Over the coming weeks and months we spent more and more time together after work and on our free days. We would ride together to church and eventually I even started playing the piano to assist him in Wednesday evening children’s church while he played the guitar and led the singing. The only thing was, I really didn’t know HOW to play the piano! I did play the guitar and took the chords from the guitar and realized they sounded the same on the piano! So, I just faked it and no one was the wiser, or at least they never let on!

My biggest fear in a relationship, being a young woman with a very clear call from God and a very specific direction for my life, was to waste precious time in a relationship that was not going to end up as my life partner. My criteria was 2 things: he had to love Jesus as much as I did, and be called to Africa. That narrowed things down a bit! I also mentioned to God that “I wouldn’t mind if he was good looking too!” Throughout my relationship with Jerry, I was so unsure if this was really it. Yes, he was called to Africa. Yes, he loved God with all his heart, but was it too good to be true? I felt he was out of my league. He was older than me and so good looking and stylish! I sure didn’t bargain for that part!

Friends

As time went on, people began to see us as “a couple”. Originally, Jerry thought he was going to be single and go to Africa. He felt he could do more for God single, than married. He was approaching 30 and he was pretty comfortable with his bachelorhood. When it started taking him time to commit his heart to me, I started to get nervous. I wanted to chuck the whole thing and say, “forget it, this is too hard!” But my wise mother said to me, “Jana, hang on, this one is worth waiting for. When he does commit, it will be solid and it will be quick. Just be his friend.” When I would go to the Lord in prayer about our relationship, the Lord would gently speak to me and say, “Jana, be faithful to him as a friend”. So that’s what I did, but I also loved him very much “more than a friend!”

By this time I had been approached about working at KGOL as an account executive, where Carla was an announcer and where I had organized media buys for LuMatt. In the big city of Houston, my office was near Jerry’s town home so I would sometimes go there for lunch while his work was near my apartment and he would do the same. It was New Year’s Eve and I was looking forward to getting off, but I was a little irritated that Jerry hadn’t made plans with me for the evening. Was it taken for granted that I would just be free and available at his whim to get together! I was getting more irritated and restless by the minute, reminding the Lord that I didn’t intend to waste time or personal energy in a relationship if it was going nowhere! After all, I was on my way to Africa and waiting for the green light from the Lord! Jerry was working a double shift as he was in retail at the time and was clueless as to my emotional dilemma!

“Things I want in a wife”

That afternoon during lunch, I went over to his place, walked into the Living room, and there on the desk, bold as daylight was a big piece of paper, and on it a list with bold letters that that read, “Things I want in a wife”. I contemplated for about a millisecond as to whether I should read it or not, and decided after all, that it was fair game as it was in plain sight! I looked at the 10 points on that paper and was dumbstruck. 1. Loves the Lord 2. A good dresser 3. A good cook 4. Good looking 5. secretarial skills 6. Called to Africa…That’s about as far as I got. I did not see myself on that list very much at all! I stormed out of that townhouse and after work that day, went to my little apartment where I lived alone, packed my bag and drove to the nearest Hotel and checked in. I locked myself in the room and vowed to God that I would not leave that room till I heard from Him regarding my relationship with Jerry Lackey! Was this the one or not? 

As the next few weeks went by, I started hanging out with Carla and her group of friends more and Jerry was part of that group. We all went to Lakewood church. It is one of the largest churches in America now, but even back then, it was huge and one could easily get lost in the crowd. Through our time together I began to realize that Jerry Lackey must be older than 18 or 19, because I kept hearing bits and pieces of some of the things he had done since high school, and I knew he couldn’t have done all that in such a short time. I was 24 years old at the time.

 Carla was a known “matchmaker” so reluctantly one evening, I was riding to church with Carla and another friend when I mustered up the nerve to ask exactly how old Jerry Lackey was. I knew this question would be met with some serious “ooh’s” and teasing but I just had to know! To my shock and surprise, I found out that night that Jerry was in fact- 6 years older than me. For one, rare moment, I was speechless!

Soon after that, we had a concert planned with Russ Taff’s first “crossover” album, an album that was being played in the Christian and Secular Markets. Because of this, we planned a press conference to get the media out for the great event just prior to the concert. Now Carla, being the devious matchmaker that she was, said to me, “Jana, Russ Taff is Jerry Lackey’s favorite Christian Artist, so you need to invite him to be your escort to the Press Conference. After all, it just wouldn’t be appropriate for you to go alone.” Yeah right! Being the godly, spiritual young lady that I was, I said to her, “I will not be the first one to ask him out. That just wouldn’t be right!” She replied to me, “Now Jana, just where do you find that in the bible?” She had me! When I reluctantly agreed, she then proceeded to lay out the plan of exactly what I was to say to him after service that next evening. We all went in for snacks after the service. So, just as I had rehearsed, I asked, “Hey you know the Russ Taff concert coming up?” “Yes”, he said. “ We are having a press conference before-hand. You want to go with me to pick him up from the airport, go to the press conference, and then go to the concert afterwards? He resounded with a very eager “yeah sure!”

So, the time came for the exciting evening. I had gone shopping and bought a new outfit- with bright colors, an indigo jacket, bright yellow blouse and big splashy flowers on my skirt. The evening was great. I was terrified, but excited and managed to be confident as he watched me mix with the crowd of media buffs from all over the city. The concert was a sell- out crowd at the Arena Theater in Houston, an awesome facility in the round that has a stage that makes a slow 360 as the show is in progress.

Afterwards, when everything was over I had to take him back to his car, a cute little Red MG Convertible that was too small for us to go fetch Russ in! So there I was,driving my little blue, Toyota Celica on the 610 loop of Houston. The loop encircles the city with all the major highways intersecting it. There is just one thing I left out about when I asked Jerry’s age in her car that night. Carla said to me, “Jerry is a really great guy, but good luck getting him to open up and tell you anything about himself.” He is the kind of guy that can draw the best out of other people, did not talk too much about himself. Well you could have fooled me! That night in the car as I was driving, Jerry began to share his story with me about how God had called him in a very special way –to Africa! He actually shed tears as he spoke and recounted to me the experience of watching a T.L. Osborne film that changed his life and gave him the unmistakeable call to serve in Africa. I had a similar experience for Southern Africa while studying at Christ For The Nations Institute in Dallas, Texas just 3 years before. Just as I was about to blurt that out, I experienced a “holy hush” that came over me. In the midst of his sharing, I missed our exit!! I ended up driving around the entire city of Houston as Jerry poured his heart out to me about his call and love for the precious peoples of Africa. Normally I would have said something like, “Oh wow, neat, me too”, but that holy, reverent hush had come over me and it would be weeks before I would share with Jerry our mutual love and calling for the Nations of Africa.

Watch here for more of the story~

Lots of people have asked me to tell them our story. I am going to give you the “girl time version”. I have shared it many times around the campfire underneath the backdrop of the brilliant Kalahari skies with hundreds of girls with Teen Mania outreaches through the years! Maybe we don’t have a campfire, but thanks for joining me!

Our story starts with us, I was 24 years old and working at LuMatt Productions in the Christian Concert Industry. I was a promotor of major Christian Concerts with artists like Amy Grant, Sandi Patti, Michael W. Smith, Russ Taff, Michael Card, Wayne Watson, Kathy Troccoli, and many others. One Texas tour we put together was with an interesting Duo- Michael Card, with his mellow, ballad style and Leon Patillo who was formerly with “Earth, Wind and Fire”. – well, that speaks for itself! The last date of the tour was in Houston Texas at the Houston Coliseum. The show was packed and the crowd was electric! I had invited Carla Andrus, my friend and announcer of a leading Contemporary Christian Station to be the MC that evening. She asked if she could bring along her brother and his friend, Jerry Lackey. They had both attended Pastor John Osteen’s Lakewood Bible Institute.

After the concert was over, we all kicked back –backstage, with a sigh of relief from LuMatt Staff and the artists that we had completed the tour and their families. It was then that I was introduced to Jerry Lackey for the first time. He was with Harold, Carla’s brother, who was 18 years old. I could only assume when I met Jerry that he was also around his age, because he certainly looked it! I remember thinking to myself, “Its too bad he’s so young, he seems like a really neat guy. I wish he were older”. Then I dismissed it as just a nice wish.

Check back for more to come!