It's hard for us to believe John Paul Jackson has passed away. JPJ was the first Bible teacher to speak into my life. His ministry inspired and challenged my husband and I since our early years. He understood us. He had experiences like us. He was humble. He was a spiritual father. Our hearts are broken.
John Paul Jackson's ministry always emphasized character as a key element in our spiritual lives. He challenged us to believe God and walk with integrity. He inspired us to live a holy life in every area of our lives. He is also one of the only teachers I know that spoke about spiritual integrity. As a young teen, I remember throwing away all my magazines with horoscopes in the back, I haven't read another horoscope since. I got rid of movies, t-shirts and anything that brought blatant worship to anything other than our God. This has carried into our adult lives. I truly credit his ministry for many of the super natural events in our lives. He pointed us to holiness as teens and as we perused holiness, miracles continued to manifest in our lives. He never separated the two and we as adults have not separated the two.
I'm filled with tears just thinking about him and his gentle yet bold spirit. He carried a calm and quiet confidence that is rare. I remember as a teen I heard JPJ share his heart about the rejected and misunderstood. He said he was not after the crowds and fans. He was committed to reaching the ones left out by the mainstream church. His heart was to show the outsiders that God loved them, God was speaking to them and God could heal them. He'd take a team and minster at new age conventions, to witches and people who were in the occult. He wanted them to know God was the true source of power and light, and our God loved them and created them with purpose. He would often say for every good gift of God the enemy has made a cheap copy to mimic it.
John Paul Jackson will forever be missed. I honestly can't believe he's not here anymore. I know we will see him again one day, but knowing I'll never read a new article, hear another live teaching, or take a class by him is heart breaking. We will never understand why some live a 100yrs and others pass away so young. Our times are in God's hands and we must trust him.
It's hard knowing new generations of Christians will never know John Paul Jackson the way we did. You will forever be missed. You taught us the power in holiness, you taught us to trust God radically, you taught us to hear and you taught us to see. We love you and will see you again.
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