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Tara Johnson

sharing stories through writing, speaking and singing

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satan's lies

When Your Heart is Stamped “Condemned”: Part 2

May 16, 2019 By Tara Johnson 3 Comments

One of my favorite movies is It’s a Wonderful Life. George Bailey is continually baffled by the beauty his wife sees in their old, drafty, worn- down home. He only sees the creaking steps and sagging trim. But Mary Bailey’s eyes light up with hope and promise as she drinks in the sight of the big, rambling house. She sees the hidden beauty just waiting to be exposed. And I believe that is exactly how God sees us. Welcome back to When Your Heart is Read More

Filed Under: Blog, satan's lies, Walking with God Tagged With: condemnation versus conviction, condemned heart, God's forgiveness, redeemed, restored, satan's lies, the enemy's lies, when you feel condemned, Worth

When Your Heart Is Stamped “Condemned”

May 8, 2019 By Tara Johnson 2 Comments

“Being unwanted, unloved, uncared for, forgotten by everybody, I think that is a much greater hunger, a much greater poverty than the person who has nothing to eat.” ~Mother Teresa Close your eyes. You stand staring at a condemned house. Weeds and ivy have taken over the land. Broken glass litters the ground. A window in front is boarded shut with splintered wood. The windows upstairs are broken and dark. The roof is caving in and the entire structure is in shambles. Everything about the Read More

Filed Under: satan's lies Tagged With: condemned, condemned heart, keep out, lies we believe, restoration, restored, satan's lies

Is It Really God’s Will?

April 10, 2019 By Tara Johnson Leave a Comment

Someone I love dearly received an unexpected diagnosis. My heart ached to hear it. As this person shared their news on Facebook, one person remarked, “Well, this must be God’s will.” My eyes bugged out as my blood began to boil. God’s will? Really? I’ve been mulling over this concept for quite some time. When someone receives a medical diagnosis, people often blanket it under the guise of “God’s will”. When hurricanes drop devastation, we say it was “God’s will”. When an entire family is Read More

Filed Under: satan's lies Tagged With: accuser, Author of Life, free will, God's Will, Is God good?, Is it God's will?, pain, Satan, suffering, the enemy

What a lie: If My Life Were Different

March 14, 2019 By Tara Johnson Leave a Comment

If my life were different, I would be different… If my job only paid better… If my husband treated me like he cared… If our house wasn’t so small… If my health was good… If my kids would listen… Have you been there? It’s a tempting way to live life. The “If onlys” provide us with a fantasy world of perfection. A land where all our troubles vanish and then, finally, we can be who we really want to be. Happy. Content. Joyful. There’s just Read More

Filed Under: satan's lies Tagged With: content, discontent, enough, happy heart, I can do all things through Christ, if, if only, joyful, lies, Philippians 4:13, thanksgiving, the enemy's lies

Counterfeit: The Art of a Con

June 3, 2018 By Tara Johnson Leave a Comment

A counterfeit is only good if it looks like the real thing, and there are con men who dedicate their entire lives to the art of cheating someone out of a dollar, their livelihood, or their life. According to infamous hustlers, great con men succeed in three areas. First, they are good listeners. Forget about that silver tongue. A cheater knows how to patiently listen for pertinent information they can then twist for their own purposes. Second, hustlers can fool someone through social credentials. A Read More

Filed Under: satan's lies Tagged With: con man, counterfeit, satan's lies, the art of a con, the enemy, truth detector

Fear is a Liar

May 14, 2018 By Tara Johnson 6 Comments

The opposite of love is not hate. It’s fear.  How many lives have been destroyed because of fear? How many marriages ruined, how many children scarred, how many dreams unfulfilled and how many people chained in the terrifying prison of addiction because of fear? So many of us are experiencing a life half-lived. We cower in the shadows, afraid to confront the wounds we need to expose to God’s light. This hissing snake tells us no one will understand if we share our feelings. It Read More

Filed Under: Blog, satan's lies, Walking with God Tagged With: confronting emotions with God's truth, fear, fear is a liar, Jesus, resist the devil, satan's lies, spiritual warfare, submit to God, the enemy of our souls

Misconduct and Allegations: The Problem We All Have in Common

December 4, 2017 By Tara Johnson Leave a Comment

The world has gone mad, or it seems so at least. No sooner do I hear the news of the latest round of men accused of misconduct, then the media buzzes with shocked outrage of yet another celebrity falling from his golden pedestal. From Harvey Weinstein to Matt Lauer, the names and stories are horrifying and heart breaking. “For nothing is hidden that will not become evident, nor anything secret that will not be known and come to light.” ~Luke 8:17 Then there are those Read More

Filed Under: satan's lies Tagged With: accused, accuser, allegations, God, guard your heart, guard your mind, Jesus, misconduct, movies and more, Music, new creation, new man, old man, purity, satan's lies, sin, sin problem, the enemy's lies

The Broken Piano

August 7, 2017 By Tara Johnson 2 Comments

“Great musicians should have only the finest instruments in their homes.” The caustic comment from the piano tuner who had curled up his nose at my old spinet piano has bothered me for fourteen years, though I’ve had a hard time figuring out why. I thought maybe it was the man’s attitude when he entered my home. I had been desperately searching for a tuner willing to take on my pawn shop find but from the moment this guy laid eyes on it, his annoyed Read More

Filed Under: Beyond What We Can Imagine, Music, satan's lies, Uncategorized, Walking with God Tagged With: beauty in broken, broken, broken is not permanent, enemy's lies, God heals, God restores, healing, Jesus restores, melodies from the broken, Worth

When You Can’t See God

July 30, 2017 By Tara Johnson 2 Comments

Magic Springs wore me out last week. Correction. The heat, combined with my children’s nonstop energy, wore me out. The amusement park nestled in the outskirts of Hot Springs, Arkansas is a popular place to take families for summer fun where they can zoom down water slides, swim, splash in freeze zones, play games like bumper cars or catch a ride on numerous pulse-stopping roller coasters. After hours swimming in the hot sun, the older kids wanted to ride a coaster. My friend offered to Read More

Filed Under: satan's lies, Uncategorized, Walking with God Tagged With: abandonment, anxiety, emotions, fear, God's love, God's word, Grace, Grace moves in, Jesus never leaves, truth, when you can't see God, where is God

Jesus Wasn’t Calling: How I Learned to Walk Away from Perfectionism and Self-Inflicted Martyrdom

February 21, 2017 By Tara Johnson Leave a Comment

Jesus wasn’t calling. Okay, maybe not. Obviously, Jesus is still in the calling business. Hang with me here and I’ll do my feeble best to try to explain my muddled thoughts. I have to admit it was quite a shock to realize all those years I spent doing and running, spinning my wheels and frantically trying to be a good, little Christian girl for Jesus weren’t for Him at all. They were for me. When the truth hit, it slapped me hard. I’ll never forget Read More

Filed Under: Church Life, satan's lies, Uncategorized, Walking with God Tagged With: approval, approval addiction, Christian walk, depression, idolatry, Jesus calling, knowing Jesus voice, motives, people pleasing, perfectionism, resentment, serving, unconditional love, wounds

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Meet Tara

Tara JohnsonTara Johnson is a writer, singer, speaker and passionate lover of stories. Tara uses fiction, nonfiction, song and laughter to share her testimony of how God led her into freedom after spending years living shackled to the expectations of others. She lives in central Arkansas with her husband and children.

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