Moving Day. Smoving Day.

If you have been around the Johnson's for a long time, you know that we like to move! Or at least that's what it may seem. This past weekend we moved to a new place. It is located in a great place and a lot more convenient for everything we do! Moving is never fun, especially when you are pregnant. I am not the kind of person who can sit around and let people do the work-I always have to be doing something. I know, I know, I should be milking every ounce of this pregnancy and should have been relaxing while the rest moved our family of four to our new place. But, that is just not me. I took it easier than I would, but none the less, I worked hard getting everything out of one place and in to the next!

Moving Day. 

This move was probably one of the harder moves- we have two toddler girls who require a lot of attention, we both work full time jobs, we pastor a church launch and have other responsibilities that we have to continue to do whilst moving. While packing, feeding my kids dinner, doing laundry, cleaning up dog pee (something he never does, but I'm guessing not feeding him for two days had something to do with it), packing the girls lunch for the next day, prepping for our upcoming events for church, I had a meltdown- a BLOG moment.

My Thoughts.

In that moment, I felt so alone and felt like BJ and I were doing this thing all alone. I felt like we were carrying the weight of the world on our backs and no one was around to help! How could this be? We are surrounded by amazing people, who at the drop of a hat, serve our family and church so well and so willingly!

In a matter of 10 minutes, my mind went on a crazy adventure. I came to the conclusion that no one wanted to help us! I questioned if we had friends, if we had people who are in our corner. The list goes on and on!

Ask. Seek. Knock.

In the midst of these crazy, conclusions, the scripture, "You have not because you ask not" came to me! It was like a broken record, as I heard this scripture over and over and over until it dawned on me- I had not even asked a single person for help! Not one! Of course we were doing this alone, we had created that reality. Of course no one was around to help. How could they? I had not even asked for their help. If I almost forgot it was moving weekend, I am almost certain that they did too.

How could I expect or desire people to do something that I had not even given them an opportunity to do? Wow! How many times have I done this? Surely it was not my first rodeo at doing things without asking for help. Sigh!

Opportunity. 

How many of us have done this? We assume that people are going to do certain things or act a certain way towards us and yet we have not given them a fair chance! We put unfair expectations on them, resulting in disappointment and frustration. Sometimes I catch myself expecting others to act in way based on how I would act. How unfair is that? BJ and I have always been people who seek opportunities to lighten someones load. I think it is a gift that God has given us. We often see holes and areas where we can bring solution.

But not everyone is wired that way. Especially when you have people like us, who have a hard time asking people for help. We don't pretend to know how to do it all or that we have it all together, but just like we find great joy helping lighten someone else's load, we never want to be the ' load givers.' 

Help!

I immediately called on a handful of people and simply asked for help. You would not believe it, they all said yes without a single hesitation. In moments, I had the help I had so desperately wished would magically appear. They made the move so much easier! 

You and I are not meant to do things alone, nor are we are commissioned to save the world in a single day by our own efforts. Instead, God has strategically placed people in our lives to help us accomplish all that He has called us to- even when doing something as annoying as moving.

Nothing New.

One of the enemy's tactics is to convince us of realities that are not true. He often does this by the way of assumption- we all know what they say when we assume! When we assume certain things or draw up our own conclusions, it will ultimately result in offense. When we carry offense, we live a life not reflecting our true reality. 

Think about Eve- the serpent posed a question she had not yet heard/thought about before. He made her question God's intentions towards her. She assumed that God had not given her his best, when in reality He had given her all that she needed! Rather than seeing what she possessed, she focused on what she 'lacked.' This 'offense' led to sin, and the rest is now history! 

You are not alone. You are not broke. You are not hopeless. You are not lacking. 

Bringing It Home. 

When you are tempted to believe the lies of the enemy, rather than sulk in them, do something about it. If you're doing life alone, be friendly and make friends! If you are feeling like you are hopeless, seek out people who are hopeful! If you are feeling like you are moving your entire family without help, ask for help! 

TRUTH:

 “Keep on asking, and you will receive what you ask for. Keep on seeking, and you will find. Keep on knocking, and the door will be opened to you. For everyone who asks, receives. Everyone who seeks, finds. And to everyone who knocks, the door will be opened- 

Matthew 7:7,8.

DARE: Don't assume the worst, but instead, assume the best!