Verbally Processing Christi Johnson

We hear a lot of voices every day. Social media, opinions of friends, family, and even strangers, business coaches and courses, and even ourselves. Sometimes it’s so confusing and frustrating and we don’t know which voice to listen to!!

People like to tell me what I SHOULD do. They tell me I should coach swimming, teach piano, do this business idea or that business idea. Sometimes all the voices are equally loud and I don’t know what to do.

I think it’s true that you have to listen to yourself or you will feel frustrated. But what if your voice isn’t reliable? What if you’ve been so swayed by all the other voices that you don’t even know where you stand?

Read more at https://christijohnsoncreative.com/the-only-voice-you-really-need-to-listen-to/

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I recently spent two months at home, and today on the Verbally Processing Podcast I'm sharing the lessons I learned during my time home.

Read more at https://chrisitjohnsoncreative.com/two-months-at-home

Does this sound familiar to you? You wake up and have every intention of spending time with Jesus, but instead you pick up your phone just to check something. Before you know it, you've spent 30 minutes scrolling Instagram. YIKES. Now it's time for work! Lemme just read a verse or two and say a quick prayer and that'll be good for today. Why are we so content to live like this?? Today on the podcast, I'm talking about why quiet time is so important and how to stop neglecting it. 

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Have you ever been through something when what God sends you doesn’t make sense?

Read more at https://christijohnsoncreative.com/gods-plans

I’m not talking about just when you go through hard situations. You see, there are some hard situations where you can more easily see what God might be doing. And sometimes there are even Scriptures that seem to speak directly to your situation.

For example, losing a loved one. A grandparent for example. That’s hard. I hope that I’m not insensitive in saying this, but for me, I understand that they’re actually not suffering anymore. They’re with Jesus. It’s actually better for them to be there.

I'm reminded of the beautiful passage in 1 Corinthians 15:51-58.

Or what about a physical injury? Like Joni Eareckson Tada. God redeemed her story; her ministry has brought many many people to Christ. 

But what about things where you can't see the good? Where it doesn't seem to make sense at all. Like losing a child or having a child or a spouse walk away from the faith. How can that be good?

Maybe it will make your faith stronger.

But you see, I think that’s the problem with humans. We’re always looking for something that somehow works to make our life better.

But what if it doesn’t make our life better? What if it’s just bad?

Paul answers that in Romans 9. 

We say things like "God was gracious" when our loved ones were spared from a life or death situation or when things work out the way we want them to. But what if it didn't happen that way? Would we still call him gracious? Do we think of God just like our good luck charm? 

I think we see a helpful answer in the book of Job. 

Tim Keller says, "Is it possible that a man or woman can come to love God for himself alone so that there is a fundamental contentment in life regardless of circumstances? Yes, this is possible, but only through prayer."

We forget the power of prayer. We deny ourselves the flood of grace that is available if we would just pray. 

Let's commit to trusting God, wrestling with God, bringing all of our grievances before him. Let's commit to pray.

Follow me on Instagram: @christijohnsoncreative

At the end of 2018, my husband and I left our hometown of Greenville, SC and moved to the Bay Area of California. Here are some of the lessons I've learned in the last year and a half. 

A LOT OF THINGS ARE THE SAME
I thought that everything would be completely different when I moved to CA, but really, every day life in CA is pretty much the same as it was in CA. People told me to expect a “culture shock,” but I didn’t really experience that at all.

THE STEREOTYPES AREN’T TRUE
In the south, Californians are often referred to as “crazy Californians” or “tree huggers” or “crazy hippies.” The truth is, there are crazy people in California just like there are crazy people in South Carolina. I think a lot of our stereotypes just come from a lack of understanding.

DIVERSITY IS BEAUTIFUL
One thing I didn’t realize about SC until moving to the Bay Area is that a lot of places are honestly still pretty segregated. I don’t think it’s intentional (I like to believe the best about people), but it’s still kind of surprising. In the Bay Area, everywhere I go I’ll see all kinds of different people. But back in SC, I’ll often go into a restaurant or a grocery store and only white people.

I HAVE A LOT TO LEARN
I think moving, meeting new people, hearing different perspectives, and just being brought to the end of myself after leaving everything behind, I realized that I had a lot of arrogance and pride in my heart. The truth is, I don’t know that much at all, but I was living like I was right about everything. That’s somewhere I never want to be. I’ve learned to listen, and I want to keep learning to do that better.

GOD WILL TAKE CARE OF ME ANYWHERE
Back home, if Matt and I encountered a problem, we would call our parents and ask them to help us figure it out. But in CA, we had to wrestle with problems on our own. Sure, we could have called our parents, but with the time difference it made it harder, and I don’t think that would have been the healthiest thing anyway. We had to lean on each other and on God and over and over He’s provided for us. I don’t have to be afraid of new places or new experiences, because He’ll always be with me.

https://christijohnsoncreative.com/moving-across-country

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In light of George Floyd's murder and the events of the last several days and the Blackout Tuesday happening on social media, my originally schedueld post didn't feel appropriate today. This is not a political post. Today I'm sharing what I've been learning lately and I'm sharing some hope from the Scriptures.