The Power of a Praying Christian
James 5:13-16
“Of all the duties enjoined by Christianity none is more essential and yet more neglected than prayer.” -François Fenelon
Powerful, Effective, and Neglected.
The first part of James 5, which I wrote about in my last post, focuses on the question of how Christians should respond when they are going through hardship. The answer James gives is to wait patiently for God to make things right. But the second part of James 5 reminds us that waiting patiently does not mean waiting passively. That is to say, there’s something we can and should do while we wait for God to act: pray faithfully.
James 5:16 tells us that the prayer of a righteous person is powerful and effective. Here’s a small example of that: research shows that the absence of prayer is one of the most common traits of dying churches1 and the commitment to prayer is one of the most common characteristics of growing ones2.
But the truth is most Christians struggle with their prayer life. I came across a recent student that said only 2% of Christians are highly satisfied with their prayer life. The vast majority of them understand they have a lot of room to grow — myself included. And this isn’t a new phenomenon, as the quote at the top of this post from François Fenelon (who was born in 1651) can attest to.
I think instead of being discouraged about those statistics, we can actually see it as a tremendous opportunity to grow in our faith and our effectiveness. We should be encouraged to know that when we focus on prayer, we’re focusing on something that God has identified as a powerful and effective tool in our walk with Christ.
Pray in All Kinds of Situations (James 5:13-16)
“13 Is anyone among you in trouble? Let them pray. Is anyone happy? Let them sing songs of praise. 14 Is anyone among you sick? Let them call the elders of the church to pray over them and anoint them with oil in the name of the Lord. 15 And the prayer offered in faith will make the sick person well; the Lord will raise them up. If they have sinned, they will be forgiven. Therefore confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you may be healed. The prayer of a righteous person is powerful and effective.” (NIV)
James mentions three specific situations that all call for prayer:
First — If you’re in trouble. Paul uses this word to describe the suffering he faced as he traveled through world preaching the gospel — suffering that included being thrown in prison.
Second — If you’re happy. The idea behind this word is the kind of inner contentment that doesn’t depend on external circumstances.
Third — If you’re sick. Especially the more serious illnesses and injuries that put you out of commission.
The big principle here is that we should pray in all kinds of situations, like Paul says in Ephesians 6:19. That verse talks about always praying, on all occasions, with all kinds of prayers, for all of God’s people.
“Powerful and Effective”
When we pray in faith, we are coming into the presence of the Almighty, All-Powerful, Ever-Present God, the King of Kings and Creator of the World who holds our lives and the whole world in the palms of his hands. And that God has promised that our prayers are powerful and effective.
But what exactly does that mean? And more specifically, does that mean that God will answer all of our prayers the way we’d like?
Experience tells me no. God has not said “yes” to all of my prayers. And truthfully, that’s ok. God knows what I need better than I do, and the most loving thing a father can do is say no to things that would be more harmful than helpful for his children.
Think about this: God doesn’t even say yes to all of the prayers in the Bible. Paul prayed that his thorn would be taken away, and Jesus prayed for a way to be spared the pain of the cross, but God didn’t grant either of those requests. Instead, God answered those prayers in a different way, by giving both Paul and Jesus the strength they needed to persevere anyway.
And that’s what I think the Bible means when it says our prayers are powerful and effective. Something always changes when we pray.
Sometimes, it’s the circumstances. God intervenes to change the situation we’re praying about. And praise God for those answered prayers!
But other times, it’s our heart. As much as we’d like God to always change what happens out there, he often answers our prayers by changing something inside of us instead. He gives us more love, more grace, more patience, more courage, more wisdom, and more endurance to rise to the occasion.
God either changes the circumstances, or gives us what we need to stay faithful in the storm. Either way, our prayers and powerful and effective.
Is Prayer Your Primary Strategy or The Last Resort?
But even though I know all this intellectually, I have to admit that praying in all circumstances is a challenging thought for me because I don’t always treat prayer as my primary strategy when I’m faced with a problem. Sometimes it’s a last resort.
What I tend to do us rush into problem-solving mode instead of stopping to pray for God to do what he does best — give people the strength, wisdom, and courage they need to rise to the occasion.
Corrie ten Boom has a great way of making the point that prayer should be our primary strategy, not our last resort. She asks, “Is prayer your steering wheel or your spare tire?”
And if you know anything about her story— she was a Dutch watchmaker and Holocaust survivor who helped protect Jews during World War II—you know that she had a deep conviction about the power of prayer to protect and sustain people in the midst of terrible suffering.
What a great thought to end on today. Is prayer your primary strategy, or your last resort?
Application
Today let’s make a commitment to pray first before rushing into action. Let’s pause throughout our day to give thanks, make requests, and confess our sins to God. And let’s be thankful for God’s grace no matter what form it takes — the answer we’re hoping for or the grace we need to preserve through the storm.
Watch the Sermon
This summer I am preaching through the book of James at Southwest Church of Christ. Today’s post is based on my sermon from July 28, which you can watch below.
Thom Rainer, Autopsy of a Deceased Church
Thom Rainer, Anatomy of a Revived Church