Author: kristiejackson

kristiejackson https://kristiejackson.wordpress.combo.. I'm a follower of Jesus Christ, writer, wife to Will (the best-looking, smartest, funniest, sweetest guy I've ever met), and mother to three incredible sons.

A Wedding, a Birthday and Sweet Home Alabama

Leave a comment

Hi Friends,

Hi Friends,

I haven’t written much lately with lots of summer travel and some big things happening.

Last weekend our oldest son got engaged. It’s impossible convey all that we love about our future daughter but I’ll share a few tidbits. One time, when we still lived in Tennessee, we drove up to Knoxville to take them to dinner. When they arrived at the restaurant her hair was still wet and she didn’t have an ounce of make-up on. The two of them had just beaten a male duo at spikeball. Her effortless beauty, insane athleticism, chill vibe and infectious laugh immediately set an insurmountable bar. But the years since have only given us more reasons to adore her.

Today is our middle son’s 22nd birthday. It’s the first birthday he is not with us. Fortunately we will see him this coming week as we move him in at Auburn where he will be a graduate assistant and earn his masters in accounting.

From Auburn we’ll go on to Tuscaloosa and drop off our baby. If you think of me next Sunday please pray for me. I am 100% thrilled about how things have fallen into place but I am also mourning the end of an incredibly sweet era.

One thing I have been thinking about amidst the blessing of these milestones is how I need to do better with deeper Bible study. The last couple of years I have been faithful in my reading plan, and being renewed by the whole counsel of God is important, obviously. But I have struggled with also doing deeper contemplation on a consistent basis. But God, in His mercy, has made it clear what I am missing: memorization.

Years ago I used to memorize Scripture in part because I could then contemplate Truth even while supervising my young sons playing outside. When you have Scripture in your mind, you are never without it. My husband sent this John Piper podcast in our family group chat last week. It is so good and makes the case for committing verses or chapters to memory, which my husband has been remarkably faithful with the last few years.

So, I am vowing, in this new season which presents an odd tension between busyness and empty nesting, to memorize more Scripture. I am starting with Isaiah 55.

One of my favorite parts of this chapter says:

“For you shall go out in joy and be led forth in peace; the mountains and the hills before you shall break forth into singing, and all the trees of the field shall clap their hands.” Isaiah‬ ‭55‬:‭12‬ ‭ESV‬‬

May we all go out in JOY, be lead in PEACE and know that even if we fail to praise the Lord the trees clap their hands and the rocks cry out to give Him glory!

With Love,

Kristie

The First 200 Days

1 Comment

Hi Friends,

How’s your summer going? Did you know tomorrow marks the 200th day of the year? I know this because my Bible reading plan numbers the days, and by God’s grace I have kept up with my reading and just finished the book of Proverbs yesterday. There is so much wisdom in Proverbs. It’s almost hard to fathom that an ancient author could possibly have advice on such a wide range of topics. I find it impossible to believe that these words are merely human.

The devotional writer Paul David Tripp says that the “Fear of God — life shaping, worship-producing, and obedience-motivating awe of God — is the only thing that can capture our heart and has the capacity to give us life.” We can look around and see the foundational truth of Proverbs lived out — the beginning of wisdom is this fear of God. Those who truly allow their lives to be shaped by God, those who worship and obey Him tend towards wisdom.

But I find it interesting that we also have a very strong sense of right and wrong even without wisdom. The awful Coldplay concert outing is proof of that. Who doesn’t see that and feel sick? You don’t need an ounce of wisdom to recognize that sin has led these people to act like fools, and that this foolishness will result in all kinds of pain.

Instead of rejoicing over it, we are called to mourn with those who mourn and to examine our own lives for the kinds of folly that could lead to such destruction. Examine our hearts, Lord. Help us to remain on the narrow path. As Tripp puts it, “Because sin reduces us to fools, the greatest danger in our lives is inside of us.” That’s a sobering thought, but the great news is that God’s love for us is never based on merit. It is a free gift. He is there at all times waiting for us to turn to him, promising a robe of righteousness bought by Jesus. The robe is ever available for me, for you, and all concert goers.

“If we say we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us. If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.” 1 John 1:8-9 (ESV).

There’s nothing like a clean slate — praise God His mercies truly are new every morning!

With Love,

Kristie

Peopled Out

Leave a comment

Hi Friends,

I feel bad saying this, but sometimes I get peopled out. My day-to-day life is pretty quiet. Some might even describe it as dull. And then on rare occasions, I have one social engagement after another. I wish these events could be evenly distributed. I think I would be better at socializing if these things didn’t tend to get stacked up. Living in Florida, people want to visit in the spring. I would too. It’s incredible. But I wish people would visit…not all at once.

In the last two weeks, I have seen a slew of people I love. On June 25, Will and I drove up to Orlando to have dinner with his two best friends from childhood, one of whom lives in Texas. Their wives are wonderful and I loved being with them. It was such a sweet night. Two days later, we flew to Michigan and stayed with my sister and her husband and son. My cousin and her daughter swung by too. The next day, we hung out with my best friend from sixth grade, and then we landed at our vacation spot, where I am related, somewhat distantly, with a fantastic crew of probably fifty people. A few hours after we checked in, my niece arrived with her four children, all seven and under. I adore these people. The ten-month-old baby fell asleep on me and really, what is better? Plus, all my guys were there. We had fun plans to see some beautiful places and also chill on the beach. I want to be thankful for every minute, but the truth is I get peopled out. My social battery, as one of my sons puts it, gets depleted. Add any element of hurt feelings (kind of inevitable every once in a while) and I crave some time alone.

But God has a sense of humor. On Thursday afternoon, my last day in Michigan, I found myself with a book on a bench outside of a library. I sat down and exhaled like it was a spa. The sun was shining. A gentle breeze was blowing, intermittently. But before I got through a chapter, an older woman came and sat, too. She struck up a conversation by commenting on my tan. Ninety minutes later I had not read another word, but this woman, Linda, felt like a dear friend. Her husband passed away unexpectedly at the end of May. She was in the midst of unbearable grief and I hope I provided some encouragement. She told me some hilarious stories as well, and I oddly walked away feeling lighter. Somehow the old social battery wasn’t as dead as I thought. Or Linda somehow charged it.

Either way it was further proof of the Proverb: “The heart of man plans his way, but the Lord establishes his steps.” (Proverbs 16:9).

Making a new friend was not at all what I thought I needed, but God knew. I am going to send Linda a book or two on grief, if you happen to have any good recommendations.

With Love,

Kristie

The One-on-One Era

Leave a comment

Hi Friends,

I hope you are having a fabulous start to the summer! In 2024 my oldest son graduated from college and we ended up doing a seventeen day stretch together, spanning a wedding in Virginia, Olympic Trials in Indiana, and a family vacation in Michigan. We were mostly with lots of friends and family, but had quite a bit of one-on-one time amidst those seventeen days driving from place to place.

This year my middle son graduated from college and although we didn’t do much of a multi-state tour, we did have some sweet one-on-one time. One day we drove to Fort Lauderdale (just an hour south), hopped on a high speed ferry and spent the day in the Bahamas. The weather was perfect, the seas were calm and we will never forget it.

This new era with our sons being in three different places this fall feels like an invitation to make special memories with just them. Whether Will and I both pop in for the weekend, or I go for just a night, I can envision doing things that each would specifically enjoy. It’s fantastic when we can all be together but I hope to make the most of this new season.

Plus, it’s biblical. God has made us in His image but also as individuals, uniquely reflective of His glory. We should love and affirm our sons as the one-of-a-kind men that they are.

Do you find it easier to engage with loved ones as a group or one-on-one? We can always grow in the grace of loving others by more fully understanding how we are loved without condition and beyond all measure.

This passage from Ephesians 3 conveys such tender, one-on-one love from a faithful God.

“…so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith — that you, being rooted and grounded in love, may have strength to comprehend with all the saints what is the breadth and length and height and depth, and to know the love of Christ that surpasses knowledge, that you may filled with all the fullness of God.”

May we be rooted and grounded in Love that surpasses knowledge enabling us to pour into others!

With Love,

Kristie

P.S. The throwback is from ten years ago today — the last day of school in 2015. The beach picture is from Bimini on May 28th.

Rock On! or Mock On!

1 Comment

Hi Friends,

I have had a busy few weeks. We attended graduation at Georgia, I finished my little teaching job (although I absolutely loved it, I am praying about what’s next because as an empty nester I should probably work more than two days a week). I’ve been spending quite a bit of time with Nate who leaves in a few days for his internship in Atlanta. Then this weekend we had the whole Jackson Five together, which is always a tremendous gift. One of my favorite things in the whole world is to drift off to sleep while hearing the brothers laugh together in the next room. Is there a better lullaby?

This morning, before we headed to church together (The Jackson Five at our beloved little church is another favorite of mine), I was reading from my Everyday Gospel Bible in the Book of Job. A line from Chapter 21 was an odd epiphany. Do you ever read a verse you have definitely read multiple times in the past and yet it hits hard, as if you have never in your life heard it? This is the line spoken by Job: “Bear with me, and I will speak, and after I have spoken, mock on.” In other words, “Let me speak my piece, but then mock me all you want.” My epiphany was that this is one of THE problems that plagues our culture in the 21st Century. People are so concerned about what others think. Mockery is avoided at all costs.

This should not be. We should not care in the least if the culture mocks us, or even, at times, our so-called friends. If the last five years have proven anything, it is the absurdity of groupthink. Could the majority be more wrong than they were in 2020? Who would want to fit in with that crowd? Yet it was not a unique era. It is a common occurrence for the majority to be dead wrong. We need to be committed to praying for wisdom and discernment and to saturate our thinking with the Word of God. The prevailing view may sometimes align with the straight and narrow path that God calls us to, but we shouldn’t be surprised if that alignment is rare.

Mantras like “You do you,” or “Rock on” affirm your chosen path, but “Mock on” acknowledges that there is a right path. You can mock me, Job says, my life may be in shambles, but “My Redeemer lives!”

Your Redeemer lives. Even the laughter of loved ones as a lullaby cannot compare to this truth.

With Love,

Kristie

The Making of a Commencement Speech

1 Comment

Hi Friends,

I’ve been feeling a little run down this week. I sound like I’ve screamed my head off at a hockey game or something, but I haven’t. Then yesterday I had a terrible headache all day. Maybe it’s natural after last weekend. My 21-year-old son, Nate, graduated from The University of Georgia, which he did in just three years. This required a ton of hard work and was only possible because he started college with more than 25 credit hours from AP classes. Plus it was Mother’s Day. There was a lot of celebrating and a lot of roadtripping.

We heard two commencement speeches, one for the Terry College of Business and one for the whole school. Both of them were quite good. Both referenced Scripture — one gave the verse and reference, the other just used the wisdom without acknowledging that it came from the Bible. It made me realize the formula for a great commencement speech is to share a few personal stories, the funnier and more self-deprecating the better, and then share some biblical wisdom. A pastor once said a good sermon is just telling a joke and running to the Cross. But it applies beyond the pulpit because laughing is not just medicine — it’s heart-softening balm. It prepares you to receive truth and hope. Colleges should only platform speakers who can be funny. After the audience is softened up with a few laughs, then the speaker can share a few worthy points to ponder. Have you ever noticed that it is practically impossible to share a worthwhile message that is not somewhere in the Bible?

Yet many people do not look to the Bible for wisdom. In fact, there are people who treat the Bible as irrelevant for life in the 21st Century. What a profound victory for darkness to convince whole groups of people to avoid cracking open God’s Word. I am praying this morning for my friends who never read the Bible. May they have an openness to reading even just The Book of John and Proverbs.

And let’s be honest too about the results of ignoring God’s Word in the earliest stages of life. The cute photo above is Nate on Wednesday holding his birthday twin and second cousin, Bennett. Like Nate, this little baby isn’t being raised in a household that believes that children should figure out the truth for themselves. Hopefully the world is waking up to the horrifying effects of that nonsense. No, Bennett is being raised in a home where biblical wisdom is a part of daily life. He is being pointed to the truth with love. He is prayed over and cherished as wonderfully and uniquely made.

Maybe in 21 short years I’ll attend Bennett’s college graduation and hear a few fun tidbits and a message that sprints to the Cross. Maybe Nate will give the address. That wouldn’t surprise me at all.

“And let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us, fixing our eyes on Jesus, the pioneer and perfecter of faith. For the joy set before him he endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God.” Hebrews 12:1b-2.

Have a fabulous weekend!

Love,

Kristie

Jackson Five Friday: Alabama Edition

Leave a comment

Hi Friends,

Intra-familial sports rivalries have been part of our family culture for a long time, but we’ve decided to up our game a bit. You may wonder — with an University of Tennessee graduate and an University of Georgia graduate (as of a week from today) – – how we could possibly turn up the heat, but we’ve found a way.

This fall Nate will be a graduate assistant at Auburn University while he earns a Masters of Accounting. Sam will be up down the road a bit as a Blount Scholar at the University of Alabama. I’m excited about us all converging in Alabama this fall to cheer on whichever team is playing. I will never stop singing lots of Rocky Top, and my Georgia Bulldogs won the football championship Nate’s freshman year. Still, I am willing to spread my SEC love.

The truth is, being an Auburn fan is not exactly new for me. If you’ve ever been there you know: it’s a special place. Likewise, the University of Alabama has an incredibly beautiful campus and the program Sam is doing is perfect for him. Plus, I realized on my visit to Tennessee in February that I really do miss the South and its alluring charm. Next month marks a full three years in Florida and while I never tire of swaying palms and sunshine, I do appreciate a little variation now and then. Lookout Mountain’s four distinct seasons, with just a dash of winter and daffodils by the end of January, made it ideal, but Alabama is similar. So I am excited to be able to combine getting a taste of seasons with seeing my sons.

Some families do not follow sports at all, but for us it has been a fun way to spend time together. Now with 25% of the SEC covered by Jacksons, we are almost guaranteed a winning Saturday every week!

Later this month, I am speaking to a Moms’ group about building a strong family culture. I will probably mention sports, but that won’t be my main focus, obviously. But I’d love to know some of the ways you have bonded with your own family. Are there things that pop to mind immediately? Are there things maybe you wish you had done more of? Or maybe less of? What kinds of things have especially glued you together?

Of course I believe the most important foundation is God and His Word. We are knit more closely together as we grow closer to Jesus. That is just the basic design.

You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your might. And these words that I command you today shall be on your heart. You shall teach them diligently to your children, and shall talk of them when you sit in your house, and when you walk by the way, and when you lie down, and when you rise. You shall bind them as a sign on your hand, and they shall be as frontlets between your eyes. You shall write them on the doorposts of your house and on your gates. Deuteronomy 6:5-9.

Love,

Kristie

P.S. These fierce logos are my favorites!

Make It Make Sense

Leave a comment

Friends,

I’ve been thinking about a phrase we often see on social media: Make it make sense. Most of the time, it is used to poke a political opponent, suggesting that the inherent hypocrisy is downright befuddling. Sometimes it is used in a humorous way, which is refreshing. But the last few days it’s struck me that it’s actually a deep-seated, universal need.

We need things to make sense. We need to understand why we are here. Where we are going. Why we face suffering. Why people we love die. Why natural disasters keep happening. Why the world cannot keep itself out of wars.

In our heart of hearts we really do have a longing for it to make sense. When my sons were little, they went to a school that was very explicit in teaching from a biblical worldview. The students were often asked– in the midst of various kinds of lessons — about evidence of God’s created purpose, how that purpose was marred by sin, how Jesus’ death on the cross and resurrection can redeem and one day — when we are in heaven — fully restore God’s design. This framework gives such meaning. Even so, answers rarely come in HD clarity. Still, I will gladly take an answer with blurred edges over no answer! And that really is the alternative. Rejection of the biblical narrative of creation, the fall, redemption and restoration leads to no answer at all.

As I’ve been more faithful in reading through the whole Bible the last couple years, some answers have come into focus for me in profound ways. I am grateful for those. Others still require faith. But there’s peace in trusting that God is loving and good and that He is sovereign. Perfect understanding is not required. A solid biblical framework, with a few areas of clarity and a growing faith is not a bad place to be. We should never stop seeking to understand. We should continue praying for wisdom, while acknowledging we won’t graduate from faith until we meet Jesus face to face.

But what about kids who are not given even the flimsiest of frameworks to sort out life’s deepest questions? How can we expect them to flourish as humans? Is it any wonder that we have a population that is increasingly apathetic? What was the expected result when we’ve taught the masses that there is no objective truth? Tell people nothing really matters and then expect them to thrive? Make it make sense!

Relatedly, earlier this year I joined the advisory board of LifeWise Academy of Palm Beach County which aims to bring Bible education to public school students. My sons were blessed with the ability to analyze all that they were learning through a biblical worldview. I have no doubt that this framework — given to them very young in age-appropriate ways — has been vital in shaping who they are today. Why wouldn’t we want public school parents to also have the option for their kids to receive a solid Bible education?

Jesus tells us that He came so that we could have life to the FULL. (John 10:10b). I don’t think the full life He is referring to is possible without Him answering some of our deepest questions, do you?

Blessings,

Kristie

P.S. The picture above is from a LifeWise Academy event in Palm Beach Gardens on Monday. Your prayers for continued momentum from this event are appreciated. If you are local and would like to learn more, I’d love to meet with you. You can also find out about LifeWise Academy in your area by visiting the website.

The Magic Words

Leave a comment

I don’t know much about boating and even less about sailing, but I think the phrase “smooth sailing” is probably overused. In my experience, the very idea of smooth sailing is unrealistic. Plus, I am in a position to see the state of the Atlantic Ocean on most days, and I can assure you it is very rarely smooth.

Life too is rarely smooth. There are minor hiccups and major roadblocks along almost every path. Instead, the expression “there’s always something” is more apt. Just yesterday, I was driving across the state of Florida for an event with old friends that had been on the books for months. When I stopped to fill up my car before the Alligator Alley portion of the trip, my car started acting crazy. The “check engine” light came on (with a multitude of others) and it went into some “power reduced” mode where you can do 0 to 60 in about three miles. I was determined to stick to the plan, but eventually cried Uncle and headed for home. All told, it was a 4.5 hour drive to nowhere.

Last week, our A/C wasn’t keeping up, and it’s not exactly peak heat here in Florida. We used to have a service contract with an HVAC company, but it was sold a couple years ago, and so our upkeep has slacked off to merely changing the filter. Much like taking my car in this morning, I cringed to learn what was going on. The technician was a joyful kid who could have easily passed for sixteen. He told me that he had replaced the “capacitor,” and that the A/C seemed to be working just fine now. I was kind of horrified. The capacitor? That sounds expensive, I thought. Shouldn’t he have asked me before he did that? But then he followed with the magic words: it is under warranty. It never occurred to me that I would hear those words when the unit was replaced more than five years ago and the company that installed it was sold.

These are trivial things in the grand scheme of life, but I think the lesson is an important one. A certain way may seem right to us, but the Lord directs our steps. I don’t know why exactly my plan to be in Fort Myers today was thwarted, although to be honest I have a couple ideas. But I think sometimes we benefit from the reminder to stay supple. He is the Potter. We are the clay. It’s never a good thing when we stubbornly demand our own way. Instead we are blessed when we are yielded — surrendered to His plan. That doesn’t mean we don’t make plans. It means when He redirects we don’t fight it.

Maybe the most magical words of all are “[N]ot my will, but Yours.” Luke 22:42b.

Blessings,

Kristie

Amy Boyd Was Right

2 Comments

When I was growing up I went to public school, except for first grade, when I went to school with all three of my siblings at Temple Christian in Redford, Michigan. My eldest brother was a senior, my sister was a junior and my other brother was in eighth grade. I am sure I would have been more of a mascot for all their friends if I wasn’t already so dang tall for a first grader. Still, I did receive a good bit of attention — certainly no one else in first grade drove to school with a senior on the basketball team. Sometimes much younger children have a hard time fitting in with their peers, as they’ve been exposed to the humor of the family and enjoy frequent outings past the bedtimes of most classmates. However, I must have had some friends, because my teacher, Miss Amy Boyd, taped my mouth shut for talking.

I don’t think you could do that today, even in a private school. But it was a memorable experience. The first time Miss Boyd ripped off the tape it hurt like the dickens. Subsequent tapings though were not as effective because I was wise to it. The trick was to move your mouth quite a bit while it was taped. This made removal relatively painless.

But guess what amps up sleep quality like nothing else I have experienced? Taping your mouth shut. Funny that in a weird twist of fate, my first grade teacher was on to something. It’s the breathing through your nose. The nights I tape my mouth shut with surgical tape, I wake up feeling more rested in the morning. Like a lot more rested. You can consciously breathe through your nose during the day, utilizing God’s built-in air filtration system, but most of us can’t do that while sleeping. Plus, it’s pretty hard, but not impossible, to snore through your nose.

Can focusing on breath really help you feel better? I believe it can. The older I get, the more I think “little” things matter. I believe fresh air, feet in the sand, and a little sunshine are healing too. God gave us lots of little gifts to enjoy and we honor Him by doing so — by soaking them up. Being still and breathing deeply are calming. Giving thanks brings joy. Sometimes the answers really are simple. But we don’t do them by default. Walking with God — abiding in Him — requires a daily and intentional commitment.

Rankin Wilbourne puts it like this in his book Union with Christ:

“[O]ne of the most challenging aspects of the Christian life — [is] the simple repetitiveness of it. Left, right, left, right. Again and again, over and over. All the way. Every day. Like a long walk uphill.”

Christina Rossetti has a poem that opens:

Does the road wind up-hill all the way?

Yes, to the very end.

We might prefer to fly. We may wonder if there are any shortcuts. And there are some, but once you find out what they are — humiliation and suffering — you’ll probably prefer to walk.”

It may be uphill all the way, but if you have sweet believing friends to make the trek alongside, reminding each other that the “simple repetitiveness” will end in glory beyond imagination, then it will seem less steep.

As Paul wrote to the Romans, let us “be mutually encouraged by each other’s faith.” Romans 1: 12.

Blessings,

Kristie

P.S. If you tape your mouth shut, leave a little folded tab to enable quick removal should there be a need.