James Arnold Taylor, US, Voice Actor

March 23. James Arnold Taylor. James has many voices. More than 200. He is a well-known voice actor and has hosted Star War Weekends at Disney Hollywood Studios. He is also the author of JAT: 365 Inspirations for the Pursuit of Your Dreams.

On this date in 2007, the animated action film and video game Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles premiered, with James providing the voice of Leonardo in both.

But James has faced challenges too. This is today’s story.

When the unexpected happens, do all you can, but trust God for the outcome.

Remember the end of cartoon workdays, when James Arnold Taylor hollered, “Yabba Dabba Doo!” For Fred Flintstone, Taylor was the man with the voice. As a popular voice actor, he brought to life many characters such as: , Leonardo from Mutant Ninja Turtles, and animated Obi-Wan Kenobi.

Taylor and his wife Allison decided to adopt a child from China, and the only thing they were missing was a family home. They found one that seemed perfect. The realtor sang its praises. The inspector said it was in good shape. The neighborhood was well-respected.

The house seemed perfect … until they moved in.

It wasn’t built right. The nails that held the drywall on also pierced the water pipes.

Electrical issues plagued them. Gas leaked so severely, the repair professional said he was surprised the house hadn’t already blown up.

When James hired another inspector to check out the house, it took a 187-page report to document just how bad the situation was.

The Taylors’ dream home had morphed into an expensive nightmare.

Then James noticed a wet-and-swollen baseboard, and he ran his hand down the wall to check for moisture. His hand went right through the wall. James got a flashlight and stuck his head into the hole to see what was going on.

Black mold had set in.

And he had just breathed it into his lungs.

Soon black-mold poisoning ravaged his body. He became sensitive to touch and had trouble concentrating. His focus became spotty, and agitation came easily. He constantly felt as if he were coming down with a cold, and it got hard to eat, drink, or sleep. He lost weight.

But then, on February 13, 2005, he cried out to God.

James had lost his voice. The thing he had built his career on now made him sound as if he ought to be camping out on a lily pad with his green friends. That’s when it made any sound at all.

He might never be able to do the thing he loved again. What if he would be sick all his life?

He desperately sought God in prayer and pleaded for help.

The doctor ordered James not use his voice and wanted him to take medicine to stabilize his health. Uneasy with so many drugs, James looked for natural ways to heal, changed his diet, and trained with a voice coach to strengthen his vocal cords.

After three months, his voice started to come back.

James and Allison heard their adoption had gone through; a little girl had been matched for them. As James read the letter and looked at her picture, learning all he could about his new daughter, something suddenly caught his eye.

Her birthdate was February 13, 2005. The day he lost his voice was the day his daughter was born. “The day that I thought my life had changed for the worst, it had actually changed for the better,” James said, “To me, that was God’s promise of saying, ‘I got your back. You’re all right. Everything’s going to be okay.’” The Taylors eventually moved out of the house, and though James’s health still has its struggles, he is able to use his voice again. His career is still going strong.

But he never forgot the lesson God taught him through his ordeal. “God always shines through and answers prayers if you ask Him,” he said in a video blog. “Pray. Pray with faith.”

He learned that despite everything he had gone through, facing one of the darkest moments of his life, James knew to trust God for help. And God answered, bringing James one of his greatest blessings amidst the suffering … and an amazing story to share with the world.

“In you, LORD my God, I put my trust” (Psalm 25:1 NIV).

Are you facing something unexpected? When the unexpected happens, do all you can, but trust God for the outcome.

“Episode 82: James Arnold Taylor.” Great Big Beautiful Podcast. Accessed September 2, 2020. https://www.thegbbpodcast.com/episode-82-james-arnold-taylor/. “James Arnold Taylor.” IMDb. Accessed September 2, 2020. https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0852517. “James Arnold Taylor: Voice Actor.” Famous Birthdays. Accessed September 2, 2020. https://www.famousbirthdays.com/people/james-taylor-voiceactor.html. “JAT Drive #6: My Mold Story.” YouTube. Uploaded August 26, 2017. https://www.youtube.com/ watch?v=PQ9eOCWHoy4. “Talking to Myself—The JATcast Episode 005.” YouTube. Uploaded November 19, 2018. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bf_GOzX7xiA.

Story read by Daniel Carpenter