When he first began to work at Sacred Heart Hospital, Jackson wanted to throw up. Blood was everywhere. As a CNA and phlebotomist, he would guide psychiatric patients down hallways, witness brain surgeries, monitor heart rates and meet ambulances.
One time, a man arrived at the ER who recently had open-heart surgery. His stitches had split open, and his insides were poking out of the wound. In the midst of beeping machines and bustling doctors, Jackson focused on the fact that this man was made in the image of God.
After the doctors stapled the man’s chest shut, Jackson spent the night sitting by his bed to make sure the wound didn’t open again.
“Whatever it is, you are ultimately serving God’s people,” said Jackson afterward. “When God brings us into a situation or into people’s lives, he desires for us to love them compassionately regardless of who they are.”
Working in the ER is not easy, but Jackson has not had an easy life. His family faced religious persecution in Sudan due to their Christian faith. Eventually, it got so bad that they were forced to move to an overcrowded refugee camp. With thirteen mouths to feed, every day was uncertain.
“It was very difficult. The hardships of starving for weeks on end, and just the surviving – you kind of have to fight for yourself… As far as my faith, it was basically something that got me through.”
The family went through years of rigorous vetting, and waiting, and praying, and hoping for a chance to be resettled somewhere. Finally, when Jackson was thirteen, his family received an opportunity to be resettled in Boise, ID.
His experiences as a refugee youth formed his ministry
Unlike most seventh graders, Jackson had never attended school and didn’t know any English. That didn’t stop him from pursuing his dreams. Jackson was eager to learn and years later received the medical training needed to work at Providence.
Jackson’s case manager, Mark, was a huge role model for him. He remembers telling Mark, “Your job is so cool. You get to help people and all that stuff. I want to do what you do someday!”
And so, he did. Jackson began to volunteer everywhere he could. When a job as a case manager opened up in Spokane, Jackson rose to the occasion. At World Relief, he began to see his impact on refugee youth specifically.
Jackson spent 12 years at World Relief before moving to a similar position with another organization that helps refugees and other immigrants.
“Coming to the U.S. as a young person, I understand the lifestyles of the youth in the community, and I’m able to guide them in the directions they might be looking for… kind of being a big brother, I guess you could say.”
“I love the youth in the community and I love being part of the community.”
Compassion is a call from God to the heart.
Compassion means to “to suffer with,” and for Jackson, it has to come from the heart.
“It comes natural when you look at somebody,” said Jackson. “You see them struggling and say, ‘I want to carry their burden. I want to go help them and support them in whatever way I can.’”
“Our compassion is tested in a lot of ways when we’re struggling, and we have to give more of what we don’t have.”
And yet, God gives Jackson the grace to be compassionate. And that grace grows. It is a grace that pushes past the pain of daily life and the trauma of the past toward a community where all can experience the peace of God.
“Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for human masters.”
Colossians 3:23-24
“A community that looks out for each other is a community that is going to be strong,” said Jackson. “So, I want people to take time to be intentional with each other.”
“I think that’s one of the biggest things refugees struggle with… When they get here, after a few months, if they don’t have a volunteer, they’re kind of just stuck on their own – unless they have a community around them.”
That’s what World Relief is seeking to build: a community that welcomes their neighbors when they arrive in the neighborhood (or at the airport). A community that practices new skills together and celebrates each other’s differences.
“I feel very privileged that I have been part of a community that saw me for me,” said Jackson.
Join the World Relief Spokane community by volunteering today.
About the Author
Keri Bambock is the Communications Coordinator at World Relief Spokane. Her hobbies include sketching and painting. She likes riding her bike to the office and always gets the best parking spot.