Is anyone among you suffering? Let him pray. Is anyone cheerful? Let him sing praise. James 5:13
Prayer and Praise
Prayer and praise go hand in hand. Throughout the bible, our heroes of the faith respond to a wide range of emotions. Sadness, joy, despair, elation, suffering, and more spur them on to connect with God in a variet of ways.
And when they had inflicted many blows upon them, they threw them into prison, ordering the jailer to keep them safely. Having received this order, he put them into the inner prison and fastened their feet in the stocks.
About midnight Paul and Silas were praying and singing hymns to God, and the prisoners were listening to them, and suddenly there was a great earthquake, so that the foundations of the prison were shaken. And immediately all the doors were opened, and everyone’s bonds were unfastened. Acts 16:23-26 (ESV)
When we pray and praise, God reacts
When we pray and praise, doors open. Our chains fall off. No wonder James says to pray when we are suffering, to praise when we are cheerful. When we do both in response to either emotion, God acts on our behalf.
Is anyone among you suffering? Let him pray. Is anyone cheerful? Let him sing praise. James 5:13
Powerful prayers
Later in chapter 5, James tells of the powerful prayers of Elijah.
Elijah was a man with a nature like ours, and he prayed fervently that it might not rain, and for three years and six months it did not rain on the earth. Then he prayed again, and heaven gave rain, and the earth bore its fruit. James 5:17-18 (ESV)
Imagine the praise party when that rain started to fall. Elijah’s prayers turned the fate of a nation.
The God of Elijah is still God today
We serve the same God today that acted on behalf of Paul and Silas and Elijah. He still responds to prayer and praise.
Action Step:
Our focus today is PRAYER!
Prayer: communicating with God, a back and forth (talking AND listening)
Take a moment today, acknowledge what emotions you are feeling, and pray and praise right in the middle of the emotions.
Watch and see what God will do in response.
Prayer:
Dear God, thank You that You still respond to our prayers and praise today like You did in the times of the Bible. We glorify You and ask You to act on our behalf in our lives today. In Jesus’ name, amen.
