Naomi Williams

I was brought up in a Christian home, a minister’s home. I was protected, cared for, and sheltered. The Lord talked to me and brought me to the knowledge of salvation when I was just a little girl of six. However, when I was fourteen, I let the love of God slip out of my heart and I began to resent being born into that home. I saw people in the world seemingly having a good time, and I thought my parents were pretty strict. I wondered why I had to be held back by a Christian home. I thought, When I am eighteen, I will do as I please.

Then God Himself spoke to me. A dark cloud of conviction came over me. I realized that the love of the world was in my life where the love of God should be. I dropped to my knees and prayed, asking God to forgive me. Jesus came in and made a real change in my heart. He took the unhappiness out of my life. The darkness was gone and it seemed that the light of Heaven shone in my soul.

I married in 1947, and my husband and I had the privilege of serving God together for forty-four years. I am thankful for the many years we were able to labor for the Lord in the Midwest, as well as the privilege to serve Him in California, Hawaii, Oregon, and Washington. We were also able to tell the Gospel story during a trip to the East. The most beautiful thing we saw during that trip was souls kneeling at the altar seeking God. I would rather be working for God than doing anything else.

The Lord gave us strength to do His work. I found out there is nothing our Savior cannot do. In 1955, we saw death stand so close, but the saints prayed. My husband was struggling for every breath. Not a bit of air, it seemed, could pass through to his lungs. At times I saw him turn gray and his lips turn blue. Just when I thought the end was surely there, the Lord undertook. I also received a touch from the Lord that year. I was like a different person. I could not believe the strength and health I had been given. It was all through the prayers of God’s people.

I appreciate the Gospel with all my heart. I am so thankful for the joy in my soul and the blessings God has poured out on me. I want to do my best for Jesus.