August 20, 2015
James 5
Scripture:
13 Is any one of you in trouble? He should pray. Is anyone happy? Let him sing songs of praise.
14 Is any one of you sick? He should call the elders of the church to pray over him and anoint him 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 him up. If he has sinned, he will be forgiven.
16 Therefore, confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you may be healed. The prayer of a righteous man is powerful and effective.
Observation:
Ok, I get the hint: prayer is important. What really stands out to me is that “the prayer of a righteous man is powerful and effective.” Powerful and effective are two words that I definitely want associated with my prayers. There is no escaping it; we have a standard operating procedure for a Spirit-empowered disciple. Simply put, the procedure is to submit to the Lord regularly and to rely on the Holy Spirit for guidance and direction in every activity and decision. When we do this, then and only then, our prayers will be defined as powerful and effective.
Application:
- Personal Application: Be ready and willing to pray for those who are in trouble. If you are in trouble, seek prayer from a righteous man.
- Family Application: Read this verse, and talk your family about how important it is to pray for each other in times of need. Then take a moment and ask for prayer requests and pray with them for those needs.
Prayer:
- Personal Prayer Focus: Ask God for the insight and direction to know who in your life to pray for. Or, if you are in trouble, ask who you should go to for prayer.
- Family Prayer Focus: Pray that the Lord will use your family to pray for those in trouble and sing songs of praise with those who are happy.
Three-Year Reading Plan for Sunday, August 16 to Sunday, August 23:
- Sunday, August 16: James 1
- Monday, August 17: James 2
- Tuesday, August 18: James 3
- Wednesday, August 19: James 4
- Thursday, August 20: James 5
- Friday, August 21: 1 Peter 1
- Saturday, August 22: 1 Peter 2
- Sunday, August 23: 1 Peter 3
—TOM GROOT is National Director of Men’s Ministry and Christian Education. Connect with Tom on Facebook or Twitter @TomGrootJr.
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