Debbie Taylor Williams
If You’re Wondering What to Do About Something
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Are you at your wit’s end? Do you need someone to talk to; someone who can help you sort out your problems and worries? God understands. Our Heavenly Father is the original COUNSELOR. And, Isaiah 9:6 says this about Jesus. “For a child will be born to us, … And His name will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Eternal Father, Prince of Peace.” In other words, our Heavenly Father and Jesus are Wonderful Counselors who are available to counsel and guide us. They will listen. They will answer. Talk to God, then do as they counsel. A great place to record what God counsels you to do is in Prayers of My Heart Journal. It is proven by research that the very act of writing helps record it on our brains so we’re more likely to follow up on it. You can order Prayers of My Heart at www.debbietaylorwilliams.com or your favorite book store. Make 2019 your best year by following God’s Wonderful Counsel. ORDER HERE.
LORD, You are the WONDERFUL COUNSELOR. Increase our sensitivity to Your Voice. Help us take seriously Your counsel and do it.
Who Can You Believe?
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Do you ever wonder who you can believe? One person says one thing and another claims the opposite. Yes, it can sometimes be difficult to know who to believe, but not in the case of Jesus’s words. Revelation 1:5 describes Jesus Christ as “the faithful witness, the firstborn of the dead, and the ruler of the kings of the earth. To Him who loves us and released us from our sins by His blood-” Jesus is a faithful witness. A witness of what? He witnessed to us about heaven, His Father, about angels, crowns of righteousness awaiting believers, resurrection bodies, thrones, powers, kingdoms, the judgment seat, forgiveness, redemption, His Father’s house, and about Satan. Jesus testified about the fact that Abraham, Noah, Moses, and Jonah were real people and the Old Testament is true. Our confidence in the Bible and its teachings solidly rests on Christ because He is a faithful witness to us that they are true.
Lord Jesus, we praise You, the faithful WITNESS! Thank You for the confidence we have in the Bible and You because of Your word.
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The Smell Test
When you’re grocery shopping, do you smell fruit, such as cantaloupe or peaches to determine if they’re ripe? I remember the first time I saw someone hold a cantaloupe close to her nose. After she placed it in her basket, I decided to try the smell test. The first cantaloupe I held close to my nose had zero fragrance. I returned it and reached for another one, wondering if the smell test was bogus. But as I held the second one close to my nose, I was pleasantly surprised. It had a sweet aroma. That evening, when I took a bite, I wasn’t disappointed. It’s taste matched it’s smell. Second Corinthians 2:15 says that Christians are a fragrance of Christ to God and to others. In other words, as we move about and connect with people, they get a whiff of us. I wonder. Do they smell the sweet presence of Jesus or, do they get a whiff of our anxiousness, impatience, or sin? To find out how you can become a sweet aroma of Christ, please click HERE.
Jesus is Coming!
Have you been in awe of the magnificent beauty of the moon? The moon – IS – something that exists. The moon – WAS – created by God in eternity past. The moon WILL BE in our tomorrows. We see the moon appear in different phases, but it is still one moon. It existed in times past. It exists today. And, it will exist in our tomorrows. So why would we doubt that Christ is the LORD WHO WAS the CREATOR and WHO IS self-existent in heaven and in our presence, and WHO IS TO COME? On December 25, we celebrate the LORD who came in the appearance of a BABY. But, as Revelation 1:4 says CHRIST is not only “HE is WHO IS and WHO WAS,” He is the LORD “WHO IS TO COME…” again from heaven one day. Jesus is coming again! Will we be ready to meet HIS MAJESTY? Have a blessed Christmas!
Lord, WHO IS, WHO WAS, AND WHO IS TO COME, help us worship You not only with our lips, but with our daily lives.
“Grace to you and peace, from Him WHO IS and WHO WAS and WHO IS TO COME…”
Choose the Right One to Please
Do you ever feel like you can’t please anyone? Or, can’t please everyone? Hi! I’m Debbie Taylor Williams. It’s normal to want to please those we love. However, we’re wise to realize we can’t please everyone just like Jesus didn’t please everyone. So how do we prioritize who we please? We follow Jesus’s example. In John 8:29 He explained for whom He was living and making it His priority to please: His Heavenly Father. “He who sent Me is with Me; He has not left Me alone, for I always do the things that are pleasing to Him.”
If you’re in a quandary about how to live so that you at least please your Heavenly Father, follow Jesus’s lead.
Jesus used Scripture to stand against temptation. We can do that.
Jesus reached out to others in love. We can do that.
Jesus prayed before making decisions. We can do that.
Jesus followed His Father’s leading rather than acting on His own impulses and initiative. We can do that.
There is no one more worthy for us to live to please than our Heavenly Father, and we can do that.
Heavenly Father, as Jesus was well-pleasing to You, help us please You.
Running Low on Cash
“How much money do you make?” In our materialistic society, people often place value on the almighty dollar instead of the almighty Lord. But, Isaiah 33:6 speaks to what we should value: having a wealth of salvation, a wealth of wisdom, and a wealth of knowledge. He reminds us that a healthy fear of the Lord is the greatest treasure. Jesus echos Isaiah’s understanding of what true wealth is in Matthew 6:19-21 when He says, “Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy, and where thieves break in and steal. But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys, and where thieves do not break in or steal; for where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.” Christ’s command causes us to stop and ponder. According to Jesus where are we storing up treasures – on earth or heaven. In other words, where is our heart most focused – on getting possessions that won’t go to heaven? Or, are we most focused on treasures we’re placing in eternity?
Lord, You are a WEALTH of salvation, wisdom and knowledge. Set our hearts on treasures that count for eternity.
“And He will be the stability of your times,
A wealth of salvation, wisdom and knowledge;
The fear of the Lord is his treasure.”
It’s NOT TOO LATE! Give those on your Christmas list the gift that will keep on giving all year: Prayers of My Heart prayer journal; where they can record their daily gratitudes to God.
Do You Hear Him
Have you ever done a study on the “voice” of God? In Isaiah 30:30, the literal translation is “VOICE OF MAJESTY.” How does God speaks to us? He speaks through His majestic creation that He is glorious and a God of order and unlimited imagination. God’s voice goes out to us through the Bible, the most wise and beautifully written work of all time. God speaks to us in Christ, that He is sacrificial and loving; willing to forgive us and reconcile us. God’s voice calls to us in our innermost thoughts warning us of the danger of straying into sin and calling us to walk the path of righteousness. God’s voice calls to our hearts, but the noise of the world often drowns Him out. But, if we willingly, purposefully choose to slip out of our beds in the mornings and quietly meet with Him – just the two of us, we hear Him. He speaks. His voice encourages our weary souls. His voice comforts us that although we’ve sinned, He forgives us. His voice encourages us that we can start again. His voice whispers, “Take this course of action…” And, if we take His words seriously and even write down and follow through on what He tells us, we find He whispers more. Isaiah 30:30 says, “And the Lord will cause His VOICE OF AUTHORITY to be heard.” Are we listening?
Voice of Authority, Voice of Majesty, let us hear You. We trust in You.
The Why Behind This Plant
Have you noticed how stores are filling with poinsettias and people are using them to decorate? The poinsettia, also called the Christmas Flower or Christmas Star, reminds us of the true meaning of Christmas. Why? The red petals point to the reason Jesus came from heaven – to take our sin and judgment on His holy body and die in our place on the cross. The green leaves? They point to the gift of eternal life in heaven God gives us when we place our faith in Jesus. The gold crowned center of the poinsettia reminds us that Jesus is the crowned King of heaven, and one day, we will bow before Him. In the midst of shopping and parties, the poinsettia reminds us of the true meaning of Christmas as stated in John 3:16, “For God so loved the world, He gave His only begotten Son that whoever believes in Him will not perish, but have eternal life.” To learn more about Jesus and why we celebrate His birth, visit debbietaylorwilliams.com.
Why Did I Do That?
Have you ever done something and immediately afterwards you said, “Shoot! Why did I do that?” That happened to me the other day. I’d tackled a stack of papers that had accumulated on my desk – you know – the to dos, notes to myself; as well as important papers like bills. I was quite pleased with the amount I’d shredded. Then, after writing out a check and looking for the self-addressed envelope, I realized I’d shredded it, too. My haste had made waste. It caused me to stop and think about how I handle my days. Am I running around so busily that in my haste I waste precious time that could be spent with my Heavenly Father in prayer and meditating on the important truths in the Bible? If you, like me, don’t want to get to the end of your life and realize that in your daily haste you wasted time that could have been spent in prayer and Bible reading, please join me HERE.
Are You a Fisherman?
“Are you a fisherman?” someone asked after I’d shared that my husband and I’d fished on our vacation. “Yes! I love to fish.” “So do you fly fish,” my friend questioned. “I do,” I replied, noticing by his, “hymph” that he was a little surprised. Then, I decided I needed to clarify. “Well, I like to cast and I like to catch fish, but I really don’t take the fish off the hook. And, I need someone to tell me what bait to use.” The more I thought about it, I wondered if I should even say I’m a fisherman. That caused me to realize that sometimes in the United States we use the word “Christian” rather loosely like I rather loosely said I’m a fisherman. What does it mean to be a Christian? Well, certainly not just showing up at a church building a couple of times a year. Christ defined His followers as those who actually followed His teachings. If you’d like to know more about what it means to be a Christian, please click HERE.