventure there is!  Someone once said that living is like “licking honey off a thorn” …I think death is like this.  We cannot see what God has in the future and often it includes the desperation of our loss to get us in perfect harmony with His plan and purpose for our lives. It reminds us of His control and care and calls us to grab hold of His hand and follow even more closely. The promise and prayer for this family…

 “You removed my clothes of mourning and clothed me with joy, that my heart may sing to You and not be silent.  O LORD my God, I will give you thanks forever.  I will be glad and rejoice in Your love, for You saw my affliction and knew the anguish of my soul…My future is in Your hands…” (Psalm 30:11&12; 31:7)

This is young Bella and my grandson, Payton

This is young Bella and my grandson, Payton

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~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. 

Posted on February 8, 2021 and filed under announcements, spiritual growth.

Jackie's Journey "Hope Reigns!"

 

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This past fall I watched my once thriving garden fade away, the vibrant plants had languished… dry from the extreme weather.  The days were hot and the nights were cold.  Thanksgiving brought the bright orange leaves and pumpkins.  The wind and rain had brought death; the ground was parched and all that once lived now lay, limply on the barren ground.  Another season had come and gone.  It was time to grab the rake and pull the dead leaves and brush away.  

 As I cleared the garden floor, I was astonished to find underneath the mass of debris, sandwiched between two decorative stones, one tiny plant, standing tall, reaching up for the sun.  While the world was falling down in ruin all around this diminutive flower, she stood, stretching with determination to live.  Her leaves were bright green and her colorful face turned upward.  I carefully uncovered her and dug a small, shallow well around her, to ensure her water supply would be sufficient to catch the coming rains.

 As I contemplated this brave, yet seemingly insignificant plant, I, again, saw the truth of God’s plan to use His creation to teach us.  The birds had planted this one…she was a surprise!  Despite it all, she had not only survived, but she had thrived. She had weathered extremes and watched everything around her perish, yet she persevered!  She was not a quitter.  She was just who she was, carving life out of God’s time frame for her.  I was inspired by her.

 How often do I aspire to find satisfaction in “whatever”, other than my Creator and His plan for my life?  How do I face disappointment and trials? Is my face stretched upward? Am I found totally dependent on Him or am I running ahead, disregarding His leading?  Do I accept His timing in life’s situations (that little flower was found out of its expected season!) or do my expectations lead me astray?  Do I accept my uniqueness or aspire to be more or do more apart from Him?  How do I handle the challenges of life when the wind and rain are whipping about me?  Do I quit or do I accept the challenge and fearlessly “keep on, keeping on”?

 That glorious, petite flower that caught me unaware, has no idea how wonderfully she was used to cause me to stop, take a self-look and listen. We do not realize, Moms, that we are the flowers our children and others are watching.  They are reading us all the time and learning how to relate to God, us and the world.  

 Will you join me in these unsettling times… choosing to stand tall… 

face upward, courageously persevering…?

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~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. 

Posted on January 25, 2021 and filed under Motherhood, spiritual growth.

Jackie's Journey "Do I Have To? Why??"

  I have seen and lived three-quarters of a century of life on this planet.  I have observed the ebb and flow of my culture and Christianity over the years.  While reading through the Bible again this year and rehearsing the walk of humanity, specifically the plight of the Jews in the earliest of centuries, I got to chapter 17 of II Kings.  I found myself lost in this verse:

 “Even while these people were worshiping the LORD, they were serving their idols.”

 This 17th Chapter is what I call a “summary” or review Chapter.  The Israelites had begged for a King.  God was their KING, but the people insisted on an earthly king.  God gave them their desire and what they deserved in Saul.  A man who proved that earthly kings are fallible and have a blindness to the reflection of our true God, as KING, perfect and infallible in comparison!  The evil heart of man revealed itself over and over as the kings came and went.  With few exceptions, these people were bent on their desires, they were unrighteous, disobedient, idol worshipers, murderers of their own children on heathen sacrifices to false gods of stone, rebellious to God’s will and ways, resistant to God’s purpose, His Wisdom…

 “…they have done evil in my eyes and have provoked

me to anger from the day their forefathers came out of Egypt

until this day.” (vs.14, Chapter 21)

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 The nation divided and fought each other and the surrounding towns.  The kings were competitive and combative.  They strayed from God’s will, purpose, desires, wisdom, and righteousness.  They rejected the true God, lost the blessing of the covenant God had made with Abraham and David and in its place, experienced the penalty and its replacement…the curse of disobedience.  

 In Chapter 17 the culmination of many years of rejecting God and His ways are realized by the King of Assyria!  God sent lions to consume the rebellious generation… 

 “The king of Assyria brought people from Babylon, Cuthuh, Avva, Hamath and

Sepharvaim (remember this group? They burned their children in the fire as sacrifices to Drammach!!)

and settled them in the town of Samaria to 

replace the Isrealites.  They took over Samaria and lived in its towns.

When they first lived there, they did not worhip the Lord…

so HE (God) sent lions among them…” (vs. 25,26)

 When the report that the people were being killed by lions came to the King of Assyria, it was noted that “the people that had been deported and resettled in the towns of Samaria DID NOT KNOW WHAT THE GOD OF THAT COUNTRY REQUIRES.”  The lions came because the people did NOT KNOW WHAT HE REQUIRES!  Sooo, what does this heathen king do?  

 “Have one of the Jewish priests who had been exiled from

Samaria come and live in Bethel and teach them how to worship the LORD!!” (vs. 28)

 We are that heathen nation that has forgotten 

how to worship and rejected our LORD God!

 When we gather with our family on Sunday nights or when we meet with couples or small groups, we are the old guard…the exiled priests, called by our living God to teach those in coming generation how to know and worship our GOD.

 We are a royal priesthood…called to be that beacon of truth so others 

“know what God requires” in a dark and needy world.

 

Are you busy living and teaching  your prince and princesses  

God’s will (not their own),

 God’s purpose for their life, 

God’s desires (no entitlement…only what is on HIS heart), 

God’s Wisdom

and Godly righteousness???

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~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 "Troubled Waters!!"

Troubled times? New Covid outbreaks?  This is all we hear!  

Fear everywhere!  What is the truth?  What can we believe?  

What can we tell our children? 

 I was raised a Lutheran and attended parochial school until the eighth grade.  I have wonderful memories growing up surrounded by pastors and teachers that opened up the Word every morning in class and introduced us to the simple principles of knowing God.  When it came to “faith”, I struggled to understand how it worked.

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“Faith is not what some people think it is.  Their human dream is a delusion.  Because they observe that faith is not followed by good works or a better life, they fall into error, even though they speak and hear much about faith.  ‘Faith is not enough’, they say. ‘You must do good work’s; you must be devout to be saved.’  They think that, when you hear the gospel, you start working, creating by your own strength a thankful heart which says, ‘I believe.’  That is what they think true faith is.  But, because this is a human idea, a dream, the heart never learns anything from it, so it does nothing and rebirth doesn’t come from this ‘faith’, either.

 Instead, faith is God’s work in us, that changes us and gives new birth from God. Jn.1: 13 It kills the old Adam and makes us completely different people.  It changes our hearts, our spirits, our thoughts and all our powers.  It brings the Holy Spirit with it.  Yes, it is a living, creative, active and powerful thing, this faith.  Faith cannot help doing good works constantly.  It doesn’t stop to ask if good works ought to be done, but before anyone asks, it already has done them and continues to do them without ceasing.  Anyone who does not do good works in this manner is an unbeliever.  He stumbles around and looks for faith and good works, even though he does not know what faith and good works are.  Yet, he gossips and chatters about faith and good works with many words.

What will we tell them?

What will we tell them?

FAITH is a living, bold trust in God’s grace, so certain of God’s favor that it would risk death a thousand times trusting in it!  Such confidence and knowledge of God’s grace makes you happy, joyful and bold in your relationship to God and all creatures.  The Holy Spirit makes this happen through faith.  Because of it, you freely, willingly, and joyfully do good to everyone, serve everyone, suffer all kinds of things, love and praise God who has shown you such grace (no entitlements or expectations!).  Thus, it is just as impossible to separate faith and works as it is to separate heat and light from fire.  Therefore, watch out for your own false ideas and guard against good-for-nothing gossips, who think they’re smart enough to define faith and works, but really are the greatest of fools.”

Genesis 6:5 gives us a clear understanding of our desperate need for faith and regeneration.

“The Lord saw the the wickedness of man was great on the earth,

and that every intent of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually.”

 During this time of Thanksgiving and rehearsing the birth of our Lord and Savior,

will you ask God to work FAITH in you…?

 

(This text was translated for Project Wittenberg by Robert E. Smith

and was written by Martin Luther and found in his German bible of 1522.)

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~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 "HAPPY THANKSGIVING!"

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Our young knights being welcomed by the King and princesses for a celebration at the Castle

 Thanksgiving is this Thursday!  We have everything to be grateful for, don’t we?  Gratefulness is making known to God and others in what ways they have benefited our lives. I Corinthians 4:7    Thanksgiving Day is a perfect time to do this!

 Thanksgiving weekend is full of traditions for our family, as I am sure it is in your home.  It is the official beginning of the Christmas season.  The Christmas trees go up, the Christmas C.D.’s fill the house with music, the wreaths are hung on the front doors, the garlands are placed around the house with care, and the lights from the bannister shine out from the second story as a welcoming beacon for all who enter over the coming days of celebrating our Saviors birth. 

  My bulging gift closet is opened up after a year of accumulating its secret chattels and the “to do list” is formally inducted into the hustle and bustle of Christmas giving.  The stacked boxes full of gifts, just waiting to be wrapped, are pulled out and the forgotten person, item or the missing piece of a waiting gift is duly noted and one by one will be addressed and added to its appropriate package over the next few weeks. 

 “Making a List and Checking It Twice…”

 In the Princess Parable Series book “A Royal Christmas to Remember”, the princesses and young knights are busy checking off all that must be organized and accomplished with all the activities that come with planning and preparing for the Holiday Season.   Unexpectedly, there is a disruption at the castle door.  Fear silences their demanding schedule.  News of marauding robbers heading toward the castle gates has immediately reached the King.   Abruptly frozen in their tracks, their thoughts are focused on the pending danger and Christmas preparations are lost in the newly presented event at hand… 

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Who knocks at the door?  What could it be?  What has happened?

  Organizing activities requires lists!  There are many kinds of lists.  They can be the director that keeps us on track.  They are the reminders that sustain us on our trek in a time crunch.  They put our weekly menu together and they assure us that everything is packed in a lunch bag or backpack.  They maintain our priorities.  Lists are good things…fresh reminders, motivators to keep us keeping on…

 I have been thinking about a list that has been in a notebook next to my Bible for years.   It accompanies my journal and is the key of the day and the lock of the night.  It is a list of names and needs of …family members, missionaries, church families, neighbors, people we are witnessing to, people we are mentoring, people with special needs during the holidays, church leaders, leaders of our great nation, prayer requests…

 “Watch and pray…”  Matthew 26:41

“God heard them, for their prayer reached heaven…”  II Chronicles 

“So… we fasted and petitioned our God about this

and He answered our prayer.”  Ezra 

 “The moment you wake up each morning, all your wishes and hopes for the day rush at you like wild animals.  And the first job each morning consists in shoving it all back; in listening to that other voice, taking that other point of view, letting that other, larger, stronger, quieter life come flowing in.” C.S. Lewis

 “If you are a stranger to prayer, you are a stranger to power”

If we are too busy to pray…then we are too busy!  Hurry is the death of prayer!

 

“Satan laughs at our toiling but he trembles when we pray!”

 

Will you join me daily this busy time of year to take time

 to enter your “War Room” with your prayer list and talk to God… first?

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~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. 

Posted on November 23, 2020 and filed under spiritual growth, motherhood.

Jackie's Journey "What Marks TRUE Character?"

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Character determines our actions! Character marks the life of a TRUE prince or princess!

 A Biblical worldview should influence all areas of life.  Articulating that worldview within our sphere of influence is what the Princess Parables are all about!  While surface problems (Covid-19, hate, riots, murder, anger, addiction…) attract media attention, they merely reflect and are symptomatic of the deeper need we have as people…the need for godly character!  

 Character determines our responses, regardless of the circumstances presented to us in life.   It defines us and tells others who we really are!  Character is written on the heart of every person.  It is universal and transcends culture, race, age, social status, religion, gender and nationality.  

 Godly character marks the life of a true prince or princess!!  For years Princesses Joy, Grace, Hope, Faith and Charity have been a large part of my life and I have grown to love each of them, as distinct and separate personalities, with unique engiftments and an adventurous story to tell.  They form a cohesive body of work that speaks to the need for early development of godly character in our little prince and princesses in a pragmatic way, that they can relate to, with Biblical terms attached. 

  I recently read, “A dear old Quaker lady, distinguished for her youthful look, was asked what she used to preserve her appearance.  She replied sweetly, “I use for the lips, truth; for the voice, prayer; for the eyes, pity; for the hand, charity; for the figure, uprightness; and for the heart, love” (Jerry Fleishman).  

 The Princesses are designed to inspire godly thoughts and actions.  The key to this wise “Quaker lady’s” answer and the challenge to us is to maneuver victoriously through this new day and its many opportunities… each revealing our TRUE character through our moment-by-moment responses!  

 Who am I really?

 My daily response to life situations 

brings to light the REAL me!

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~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.