Although It's Been Said.

Many Times Many Ways.

MERRY CHRISTMAS! I hope you all have had a wonderful few weeks preparing for Christmas. I know it can get busy and sometimes a bit stressful, but my wish is that you have remembered what this time of year is all about. Celebrating the birth of the King of Kings and the Lord of Lords, Jesus. We get to do this by spending time with those we love, giving gifts, hanging stockings, and of course eating more than we should. 

Christmas Card.

Many of you saw this years' Johnson Christmas Card. We felt it depicted our life pretty accurately and wanted to give you all a glimpse into our world, TOTAL TWIN TAKEOVER. It was the picture before the perfect picture. Since we chose to do our card that way, we still wanted to take a family photo. We didn't realize just how accurate our Christmas Card truly was. Here is a little video compiled of over 300 attempts to find the perfect picture. Enjoy!

TRUTH: A picture is worth a thousand words.




DARE: In the busyness of this Holiday, take time to create memories that will last forever.

Christmas Time With The Johnsons.

Daddy & Kennedi and Mommy & Brooklyn

Kennedi Ila Johnson

Brooklyn Elysse Johnson

Best Friends Forever B & K

Love.

My World. 

TRUTH: These moments were absolutely priceless.                                      

DARE: Spend this Holiday season telling the people in your life just how much they mean to you. 

Johnson Christmas Card

Have yourself a Merry Little Christmas. 

Love, The Johnsons

TRUTH:  

 For a child is born to us,

      a son is given to us.
   The government will rest on his shoulders.
      And he will be called:
   Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God,

      Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.     

                                               

         

DARE: Remember Jesus this Holiday season.

Gifts. Less is More.

The last two weeks have been crazy around the Johnson house. BJ was at the church day and night in preparation for The Joy Of Christmas production, a Christmas production put on by The Los Angeles Dream Center. It was amazing! There were 7 shows in 5 nights, thousands of people in attendance and many children blessed with bikes and other amazing Christmas gifts. It was a very special event to be a part of. So, while he was busy at the church I was at home with my girls playing single mommy. I have to take a second and seriously give honor where honor is due. Every mom is a super mom, but especially those mommies who do it all by themselves. You all are my heroes! I am not really sure how I got through those two weeks. I even caught a stomach bug and was not feeling well. So, I guess my point is is that I was one tired momma come Monday morning when it was all done.

Lazy Day.

BJ had the day off this past Monday. Having him home kind of felt like a day off for me too. We drank coffee, lounged around the house, spent some time with just the four of us and even snuck in a few cat naps here and there. It was a really great day. About half way through my day I starting day dreaming about the perfect gift I could give myself for the crazy past couple of weeks. I do that every now and then. This time I dreamt of a day at the spa. I'm talking manicure, pedicure, facial and a massage. A spa day just for myself.

Wake Up.

I woke up from my day dream to the smell of a couple stinky diapers! I guess this spa day wasn't in the near future. Haha. After we put the girls to sleep, BJ went to check the mail. I don't ever check the mail, in fact, I don't like to. Getting bills in the mail probably has something to do with it. BJ threw me a card that was addresses to me. I thought it might be a Christmas card from or something. When I opened it, I realized it was a card sent from him. It was seriously one of the most special things I have ever received. It was just what I needed when I needed it. He told me how he sent that card to me over a week ago and was anxiously awaiting its arrival. I was smiling ear to ear. I quickly forgot about this spa day I so desperately wanted and all those feelings of being overwhelmed, tired and drained went away. It was a simple gift but it was what I needed. I just didn't know it.

Sometimes less is more.

When I looked at the envelope it almost looked like one of those cards with the fake check inside written out to you for one million dollars. You know the kind I'm talking about. So to be honest I wasn't all that excited to open the card. What if I had disregarded it or even thrown it away because of its packaging? How many gifts has God sent my way that I have overlooked and thrown away because it didn't come in the package I was looking for? This card meant the world to me and I am so glad I gave it chance. Not to say that a spa day wouldn't be nice (this is a sublminal message to BJ, I know he reads my blogs haha) but honestly, this card was more!

Looks can be deceiving. 

As I looked at my card over and over again I realized that God not only knows what we need and when we need it but He also tends to send things our way in packages we aren't expecting. There have been many times where I have said, "I never expected to be doing this or having that." There are things in my life that I currently don't understand, but somehow someway I know that it is exactly what I need and more. Are there things that God has sent your way that look different than you thought they would? Are you in a season of your life that you had not imagined you would be in? If so, I would love to hear about it.



TRUTH: "The best things come in small packages"- English Proverb




DARE: Don't overlook certain gifts just because they have been sent in packaging you weren't expecting.

Gifts.

It's The Most Wonderful Time Of The Year.


I love Christmas. The amazing decorations, the delicious food, the fun parties and of course the gifts! Even though gift giving or receiving isn't one of my love languages, I love watching people open a gift that I have chosen. It is a great feeling to give, even if it's "not much." This year is going to be by far the most exciting and special Holiday season for us. It's the girls' first Christmas and they are turning one Dec 30th. Since BJ and I got married, we have alternated Christmas Day and New Years with our families. This year, we are spending Christmas Day with my side of the family and then flying out to North Carolina to spend New Years with his side. We are super excited. 


Fed-Ex.


The girls are so mobile these days and prefer walking around and exploring over sitting in our laps, so this 5 hour flight to North Carolina should be pretty interesting. I think I might have a few stories to share with all of you in the New Year! As I was planning our trips and going over my to do list the other day, I thought it would be a great idea to buy the girls some educational, fun, plane-friendly, toys. I found a few things I knew they would love and with my gift card (which is by far the best way to shop, guilt free haha) I purchased these gifts online. Within two days the packages arrived. I was so excited to open up the box and show the girls their new things.


It's Not Time.


The purpose of these gifts were for our plane ride to North Carolina. I knew that if I gave it to them prematurely they would not be as interested with them and that the gifts would not truly serve their purposes. So I put them away. Since then I have desperately wanted to show them their new gadgets but each time I remind myself that it's not the right time. They have no idea that Mommy has these gifts hidden away. I was organizing my room the other the day and the girls were helping me. They were actually undoing everything I was organizing. They came across one of their gifts, it's an educational mini lap top. They both looked at it with so much interest and I quickly moved it out of sight. They didn't think much about it after that. As I was hiding it in the closet, I had a moment. There are so many gifts that God has ready for us but He is waiting for the right time to give them to us. He knows that we don't really need certain gifts or provisions right now, so He is waiting for an appointed time. Wow! There are things that I have been praying for and asking God to grant me and the reason I have not yet seen them or have them in my possession is not because He is denying me my request, He is just waiting for the right time.


When?


God knows what we need, but most importantly He knows when we need it. My girls do not need these gifts quite yet, but in due time they will get them. Not only will they be happy, but everyone on the plane ride to North Carolina will be happy too! I don't know what you have been asking God to provide you with or what miracle you have been believing for, but I want to encourage you that it is on it's way. God will do what He has promised He will do, but He is waiting for the right time. 

TRUTH:                    This vision is for a future time.

      It describes the end, and it will be fulfilled.

   If it seems slow in coming, wait patiently,

  for it will surely take place.

         It will not be delayed. -Habakkuk 2:3

DARE: Wait with expectation. 

Addicted.

BJ and I have learned to be very creative when it comes to making sure we get some alone time or should I say time to eat our dinner at a reasonable pace. (Not shoveling our food down because our little munchkins are demanding our fullest attention) On our way home from church the other night, we decided to swing by and grab some fast food. Instead of taking it home we parked in the parking lot and ate our food while the little munchkins slept. We have done this a few times. It's like a make shift date and we love it. We started talking about our day, what's happening in our worlds and I said something that sounded a bit bizarre.

Addicted.

"As crazy as this might sound, I'm almost addicted to going through trials. Every trial has made me better, stronger, wiser. I am not the girl I was when we first got married. I am not the girl I was when we moved to North Carolina. I am not the girl I was when we got pregnant, moved to Cali or even the same girl a few days ago. I almost don't even recognize her." Those were the words I spoke to BJ that night. He and I began to talk about how much we have grown and how much we have learned. We realized that growing and learning doesn't come in the good times, but most often in the hard times. These trials and hard moments have now become BLOG material and to be honest it feels pretty weird when I don't have some crazy story to share with all of you. So I guess you can say, I am addicted to the hard times. Not that I desire hardship but instead I embrace the hardship that is inevitably coming my way.

Relentless.

I realized that I was not a crazy person for thinking this way. John Bevere, one of the world's most influential leaders, authors, and speakers came and shared with our church about being relentless. He spoke about how conflict and hardship will happen. That trouble is inevitable. He encouraged us to embrace a positive attitude towards adversity. I know, it doesn't really make sense does it? He described it as a paradigm shift we need mentally. Just as a tree becomes stronger through wind or a body builder adds more and more weight to lift in order to build muscle, you and I should view hardship as an OPPORTUNITY to become better!

Allow.

God knows where He is taking you and He knows what we are going to need, who we need to be in order to truly be successful and able to handle all that He has for us. He values you and I that much that He will allow us to go through the storms of life, knowing that we are capable of being victorious. I tweeted a statement that God gave me the other day as I was running, "God didn't send the storm, He allowed it. Not to break you, but to make us stronger."

Better Me.

I don't know if you are in the middle of a storm, if you have just walked out on the other side of a storm, or if you are getting ready to walk into a storm, but I want to encourage you today that God has not authored it, but allowed it, knowing that He has given you every tool you need to overcome it! It might not feel exciting or worth it, but I promise you it is and when, (not if) you walk through it you will be stronger, wiser, and better. I don't want to be the same person I am today three years from now. I want to be a better me.

Do I sound crazy? I am sure I do. How have you viewed or do you view adversity? I would love to hear your thoughts.


TRUTH: "Consider it a sheer gift, friends, when tests and challenges come at you from all sides. You know that under pressure, your faith-life is forced into the open and shows its true colors. So don't try to get out of anything prematurely. Let it do its work so you become mature and well-developed, not deficient in any way"- James 1:2-4

DARE: Embrace a positive attitude towards adversity.

thank.FULL for the Storms.

Last night we experienced some intense wind here in Southern California. It was a little bit scary. Tree pieces and all other kinds of debris were everywhere. The sound of the wind was so loud, it sounded as if something was pounded itself on our apartment. It wasn't like anything I had ever experienced before here in California.

There Has To Be More.

This past Tuesday I wrote all about how thankful I was and how I wanted to continue giving thanks even though the Holiday of Thanksgiving was already over. I planned to write about how thankful I was for the little things in my life. I am thankful for the roof over my head, the food on my table (well my plate, our kitchen table doesn't fit in our "cozy" apartment), and the clean water I drink everyday. As I was going over my to-do list, and strategizing where I was going to hang our Christmas stockings since we don't have a fireplace, I became discouraged really quickly. I started to look and think about everything I currently didn't have both tangible things and intangible things. Everything from only having one car to feeling stuck and further away from our dreams than ever before. My discouragement then turned to frustration and frustration turned to sadness.


Resistance.

What in the world? Just a few seconds ago I was feeling thankful and overwhelmed by all of God's blessings and here I was on the verge of tears feeling so sad. Where did all that thankfulness go? Have you ever felt discouraged? Have you ever felt your most vulnerable right after feeling the most grateful? Please tell me I am not the only one. I have so much to be thankful for, so much to be grateful for. There are so many things that I have that I know I take for granted each and everyday, but that doesn't mean that I don't desire for more. It's not that what I have isn't enough, because if God chose to not do another thing for me, I would have everything. But I have to believe that there is more! I have to believe that God has more for me and my family; that what I see in my heart will happen. But standing where I am and seeing only what I can see can be discouraging. There has never been a season in our life where we feel like we have given more, believed more and risked more. It has also been a season of most resistance.

Did You Know?

A few years ago, researchers placed a number of young trees in a greenhouse. One group was supported by (tied to) a stake. A second group was left to grow unstaked. And a third group was left unstaked but manually waved back and forth for several minutes every day. At the end of several months, the three groups of trees were measured for growth in height and trunk diameter. The staked trees were the tallest and weakest (small trunk diameter), the unstaked trees were intermediate in height and trunk diameter, and many were not growing straight. The unstaked trees that were waved back and forth each day were the shortest but had the greatest trunk diameter, thus were the strongest. Wind makes us stronger. Resistance makes us stronger.

Dis.Courage.

The definition for the word discourage is to deprive of courage, hope or confidence. I have been blogging about courage and fearlessness lately. Like I mentioned earlier, we are in a crazy season of life. We are having to rely and trust God in very huge and interesting ways each and every day. I have had to take up courage and strength. Another definition for the word discourage is to obstruct by opposition or difficulty. I knew right away this feeling of discouragement I was experiencing was not from God, but instead the enemy who would try to take away the very thing I need in this season of my life. While I was driving to get me and BJ dinner, I knew that I had to snap out of this mindset, but to be honest it was so hard. I tried everything, but nothing helped. This morning, as I was cleaning up and doing my morning routine, I decided to turn on worship music. The moment I did, I just raised my hands and began to thank God for who He is. Not asking Him for anything. Not seeking His hand to move in my life, but His presence to be close. I was not only  overwhelmed by thankfulness, but I was filled with courage. When you know that the One who made the heavens and the earth is on your side, how could you not be encouraged? When you know that Jesus, the King of Kings and the Lord of Lords is there with you, how could you not feel like you can conquer the world? 

 

 

I wish I hadn't waited that long to turn to Him. When I focused my attention on Him, my circumstances seemed smaller. When I looked at myself and depended on my own strength, my trials seemed so big. The wind in our life is there to make us stronger. The opposition we face today makes us that more capable to handle what God has in store for us. Have you been feeling discouraged? Are you being faced with great difficulty in the very thing you are believing God for? Turn your eyes to Him, to the One who can and I promise you will be filled with great courage. 

 

 

 

 

TRUTH: "Be on guard. Stand firm in the faith. Be courageous.Be strong."- 1 Corinthians 16:13 NLT

 

 

DARE:  Embrace the storm.

 

**Here is a song my mom shared with me. I think it's fitting for this blog. Enjoy!

Blessings