LaRosa Johnson {dot} com

Of late, there have been a few things on my mind & heart. Two of those things have been death and marriage, not particularly in that order.

The marriage issue has been making its rounds in my head for a while now. After seeing so many men of God stumble into the sin of adultery, it’s been one of those things that I’ve kept in prayer. First and foremost, I’ve been praying for these men & their families, praying for restoration, reconciliation, and continued growth in the Lord. Once I’ve lifted them up, I pray for others that I know who are married, I pray for the husbands & wives, praying that they don’t fall prey to similar temptations. Then, I find myself praying for my own marriage and my own strength. I don’t want to go down that path. It’s so easy to do, without really thinking about it; but, that’s not a path that I want to go down. I don’t want to get emotionally attached to any other woman to the point where that would even be an issue. I never want to cause my wife & family that kind of pain. I don’t want to bring my Savior that kind of shame. The hardest part, though, is knowing that as much as I pray, if I don’t continually keep my guard up, I can just as easily fall flat on my face. That’s a tough pill to swallow, and all the more reason for me to stay knit to Robin and my Lord.

But not only is there infidelity, there’s also divorce. I know way too many people who have or who are getting divorced. In some cases, I agree that it’s more than justified and biblical, but it still hurts to see, especially knowing that these are brothers and sisters in the Faith. It breaks my heart. When I heard about one friend’s divorce, my heart sank, and I wept inside. Again, that’s not a road that I ever want to go down, so I have to stay on my P’s & Q’s. At the very least, it’s situations like this that keep me on my knees interceding on behalf of others because it is so easy, even for Christians, to throw it all away and be done with it all.

The bottom line is that I want my marriage to work and to be an example of Jesus Christ and His bride, the Church. I once remember an elder at my former church telling Robin & I that other couples (young & old) were watching us to see how we were going to react in different situations. Were we going to quit or stick it out? Were we going to remain faithful and continue loving one another? I realize that people are watching, and I want my marriage to be an example of what a Christ centered marriage should look like.

Then there’s the thought of death. As I was getting ready to leave work today, a co-worker informed me that her husband’s grandfather had passed away. I gave my condolences & prayers, but the thought of losing a loved one had me thinking the entire drive home. I tried to drown my thoughts with loud music, but my thoughts screamed even louder. I thought back to October 2007 when my grandfather (on my mom’s side) passed away. Even though I didn’t shed a single tear, I still miss him. And, I haven’t seen my other grandparents (or the rest of my extended family) since that time. Knowing that my remaining grandparents (my grandmother on my mom’s side [Granny], and both of my dad’s parents) aren’t doing well, I can’t help but want to visit and see them at least once more before they pass on to glory. I want to tell them that I love them and just spend some time with them.

Not only that, but I want my children to know who their great grandparents are. Growing up, I only had the opportunity to get to know only one of my great grandparents and I wish I had the opportunity to have known her better. I can only imagine the wisdom and knowledge that she had obtained in her many years on this earth. At the very least, I want my grandparents to be able to see their great grandchildren, considering that they’ve only seen Ramiah in pictures & they all grow so fast.

Family is important and it’s not something we should think about only when they’re dead and gone. We should take the opportunity to spend time while we have the time. So, with that, already having a trip scheduled for Detroit this summer to visit Robin’s parents, we’ve made plans to make a trip back to NC to visit my parents. While in NC, we’ll make the trip up to Virginia to visit my grandparents, Lord willing that He allows them to tarry that long.

Those are my thoughts tonight, death & marriage, marriage & death. Probably better stated as marriage & family; but, simply put, both are something I want to protect and respect. Grace & peace.

LaRosa Johnson Family, Life death, Family, grandparents, marriage, vacation

One thing I’ve learned in my 5 years of marriage is that sometimes life requires sacrifice and selflessness. Earlier this week, Robin did something that was pretty selfless & sacrificial, in order to make sure that things remained in order in our house. Well, today, after examining some things, I’ve chosen to do the same, but this time for the benefit of Robin, my lovely wife. I won’t go into details, but I’m glad to be able to do it, knowing that it’s the best decision that I could make, even if it might mean I feel like I’m “losing out” later on. In the long run, I know I’m a winner because I will have done what’s right & for my better half.

LaRosa Johnson Ramblings, Robin sacrifice, selflessness

Well, it’s 10:53pm and I have a slight headache. It’s not because I had a bad day though, it was a great day; as good a Christmas as could have been had with my family. Robin & I got out of bed around 7:30 am and woke the little one’s up (Ryan was already awake). We watched the little ones open their gifts in wonderment and surprise, excited with each new box they got to unwrap. Ryan was particularly excited to get his PSP (courtesy of Grandma Rosie & Papa Reese) and Madden NFL 09 to go along with it.

Robin mostly got gift cards & cash for gifts (minus the gifts I got her, and a few items of clothing); she was excited about that, knowing that she can go to the stores and get exactly what she wants. As for me, my gift from Robin was Vintage Hughes, a collection of poems & writings from Langston Hughes, my favorite poet. He was one of the reasons that I enjoyed poetry so much when I was younger; maybe reading this collection will help spark that flame again. My parents and in-laws got me clothes this year. My in-laws got me a shirt, tie & pants from the Men’s Wearhouse (with alterations included); and, my parents got me a suit, a shirt, tie & pants, and a casual outfit. I was glad to see those gifts. It’s been forever since I’ve owned a suit, and my wedding suit is too dressy to wear casually (if it even fits, as that was probably about 30+ pounds ago LOL). Either way, this is a great time to be receiving these gifts. With my training as a pastor, I know that I’m going to have to start preaching more, even at other churches, which is going to require me to dress up and/or wear a suit. So, it’ll be good to have those ready whenever the time comes.

After the morning festivities, the rest of the day was pretty much business as usual. I showed Ryan how to work his PSP and how to play & save his games. Then I setup all the play sets (the Bat Cave for Ramiah & a doll house for Leila) and other toys so that they could spend the rest of the day playing. It was fun to watch them play with their new toys, except for the (many) times where they were fighting because they didn’t want the other siblings to play with or even touch their new stuff. That’s really nothing new around these parts, but it’s always multiplied when new items are thrown into the mix.

Outside of that and Robin throwing down on a delicious dinner meal, the day was very laid back & relaxing. It was as pleasant and as warm (literally) a Christmas as we could’ve imagined. I really think that everyone enjoyed themselves, especially the kids. But now it’s time to rest and see if I can get rid of this headache as I put my feet up & listen to some Eric Darius on the sax.

LaRosa Johnson Family, LaRosa, Life

Last night I decided to hold an impromptu family Bible study with my wife & kids. I felt it was something that we finally needed to get around to doing and make the most of our time together and make a better effort of trying to raise up our children in the ways of our Lord. In doing this, I wanted to keep first things first. Our kids have grown up in church, but I’ve never really addressed the issue of salvation with them, and I figured it was time, with Ryan being 8 years old. With that in mind, I took our first time of study together to present a gospel message to Ryan.

After having Robin open us up in prayer, I asked Ryan to tell us what he knew about God, what it meant to be a Christian, and what Jesus did on the cross. He wasn’t able to really answer the questions (I think he knows the answer, but was being timid and not wanting to really answer, thinking he’d say the wrong thing). I then asked him about Adam and Eve, and he was able to give a little detail on that. I then asked him if he wanted to read the story of Adam and Eve and their fall. He said yes, so we turned our Bibles to Genesis 3 as I had Robin read aloud the first few verses of the chapter. Once she was finished, I explained the story of how they were perfect and then decided to "break God’s rules." I then asked him to repeat the story back to me in his own words, which he did. I told them that because of what they did, that’s why we all do bad things.

From there, I wanted to take him down the "Romans Road" and give him the gospel, explaining what Jesus did for us. I first took him to Romans 3:23 and had him read that aloud. I explained to him that we all do bad things, even mommy and daddy, and that was because of what Adam and Eve did. From there, we then went to Romans 6:23 and I explained to him how wages work. I told him how I go to work to make money (wages), and showed how doing bad things earns us a "bad" type of money that leads us to hell. Then I told Ryan how Jesus gave us a free gift in Jesus Christ so that we wouldn’t have to go to hell. We then flipped over to Romans 5:8, which I read to him. I used this to explain that even though we’re bad people and do bad things by breaking God’s rules, God still loved us enough to send His Son, Jesus Christ, to take the punishment for our sins so that we wouldn’t have to go to hell. I used this to detail what Jesus had done for us and who He is. He understood all of that, having a worried look on his face, knowing that he had done bad things. We finally turned to Romans 10:9, 10 and I showed him what he needed to do to be saved. I told Ryan that he needed to believe everything about Jesus and then tell God that he was "sorry" for all the bad that he had done and that he wanted to live for Him. He clearly said that he believed that Jesus was the Son of God, lived a perfect life, died on the cross, and rose again on the third day. I made it clear that by believing and trusting those things, that Jesus had taken his punishment for him.

I then asked Ryan if he wanted to pray, repent of his sins, and become a Christian. It took him a minute or two to answer, but he said that he did. His only concern was that he didn’t know how to pray (other than saying grace before a meal) and asked if I could help him. I told him I would. Before we did, I made sure again that he understood what he was about to do. I even went down some of the Commandments and asked if he had broken those. He said yes to them (i.e. lying, hating people, stealing, etc.) and realized that he had broken God’s rules. We then bowed and I had him repeat a prayer, thanking God for sending His Son and for saving and forgiving him of his sins, then telling God that he wanted to live for Him. After we said amen, I told him that he was now a Christian.

Before we ended, I gave him a little talk on some of the things that he needed to do in order to live for God and to be a good Christian. I asked him first what he thought he needed to do. He said things like, "listen to mommy and daddy" and "be nice to my brother and sister." I also explained that it meant following directions at school and making good decisions (being responsible, which has been as issue of late). I also told him that it meant reading his Bible everyday to learn more about God, Jesus, and how to be a better Christian, as well as praying. I also told him about repenting to God when he did bad things.

All in all, I’m a very happy father right now. I praise the Lord that He has claimed another one of His own and that it’s my oldest son. It’s my prayer now that I will be able to continue to walk with him and train him up in the Faith and that he would be an example both to his siblings and friends. Thank You Jesus! Now that’s what’s up!

LaRosa Johnson Faith, Family, Ryan

It finally happened! Ramiah is up and walking. Well, not really; but if you stand him up on his feet, he’ll walk across the room to get where he’s going. It’s a start, and he’s well on his way to walking. Congrats son, keep on moving on!

LaRosa Johnson Ramiah

I received a phone call from my mom last night on my way home from work. The call was at around 5pm CST; she spoke with Robin to inform us that my grandfather had passed away approximately 30 minutes prior to her calling us (5:30 EST). My parents were on their way up to Virginia to see him, unfortunately they didn’t make it there before he passed.
I’m still deciding on whether I’ll go to the funeral or not. I don’t exactly have the money, nor do I want to put the financial burden on my parents to try and fly me out to Virginia for a few days. I’m taking it alright, but do keep my mom & the rest of the family in prayer as they’re taking it a lot harder than I am.
Soli Deo Gloria.

LaRosa Johnson Family

Just got a call from my parents who are on their way to Virginia (again). This time my grandmother (Granny) has fallen down the stairs at my aunt’s house and fractured her hip. She is going to need surgery.
Please continue to keep both of my grandparents in prayer, as well as my mother who sounded like she was taking this especially hard, knowing that both of her parents are in the hospital right now.

LaRosa Johnson Family

I’ll keep this brief, as I really don’t have the words to say what I want to.
Please keep my grandfather, Robert Jones (Grandaddy Bob to me & my cousins), in your prayers. He is currently 79 (I believe) and he has just been diagnosed with cancer. We received the news last week, and after further tests, we now know that it has spread throughout his entire body and doctors are only giving him a few more weeks to a couple more months to live. The doctors have already informed him that he has it, and that he will not be able to leave the hospital. They are doing their best now to make sure that his last days are as good as they can be under the circumstances.
Also, please pray for everyone who is affected by this news. My grandmother (Granny), my mother, all of my mom’s brothers & sisters, as well as all my cousins, and anyone else affected by the news. We have already lost one member of our family (my aunt Joyce, my mom’s sister) around 10 years ago to cancer. Please pray for peace and understanding in the midst of this circumstance.
As for me, I’m okay, better than I thought I would be hearing the news. I guess it’s because I have a great respect for God and His workings, knowing that He is sovereign in all things. I have come to grips with the realization that all things are for His glory, and know without a doubt that He will get the glory out of this situation, just like any other.
So yes, all prayers are welcome. Thank you and God bless!

LaRosa Johnson Family

Okay, I know this is over three years late, but I finally got around to putting the footage from my wedding together into a video. To be honest, I had no intentions of doing it this weekend, but after a huge fight with Robin on Saturday, it served as the perfect release for my anger and to soothe my emotions. Needless to say, she really loved it. I won’t get into all of those details, but let’s just say that I cranked this out in about 2-3 hours from raw footage (from about 4 different cameras) and I think it turned out nice. Please excuse the crappy audio quality; we didn’t use a mic, so you can only hear what was able to be picked up by each camera, and I tried to pick good shots that also had good audio as well. So, enjoy our wedding video shot on June 5, 2004. Oh yeah, this was put together using Windows Movie Maker (and used DVD Maker to put it onto DVD for Robin).
Enjoy!

Click Here to Download the Video

LaRosa Johnson Family, LaRosa, Robin, Tech Stuff

Hello everybody! I just wanted to take a moment to let you know that I’ve uploaded a few new albums to the photo gallery. Many are long overdue like our Christmas photos (didn’t take as many as the year before) and some other moments. I also found this lil’ movie clip while getting the photos uploaded of Ryan & Leila dancing to the Wiggles @ our old house in Jacksonville, NC. Check it out.

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LaRosa Johnson Family, LaRosa, Leila, Ramiah, Robin, Ryan