Throwback Thursday.

Where were you two years ago? Two years ago, I was writing my very first BLOG post! It was entitled, "Im Sick of People Telling Me It's Going to Be OK." BJ and I had just moved to Greensboro, NC to help his parents with their church plant. I was lonely, I was uncertain, I was afraid that God had forgotten about us. We had just taken a big step in our lives and it wasn't looking like what we had imagined it would. I remember feeling so confused and feeling defeated. Relationships I thought would last a lifetime, ended, people I admired, hurt me and the new season I was excited for quickly became the hardest season of our lives. The only thing keeping a smile on our faces was knowing that we were pregnant with our twin daughters. Hidden within that smile was fear, as we were in our most uncertain financial situation. We didn't know what God was doing in our lives, we just knew He told us to take a step and trust Him. Here's a blurb from the BLOG post. 

"Over the past few weeks some things have not worked out the way I had imagined they would and there are things that we have had to go through that we have never gone through before. I have cried, I have questioned our decision to move, I have questioned God, and I have asked God why? There are a few people in our lives that have known what we have been going through and it seems as though all they keep telling me is that "everything is going to be ok!" I never realized how much I do not like that phrase until these past few weeks! I think that this phrase gets under my skin because it leaves me feeling helpless and in denial about what my current circumstances are.  I guess it makes me feel like I am a drama queen and that I am overreacting to a situation. And maybe I am, but to me I want to know not that my situtation is going to be ok, but that there is purpose for why I am going through what I am going through."

Frustrated. 

Don't you feel the frustration in this? I was frustrated! Mentors and leaders in my life kept telling me that it was going to be OK and that truly frustrated me. I guess I just wanted someone to be frustrated with me. What I didn't realize, was that they had come to place in their life where it didn't matter what it looked liked, they were going to believe that it was going to be OK. I had moments where I believed it too, and many moments that I really thought God had forgotten about us. I am so thankful that we didn't give up, turn back or throw in the towel. These past two years have been one daring step after another. Depending on who is telling the story, these past two years can be described as irresponsible, daring, uncertain, adventurous or down right, crazy! All terms I embrace and absolutely LOVE. These past two years have taught us knew things and have reminded us of things we sometimes quickly forget. It has been two years of choosing to see what we can not see and not allowing what we can not see to prevent us from seeing what we need to see! 

Imagine.

A couple of months ago, I felt as though God told me something so significant. He said, "It's not going to look like the way you imagine it, but it will be everything you have ever hoped it would be." These past two years have looked NOTHING like the way I imagined they would, but they have truly been EVERYTHING I have ever hoped they would be. These have truly been the greatest years of my life. I am so honored to have shared these two years with each of you. This BLOG has helped me be more comfortable in my own skin and has challenged me to embrace where I am no matter what it looks like. We are seeing what we have believed and dreamed about for years happen, we are walking in what we have prayed about and we are so much stronger, wiser, more dependent on Jesus than we have ever been. As I look back two years, I am certain that just as He has carried us and always taken care of us that He will continue to do it for another two years, and another and another. 

Promise. 

No matter what you are facing, no matter what you are going through today, I want to encourage you that everything is going to be OK! It may not look like the way you planned it, but I promise you it will be everything you have ever hoped it would be. 

Every week I highlight a TRUTH about you, your life, or about a situation you may be facing and then I DARE you to believe it. 

Here is this week's TRUTH or DARE. 

TRUTH: Everything is going to be OK!

DARE: Believe it!

Faith. Update.

The Johnson House.


Whew! I am one tired momma these days! Kennedi and Brooklyn will be one and a half years old this month and to say that they are everywhere, in everything, all the time, is a different way of saying this place has been turned upside down. They are the most adventurous, relentless little girls I have ever seen. They currently enjoy jumping off the couch, climbing anything that they are not supposed to and are convinced that mommy is a jungle gym. They sing, dance and beat box. They learn so many words everyday; my current favorites are, "I love you, pizza, please, coffee & Cinderella." We just started to have mommy/ daughter devotion time, a time where we learn about a story in the Bible.  They may not understand all that I am saying, but I know that these little girls are spounges and everything they see and hear are molding them into who they are and who they will become. What an incredible opportunity and responsibility. I do not pretend to know all the answers or think I am a perfect mommy, but everyday I do my very best and give God full control of their lives. My desire is that they will live this life the way they were meant to live it. My hope is that they will love the Lord all the days of their life. 


Faith.


The bible says that, "Faith is the confidence that what we HOPE for will actually happen." -Hebrews 11:1


I am confident that every hope and desire I have for these two little world changers will actually happen. I am confident not in myself but in Him who created them and who has given them a purpose and destiny. I am also confident that what God has placed in BJ and my hearts will actually happen. Yes, we have had moments of doubt, but up until this moment, there has never been a promise that God has not fulfilled. God always keeps His promises. Always. 


Update.


Some really exciting things are happening right now and I can not wait to share them with each of you. So many things that BJ and I have prayed, believed and hoped for, are actually happening! Friends, God wants to fulfill the promises in your life. I want to encourage you today to have the confidence that they will actually happen. No matter what it looks like or what it is requiring of you, I promise you, He has not forgotten you. 




I would love to stand with you in prayer about what you are hoping for, so please, don't leave this page without leaving me a prayer request or an update about what it happening in your world. I want to hear from you! 

Every week I highlight a TRUTH about you, your life, or about a situation you may be facing and then I DARE you to believe it. 

Here are this week's TRUTH or DARE. 

TRUTH: "Faith is the confidence that what we hope for will actually happen; it gives us assurance about things we can not see." Hebrews 11:1

DARE: HOPE for something today and have the confidence that it will actually happen! 

Boundaries. Not. Barriers.

On my drive home last week, I did some thinking. As I was mentally going through my to do list, I realized I had a lot more "to do" than I thought. I came to the conclusion that I was going to grocery shop, do six loads of laundry, pay bills, BLOG, read, make a few phone calls, and of course do all the everyday mommy things all before going to church that evening. I planned it out hour by hour and it seems feasible. My thoughts turned into prayers as I asked God to help me achieve all that I had to do that day. As I was praying I sensed God impressing on my heart these words, "boundaries not barriers." I must have heard it four or five times and each time I felt it deeper and deeper. That's when I got a phone call from someone who needed to go to the dentist for an emergency visit and needed someone to babysit her 4 month old son. She is single, teenage mom I mentor and she and her son live on the Family Floor of the Dream Center.

First Response. 

I wish I could say that my first reaction was to turn my car around and volunteer myself to help. But instead, my first reaction was to see who I could call to help her. I told her I would call her back and that I would hopefully have an answer for her. After I made some phone calls, I heard those words once again, "boundaries not barriers." If this "someone" was my best friend, my family or one of my leaders what would be my response? Of course I would drop everything and help him/her. But why wasn't this my first reaction? Was it because I have been taught that you set "boundaries" with those you lead so that you are not taken advantage of or walked over? Or maybe it was my past experiences of being burned by people before who took advantage of me and I didn't want that to happen again. I know having two toddlers of my own and a long list of "to do's" played a part, but if I am transparent, those weren't really the reasons that kept me from immediately responding with a yes!

Bridge of Hope. 

To say that it has been an honor to serve under Pastors Matthew and Caroline Barnett, the pastors of The Los Angeles Dream Center is truly an understatement. They have dedicated their entire life to serving people and have pioneered the way for churches, organizations and people like you and me to understand what it really means to love people. Pastor Matthew has said, "If you are going to be a bridge of hope for people, you have to be willing for people to walk all over you." This quote has become famous in my home, but in that moment it was becoming real in my heart. This someone isn't a family member or a leader of mine, but she is my friend and someone who needed me. I called her back and told her that I was able to help her with whatever she needed that day. I knew it was going to be a stretch for me and I knew that the day I had planned was going to look a whole lot different.

Boundaries vs Barriers.

The day was crazy and hectic, but it was also a lot of fun. Who wouldn't want to love on a precious baby boy for a day? Me and the girls had so much fun hugging and loving on him. I even got the three of them to nap at the same time, giving me enough time to cross most off my "to do" list.

• Boundaries are important, they allow you and I to love freely. Barriers allow us to love, but with limitations.

• Boundaries help us be responsible with what God has placed in our hands. Barriers keep us from attaining what God has placed in our hearts.

• Boundaries keep the wrong things from coming IN. Barriers keep the right things from coming IN.

• Boundaries put us in the right place and the right time. Barriers only look for the perfect place and perfect time. 
• Boundaries ask, "how can I make this fit?" Barriers ask, "what is in this for me?"

True Religion.

I have always loved serving God's house and His people. Before having kids you could usually find me at church at any point of the day. This season of being a part of a church that doesn't serve from inside the four walls of a church or from behind an office desk, but instead, "Finds a need and fills it, finds a hurt and heals it" has challenged me to live different. Boundaries have been a sorry excuse to not change the world one inconvenient moment at a time. I didn't share this moment I had to highlight some amazing thing I did, the truth is that it really isn't that amazing in comparison to the thousands of world changers who already understand this, but I shared this with you today because I know that when you and I embrace boundaries and let go of barriers we can change the world.

What About You?

Have you mistaken boundaries for barriers? Do you find yourself saying things like, "If I had more time or if I had more money I would ? Maybe your boundaries of "family time" have become barriers to "do life" with other people. Maybe your boundaries of being "on a budget" have become barriers of being "generous." I don't know what your boundaries look like, but I do know that if you allow them to become barriers in your life, you are going to miss out on the moments that were meant to change you, encourage you, and that were meant to give life to your dreams. 

Tell Me.

If this post spoke to you, highlighted an area in your life that you have used boundaries as an excuse to do something you didn't want to do, I'd love to hear from you. Please leave a comment, share an experience or just give me a shout out in the comment box below.

Every week I highlight a TRUTH about you, your life, or about a situation you may be facing and then I DARE you to believe it. 

Here are this week's TRUTH or DARE.

TRUTH: "If you are going to be a bridge of hope for people, you have to be willing for people to walk all over you." Matthew Barnett

DARE: Stop using boundaries as an excuse to have barriers, and do something that inconveniences you today!