Pickle Heaven Press-James R. Johnson

something to help you laugh and think about life with Christ

Tag: travel

Christmas dressing — December 10, 2025

Christmas dressing

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My clothes were in style when I was a teenager – in the style of the previous decade.  When I got married, my wife became my haberdasher.  She buys my apparel at Goodwill Dior.   

But what about the clothes that Jesus wore?  They say, what you wear says something about you.  So, what can we learn about Jesus from His wardrobe? 

Luke 2:7 describes His first ensemble, “And she brought forth her firstborn son, and wrapped him in swaddling clothes.” – KJV

The shivering baby Jesus was wrapped in swaddling clothes.  Why would Luke include a detail like this?  Why not tell us if He was a small baby or a big bruiser?  Or what was His Apgar score?   Uh huh – I know what that is.   

What color was his hair?  Tell me it was red – please?  Was he jaundiced?   Did He look like his momma?

Why focus on swaddling clothes?  And what are they anyway?  In those days, when a child was born, the child’s arms were laid at its side, and the child was snugly wrapped in strips of linen or cotton.

The strips were 5 inches wide by 6 yards long.   A band was also placed under the chin and across the forehead of the child.   The wrapping completely immobilized the child. 

It was believed that by doing this, it would straighten the posture of the child who had been cramped within his mother’s womb.   There was no miniature Dallas Cowboys jersey for Jesus. 

The swaddling clothes spoke of Christ’s incarnation.  As God, Jesus descended to earth to wrap Himself in the flesh of a man.  And just as the swaddling clothes restricted the movement of the baby, the humanity in which Christ was wrapped, restricted his movement as God. 

He was required to lay down the independent use of His divine attributes.   He was tightly wrapped in human flesh as He lived out His life as a man.

That was His first outfit, but the NT mentions Christ’s clothing about 31 times.  Many of the references tell us something unique about Him.

A woman touched the fringe of his cloak and was healed (Luke 8:44). His cloak spoke of His incredible power. At the transfiguration, His garments radiated a glorious light which attested to His majesty (Matthew 17:2).

He was girded with a towel as He washed the feet of the disciples. It was a symbol of His servanthood (John 13:4). 

Herod dressed Him in a robe to mock His claim as King (Luke 23:11) and the soldiers cast lots over His garments at cross (Matthew 27:35) pointing to His complete humiliation.

After He was crucified, “then they took the body of Jesus, and wound it in linen clothes – John 19:40. – KJV

His lifeless body was tenderly covered – wound tightly with linen wrappings, much like a mummy.  The wrappings were imbedded with a mixture of myrrh and aloes. They were so tight it was impossible to escape them. They affirmed the certainty of His death.

But wait a minute!  The man wrapped in His burial clothes looked much like the infant, tightly wrapped in His swaddling clothes.  One seems to have foreshadowed the other.  It was like a linen thread that ran through Christ’s life.  

So, Luke deliberately focused on the infant’s swaddling clothes to help us understand that the Christ child was born to die. 

And we are so very grateful that Jesus did that for us.  But we’re also thrilled that He wore those grave clothes for only three days. 

John put it this way, “Then Simon Peter, who had been following him, arrived and went right into the tomb. He saw the strips of linen cloth lying there, and the face cloth, which had been around Jesus’ head, not lying with the strips of linen cloth but rolled up in a place by itself” John 20:6-7.  NETBible®

The empty wrappings spoke of the certainty of His resurrection.   What a truly amazing story His clothing tells!

A PRAYER: Thank You Jesus for telling the Gospel through your wardrobe.

This has been Jim Johnson and pickleheavenpress.com

May the grace of our Lord Jesus be with You

a matter of the heart — October 23, 2024

a matter of the heart

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A week ago, they checked me into the ER and I had to answer a barrage of questions.  I found out later, when reading my chart, that they mistakenly listed my race as Native Hawaiian or other Pacific Islander.

Hmm!  The last time I looked in the mirror I was Caucasian.  I didn’t know that they could medically change your race – not that I wouldn’t mind being a Native Hawaiian with their beautiful bronzed skin and superb surfing skills

But there I was in the ER with telltale chest pain.  The cardiologist found that my enzymes were up, and they needed to quickly perform a heart cath. 

Two stents later I woke up to a nurse asking me, “What is your name?”  I groggily replied her, “James Johnson.”  She asked, “Do you know where you are at?”  I said, “Yeah – the Whitehouse?”    She looked at my wife Sharie with alarm who assured her I was kidding.

Yep, I had me a heart attack.  It was quite a surprise!   Each year I would get a physical exam and my numbers were always good.  Cholesterol was in check and blood pressure good. My primary doc told me “Whatever you are doing keep it up!”   I replied, “You mean not eating right or exercising?”  (I really said that.) 

As I lay in the ER room groaning with pain, I was glad to have my sweet wife by my side as well as my wonderful daughter.  They laid hands on me and prayed. 

I was also comforted knowing that my Jesus was with me.  I was not afraid – in pain yes, but not afraid.  In fact, that verse from Philippians kept skipping through my mind, “For to me, to live is Christ and to die is gain” – Phil 1:21. NIV

I have preached to others the significance of that verse.  I have quoted it and explained it at many funeral services.   I wanted folks to know that the most fearful thing is not death, but a prolonged life on this planet locked into a degrading body.  Death is God’s merciful way of releasing us of that burden and ushering us into a much sweeter and better existence with Him. 

Ah, but of course it is easy to talk about such a transition, another to travel it.  So, there I was, not sure where the next few hours would take me.  But, in looking back, I am pleased that my thoughts were on my Lord. 

And He sovereignly decided that I needed to stay on for a bit longer and experience the words, “to live is Christ.” 

Thanks to Jesus and my daily dose of baby aspirin my heart sustained no permanent damage.  This was truly welcome news. 

But the episode was certainly an inconvenience.  I am semi-retired, but I am busy with ministry.  I care for folks as Hospice chaplain; I still preach and teach some; Sharie, Brenda Waskowiak and I are busy singing the praises of Jesus 3-4 times a month.  So, I wondered why the Lord would put all that in jeopardy. 

He had His reasons.  I suppose it was something like this, “Jim I still have a good deal of work that I want you to do.  You need to take care of your body so that you’ll be around to do it.” 

I was released from the hospital the day after the stents – and the day after that, I went for a brisk 30-minute walk.   I may also have to reduce my intake of Bluebell. 

Thanks to those of you who found out through the grapevine of my heart attack and inquired and prayed.  Thanks also to the excellent team of health care professionals at Longview Regional Hospital.  

Oh, and by the way – if a week goes by, and I have not posted another installment of pickleheavenpress, either I had a senior moment or I have moved on to that place of gain – and you can be happy for me.

A PRAYER: God I am thankful for an extended opportunity to serve You.

This has been Jim Johnson and pickleheavenpress.com

May the grace of our Lord be with you always.

we want to go camping!  — May 8, 2024

we want to go camping! 

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We were hopelessly motoring around Custer State Park in South Dakota.  It had already been a long day when we finally realized that we were lost.   The park was a vast expanse – roughly 10 miles wide by 10 miles deep and our campsite was playing hide and seek with us. 

In the spirit of General Custer, I was ready to make my last stand.  So, I suddenly pulled the car up next to a construction crew and strongly exhorted my wife to ask for directions.   I wasn’t going to do it of course.

She was quite flustered, and it showed, but she stuck her head out the window and said, “Uh, we want to go camping!”  (Hmm an interesting way to ask for directions!)

Well, the man leaned back on his shovel and pondered his answer.  He said, “O really?”   Awkward!  She was embarrassed and the rest of us were entertained.

We didn’t know where we were headed.  Some of us experience that kind of confusion in the spiritual realm.

We believe that God is sovereign, and has a plan for our lives, but what we experience day-to-day doesn’t always make sense to us. 

There have been the good times which we have counted as blessings.  But there have also been some hard times sandwiched in between.  There have been seasons of plenty, but also seasons of want. 

There was that job that opened just when it was needed but it ended up in a lay off just 5 years later.  There were spans of time when the nearness of God was incredible, and other times when He seemed to be absent.

It makes us wonder, ”Lord, where are you taking me?  Help me to understand!”

Paul answered that question in Romans 8:28-29.  He wrote, “And we know that all things work together for good for those who love God, who are called according to his purpose, because those whom he foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the image of his Son…”  NETBible ®

Many of us have verse 28 memorized.  It’s of priceless encouragement, but it’s verse 29 that we need to consider here.  It says that “he also predestined (us) to be conformed to the image of his Son.”

The word “predestined” tells us that God’s plan for us reaches back to before we were ever born.  The word “conform” tells us that we are still an imperfect work in the process of development. 

This is His roadmap for us– a plan to conform us to the likeness of His most wonderful Son, so that we reflect His character, and operate by His ethics.  It is to value what He values, and to disdain what He rejects. The result is what the Scripture refers to as “godliness.” (1 Timothy 6:11)

It is a work that God started the day we were saved and will continue till we meet Jesus face-to-face.  Paul put it this way, “For I am sure of this very thing, that the one who began a good work in you will perfect it until the day of Christ Jesus.” –  Philippians 1:6.

In the meantime, He uses the multifaceted experiences of life to mold and make us; to sharpen us and shape us so that we resemble Jesus more today than we did yesterday.   Our character is like clay in the supple hands of The Potter. 

So, know that the issues that you face, even today are being used by God to fulfill His plan for you.

I once sat in my office with a married couple who disagreed with a pastoral decision that I had made.  She went for my jugular when she said, “We thought this church had a “godly” pastor!”   That deeply wounded me!  Fortunately, most did not share her opinion. 

But, the opinion I value the best and the character I covet the most – is that of my Savior and I am so glad He is busy producing godliness in me.

A PRAYER: Have your way in my life Lord.

This has been Jim Johnson and pickleheavenpress.com

May the grace of our Lord Jesus be with you.

Scripture references are from the NETBible.com

shoe pile — April 10, 2024

shoe pile

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For 12 hours each day I taught the Bible to house church leaders in Beijing.  Sunday was my last day in China, and I was to bring the message at a clandestine house church meeting. 

My translator and I were the first to arrive.  Following the custom, we removed our athletic shoes and left them outside the apartment door.  My schedule was intense: preach, then quickly exit to drive to the airport to ride a 747 on home.  A tight schedule.

Folks began to show up.  Their arrival times were staggered so as not to draw attention from the authorities.  Eventually, about 100 of us were jammed together for a glorious time of worship. 

After the last Amen, I was alarmed to realize that I was seriously behind schedule.  I snatched my stuff and exited – only to run into a mountain.    

I found a pile athletic shoes that looked much like mine (maybe because they were all manufactured in China.)  I tore into them looking for my pair.  Shoes were flying around like it was the BOGO sale at the shoe store.   

I rifled through them and even gave a couple of pairs the smell test.

After 5 eternal minutes I remembered some wise advice that I once heard, “If the shoe fits, wear it.” 

Ah but they were all 2 to 3 sizes too small.  And then it hit me: look for the clown- sized shoes.  Found em – and I was on my way. 

Now I wonder if you might join me in my shoe search?  In Ephesians 6, Paul described for us the spiritual armor that God has supplied for the Christian.  Most of us understand the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit.

But our footwear is a little more puzzling. Paul told us to prepare for spiritual battle by “…by fitting your feet with the preparation that comes from the good news of peace.”  – Ephesians 6:15  NETBible ®

He used the sandal of the Roman soldier as his model.   His “caliga” was a thickly-soled sandal that was strapped around the ankle in several places.   Nails studded the sole much like golf cleats.

Those shoes were not made for running but for standing.  The soldier needed stability for hand-to-hand combat. 

Paul tells us that the Gospel gives us that kind of spiritual stability and confidence.  It’s the “good news of peace” – a promise of being at peace with God. (Romans 5:1)

The shoes of the Gospel is the confidence that we who believe now belong to God, through placing our faith in the finished work of Christ on the cross.  It is the conviction that Jesus is the way the truth and the life and that our eternal future is determined by what we do with Him.

The Gospel enables us to stand unwavering in our faith even while it is besieged.  And it is, isn’t it?  As always, we face a myriad of theological frontal attacks on our faith.   

Our culture insists on reshaping our theology.   We are pressed to transfer our faith from what the Scripture says, to what culture wants the Scripture to say.   Current statistics, in fact, indicate that the majority of younger Christians today reject the idea that salvation comes through Christ alone.  Looks like our inferior shoes are slipping.

My time in China was intimidating.  I was in hostile territory, speaking to people who had been indoctrinated from birth with Mao’s anti-God teaching.

I could have been arrested at any moment, but I was there anyway because I believed the Gospel with all my heart – that it was absolute truth, so desperately needed to spiritually liberate the Chinese.

I urgently needed my Gospel shoes in China, and thank God, I didn’t have to frantically hunt for them at the door.

The battle for the mind also rages in your community.  God, therefore, has provided shoes for you too – just your size.  Put em on and take your stand.

A prayer: Lord when the world pushes on us, may we stand immovable!

This has been Jim Johnson and pickleheavenpress.com

May the grace of our Lord Jesus be with you.

travel trauma — November 16, 2022

travel trauma

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Like you’ve never been late!

My wife and I were sipping coffee on a sleepy Friday morning.  Our plan for the day was to pack for our three-week mission trip.  The next day we were headed to several African nations to visit various missionaries that had been sent out from our church. 

At 8 a.m. I happened to glance at our itinerary.  I was stunned when I realized that we were scheduled to depart at noon on that same day, TODAY!  My blood pressure could have inflated a tire. 

Planes within Africa fly their routes once or twice a week.  If we missed the first leg of the journey, the whole trip would be lost along with a fortune in airfare. 

I said to my wife, “Uh Sharie, um I just found out we are leaving today.”   She ignored me, “just another dumb Jim joke.”  With more assertiveness I said, “Honey we are leaving today.”  She said, “no.”  I said, “yes.”  She said, “no.” I said, “yes.”  “Let me see that,” she said.  She looked at it and then lost it.

We had 4 hours to shower, pack, make the 2-hour drive to Dallas, park the car, check in, wade through security and board the plane.  No way!

But we tried!  We showered faster than a couple of preteens.  She had postponed doing the laundry, which meant most of our clothes were dirty.  But she wadded them up and jammed them in the suitcase anyway.  What would the TSA think?

Toothbrushes, deodorant, hair gel were flying into the luggage.

We made it to the airport, but the south parking lot was full. We drove the full length of DFW to find that the north lot was also full, so we parked the car in short term parking.  It might be cheaper just to leave it there when we got back. 

We slipped into the plane just before they closed the door. Our collective adrenaline was pumping for the first 3 hours of our transatlantic flight. 

And then there were the typical airliner annoyances: cramped seating; crying babies; inconsiderate fellow passengers (my wife being the exception) and a bathroom that always seemed to say, “in use.”    

The journey was brutal – but arriving was breathtaking. 

We were greeted and treated like royalty by our missionaries.  There were tears and hugs and joy abounding.  We ate what they ate, saw what they saw, and joined them in their service to the Lord.  We had a superb time. 

As a bonus – we met exotic animals, saw dazzling displays, encountered curious cultures and experienced the wonder of God like never before. 

If we had to do over again, including the plane pain, we would do it.

Now, as a hospice chaplain, I counsel people who are on a difficult journey.  Some battle cancer, others COPD.  Some are disabled by stroke while others lose their memories to dementia. Some are whittled away by diabetes and others tremble with Parkinsons.

They look to me to help them make sense of it all.  So, I tell them about my traumatic and troublesome trip to Africa. 

But then I tell them about heaven, and I say, “The journey is sometimes brutal – but arriving is breathtaking.” 

Death is the portal to the glories that lie beyond.  But what lies beyond makes the journey worth it all.  The Psalmist put it this way, “In thy presence is fulness of joy; at thy right hand there are pleasures for evermore.” Psalm 16:11 KJV

How does the old song go? “It will be worth it all when we see Jesus. Life’s trials will seem so small when we see Christ; One glimpse of His dear face all sorrow will erase; So bravely run the race till we see Christ.”

The journey is sometimes brutal – but arriving is breathtaking. 

A PRAYER: Lord please help us be brave until then. 

This has been Jim Johnson and pickleheavenpress.com

May the grace of our Lord Jesus be with you.