<\/p>\n
The first time Bill Taylor prayed live on air happened six or seven years ago.<\/p>\n
\u201cI do remember in the hallway the next day, my boss was walking and [we] crossed paths and he said, \u2018Great job last night; I\u2019ve gotten a lot of positive feedback,’\u201d the San Antonio meteorologist recalled. \u201cAnd I said, \u2018Thank you. Thank you very much.\u2019 And that was it.\u201d<\/p>\n
Those on-air prayers have happened a number of times since \u2014\u00a0including last week, when the Texas Hill Country was facing another catastrophic storm almost one year to the day after devastating floods claimed the lives of more than 139 people, including nearly 30 \u2014 mostly children \u2014\u00a0at\u00a0Camp Mystic, a summer camp for girls.<\/p>\n
With that not-too-distant nightmare in mind, Taylor, chief meteorologist for KENS 5, the local CBS News affiliate, said he felt compelled to pray for the safety of those in the path of\u00a0what looked to be an impending tornado.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe Spirit of God came over me and said, \u2018Pray,’\u201d he said. \u201cAnd I just started. \u2026 Then I went just right back into that live coverage, and praise God that He delivered, as He always does. He\u2019s faithful, and we were protected from what maybe could have been a lot worse.\u201d<\/p>\n
In all, the death toll for these latest floods is two and state crews rescued more than 270 people while local officials in Uvalde and Zavala rescued more than 300. Texas Gov. Greg Abbott (R) said about 125 people were transferred to shelters in the Uvalde area.<\/p>\n
Nearly 600 homes and 100 businesses across Kerr, Kendall, and Comal Counties were damaged or destroyed. CBN\u2019s Operation Blessing\u00a0is on the ground in Kerr County, which sustained the bulk of the destruction, to assist in the recovery effort.<\/p>\n
In \u201ctimes of trouble,\u201d Taylor said, it\u2019s important to remember God is \u201clike any father who wants his child to come sit in his lap and and be comforted.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhen we ask [God] for that protection, when we lean into Him,\u201d the weatherman said, \u201cHe\u2019s \u2026 our refuge and \u2026 our strength and comfort.\u201d<\/p>\n
A native of New Jersey, Taylor was raised Catholic, but \u201cdidn\u2019t surrender\u201d to God fully until about 10 years ago.<\/p>\n
His faith, the meteorologist said, didn\u2019t truly catch fire until he married his devoutly Christian wife in Montgomery, Alabama, where they attended First Baptist Church.<\/p>\n
\u201cThat was when the light was really shining and the flame was lit,\u201d Taylor explained. \u201cJay Wolf, the pastor there, really just taught me so much more about the Bible. And I just got this insatiable appetite to learn more and to grow in faith.\u201d<\/p>\n
It was there \u2014\u00a0in Montgomery \u2014\u00a0that Taylor experienced what he called a \u201cradical transformation,\u201d where he gave God total control over his entire life, or \u201chouse,\u201d rather than keeping \u201ca couple rooms \u2026 to myself.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cJesus took my heart and just said, \u2018Let\u2019s go,’\u201d he remembered. \u201cAnd I finally gave Him every room of the house, gave Him full control of my life. And I have not regretted it.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019m living my best days, truly living my best days,\u201d Taylor added.<\/p>\n
As a Christian in the news business, Taylor\u2019s aware just how heavy and difficult some stories can be and knows the need to \u201ckeep hope alive\u201d when discouraging events unfold.<\/p>\n
He lives by the acronym H.O.P.E., which he said stands for, \u201cHolding Onto Promises Everlasting.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cTake heart, I have overcome the world,\u201d Taylor said, referring to\u00a0John 16:33. \u201cThere will be deep valleys. And when we really lean in, our abiding time has to be solid. We have to begin the day first seeking His Kingdom, first seeking His righteousness, first seeking Him, putting the armor on, because the enemy is up and ready to rob, kill, and destroy every single day.\u201d<\/p>\n
Spending dedicated time with God is critical because there is \u201ca battle occurring\u201d that is \u201cbetween your ears.\u201d<\/p>\n
Increasingly, it seems, the next generation is finding answers in the pews at church. Taylor said he\u2019s encouraged to see the growing number of young Americans\u00a0flocking to faith.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe church is rising like never before,\u201d he said. \u201cYouth movements are so vibrant. There are teenagers and young adults on fire for Jesus right now.\u201d<\/p>\n
Now seven years after his first on-air prayer, Taylor is confident in his convictions and comfortable sharing his faith publicly \u201cas a representative of the Kingdom \u2026 where I can represent Him in everything I\u2019m doing.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cStepping into this purpose more \u2014 knowing that this is truly a call \u2014\u00a0has really helped build that confidence,\u201d he said. \u201cAnd everywhere I am, I know Who I represent, and I\u2019m bold about it.\u201d<\/p>\n
As the number of voices facing big-tech censorship continues to grow, please sign up for\u00a0Faithwire\u2019s daily newsletter\u00a0and download the\u00a0CBN News app, developed by our parent establishment, to stay up-to-date with the latest news from a distinctly Christian perspective.<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" The first time Bill Taylor prayed live on air happened six or seven years ago. \u201cI do remember in the hallway the next day, my boss was walking and [we] crossed paths and he said, \u2018Great job last night; I\u2019ve gotten a lot of positive feedback,’\u201d the San Antonio meteorologist recalled. \u201cAnd I said, \u2018Thank<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":30699,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[36],"tags":[182,10229,56,4338,1016,725,1687],"class_list":["post-30698","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-jesus","tag-god","tag-meteorologist","tag-prayer","tag-speaks","tag-spirit","tag-texas","tag-viral"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/biblelon.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/30698","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/biblelon.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/biblelon.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/biblelon.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/biblelon.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=30698"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/biblelon.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/30698\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/biblelon.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/30699"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/biblelon.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=30698"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/biblelon.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=30698"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/biblelon.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=30698"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}