Debbie Taylor Williams

Is the news freaking you out?  I’m not a worrier and I’m not easily alarmed. But when I heard that the National Guard was sending 20,000 troops to Washington D.C. to defend the Capitol due to threats of violence, I felt a strange sense of fear rising in me. Fear for our nation. Fear that people might do something that would cause the loss of life. I immediately began praying. A sense of urgency swelled in me that each of us must do our part to encourage calmness in the midst or rising emotions. We must do our part to bathe relationships in prayer. We must take the high road that follows Christ’s example of praying for our enemies rather than drawing a sword. We must believe that God’s got this. So, no, I’m not going to live in fear. I’m going to take my cues from a great Biblical example – Daniel. We find his story in Daniel 2. King Nebuchadnezzar had a troubling dream and demanded that it be interpreted or he would kill all the wise men. Daniel’s name was on the list of those to be executed. However when Daniel learned of the situation, he didn’t go into hiding. Rather, he gathered his friends and prayed. Daniel 2:18 states they requested, “compassion from the God of heavens” concerning the interpretation of the King’s dream. That night, God revealed the interpretation to Daniel. In Daniel 2:20, he praises Him. “Let the name of God be blessed forever and ever, For wisdom and power belong to Him.” He continues in verse 23, “To You, O God of my fathers, I give thanks and praise, For You have given me wisdom and power; Even now You have made known to me what we requested of You.”  Do you believe God is powerful and that He can give you wisdom and power to know what to do in these troubling days? He can.

Heavenly Father, thank You for making Yourself available to us. Thank You that Your eyes are on Washington D.C. Thank You that in the midst of evil days, You are holy and exalted and always there for us. We look to You for wisdom and power. Guide our thoughts and steps so we are instruments of peace. 

A person who is not a Christian once challenged me and asked why believers talk about God’s love but never His wrath. I thought about his question and realized that I’m guilty of that very thing. Think about all the wonderful ways we look at God’s love, gentleness, and favor. Today, however, the context in which God’s actions are described as WONDROUSLY MARVELOUS is a reference to His judgment on people who claim His name, but simply give lip service to Him. God uses the prophet Isaiah to call them out in  Isaiah 29:13-14. “Then the Lord said, ‘Because this people draw near with their words and honor Me with their lip service, But they remove their hearts from Me, and their reverence for Me consists of tradition learned by rote, therefore, I will once again deal marvelously with this people, WONDROUSLY MARVELOUS.'”  He goes on to warn them of the consequences of their lip service and rote worship. We might want to relegate our Creator’s wrath to the Old Testament, but Revelation 16 speaks of God’s judgment being poured out in a future day. We may wonder, “Is mankind’s behavior and sincerity of worship a big deal to God?” The answer is, yes.

Happy New Year!

Do you wish you could twitch your nose or snap your fingers and presto, what you long for would appear this year? The fact is, those techniques may work in movies, but not real life. However, God does work wonders. Sometimes those wonders take time. Other times, moments. Regardless of the timing, our Heavenly Father is the One on whom we are to set our hearts if we’re in need of wonder-working power.  Moses is but one of many who needed a miracle and God stepped in. Listen to his words of praise in  Exodus 15:11. “Who is like You among the gods, O Lord? Who is like You, majestic in holiness, Awesome in praises, working wonders?” If we’re in need of wonder-working power, we can go to God, be still in His presence, ask Him for help, and listen to what He quietly impresses on our hearts. Have your Bible, pen, and journal with you so you can turn to a Bible verse He directs you to look up and so you can write down what He prompts you to do.  Imagine a year of God’s wonder working power in your life. It’s not a fairy tale. It’s real and it’s available for the person who seeks Christ and desires to glorify Him with their life. 

Dreary days. Gray skies. They can make us feel gloomy. The death of loved ones, separation, or estrangement from family or friends weighs heavily on our hearts. On what can we focus in those times? Malachi 4:2 tells us.  “…for you who fear My name, the Sun of Righteousness will rise with healing in its wings.” What does that mean? Theologian Charles Spurgeon explains:  “Jesus, like the sun, is the center and soul of all things, the fullness of all good, the lamp that lights us, the fire that warms us, the magnet that guides and controls us; he is the source and fountain of all life, beauty, fruitfulness, and strength.”  Jesus is called the Sun of Righteousness because on the most dreary of days, when we are gloomy and despairing, we can ask Him to fill us with His Spirit and shine in our hearts and minds. Call on Him now to rise in your heart and mind in the full strength of His glory.

We praise You, SUN of RIGHTEOUSNESS, and look to You to enlighten us.

*http://www.spurgeon.org/sermons/1020.htm

Lord Jesus, thank You for modeling being submissive to our Heavenly Father and trusting in His ultimate will. 

“He went a little beyond them and fell on His face and prayed, saying, ‘My Father, if it is possible, let this cup pass from Me; yet not as I will, but as You will.’” Matthew 26:39

The Plan A Woman in a Plan B World: What to Do When Life Doesn’t Go According to Plan,   Available on Amazon

Have you ever been lost? Perhaps you took a wrong turn in the road and didn’t know how to get to your desired destination. As bad as that is, what’s worse is to be spiritually lost, which is how Jesus describes us prior to our salvation.  We were so lost that there was no one who could help us except Jesus. In Luke 19:10, Jesus describes Himself as the Son of Man who came to seek and to save the lost – us and every human being.  Jesus left heaven’s glory to come come and do what no one else could do. Through the virgin birth of Mary by the Holy Spirit, Jesus was born, the Son of Man, to seek and to save our lost souls so we could be reunited with our Heavenly Father. What good news. Is there someone we need to go looking for as Jesus did, someone with whom we can share the good news?

All praise to You, Lord Jesus, Son of God, SON of MAN.  Thank You for seeking us and saving us.  Rouse us to do as You did and seek out the lost in order to bring them to You. 

“For the Son of Man has come to seek and to save that which was lost.” Luke 19:10

Things aren’t always as they appear. Just you wait and see. For instance, Jesus had no earthly possessions, wasn’t married, and when arrested, His friends abandoned Him. He was lied about, mocked, and beaten almost to death.  Mark 14:61 records the high priest questioning Him prior to crucifying Him,  “‘Are You the Christ, the Son of the Blessed One?’” How incongruous. Blessed? Yet, Jesus was and is the Son of the Blessed One. So, when we think about our lives or circumstances, they may not seem to add up to our being the “blessed child of God.”  But that is who we are. Things aren’t always as they seem. Just you wait and see.

Heavenly Father, we praise You for Christ, SON of the BLESSED ONE, and for the blessings, You’ve promised us.

Have you recently heard the word “fear” in relation to the pandemic, elections, fires, and even drinking water? Yes. The news, “Brain-eating amoeba in city’s water supply kills 6-year-old,” may have caught your attention when Texas Governor Abbott issued a disaster declaration in Brazoria County on September 27 after an amoeba that can cause a rare and deadly infection of the brain was discovered in the local water supply system. What more could happen in 2020, we may ask. Few would disagree with author/speaker Jonathan Chan’s statement that 2020 has been a year of America being shaken. Is our being shaken a bad thing? Or, might it be a wake up call? While some today discount the value of fear and associate it with not trusting God, the Bible explains the value of fear that is rightly placed. Is ours? For more on the kinds of fear and to consider which fear you have, read my column, “Are Christians to Fear or Not Fear?“

You who fear the LORD, trust in the LORD; He is their help and their shield. Psalm 115:11

Heavenly Father, our nation has been shaken. Shaken by fires, lawlessness, the murders of innocent ones,  disease, floods, and more. We are looking to You, our Lord and Savior. Teach us how to walk through our days so that we point others to You. 

“Are Christians to Fear or Not Fear?“