“The prayer of a righteous man is powerful and effective.” James 5:16b
Think of a time when you desperately needed God’s direction or intervention. Sometimes, we use the phrase “I’m praying really hard!” for someone or something.
Sometimes we might want something so bad, it consumes us and we might miss other things God has for us along the way.
James 5:16b reminds us there is power in prayer. And, if we go to God with a clean heart and obedient spirit, God will indeed hear our prayers.
That does not mean we need to be perfect in order to be heard by God. We “all have sinned and fallen short of God’s glory.”
The key is recognizing where we have fallen short and in asking God for His forgiveness. Then we need to follow His leading, obey His rules, and let Him work in our hearts.
Once our hearts are clean from forgiveness and open to instruction, we need to pray and then practice patience. (Easier said than done!!!)
Once our prayers have been submitted we can trust God has heard them and He is working on them.
It takes faith to patiently wait on God, until He reveals how events will unfold. Faith, that He is holding us, and since we have given our situation to Him, that He will guide the circumstances and us for His glory.
And, when we are feeling a little low on faith, we can pray, asking God ‘to increase my faith in belief.’ He already knows when we are struggling so we may as well defeat the enemy and name our struggles as we lay them out before God.
He promises to supply all our needs! (Philippains 4:19) He will help us stand firm while waiting and our faith will grow. God promises “My grace is sufficient for you.” (2Corthinians 12:9) I personally have learned no matter what giant I face: cancer, fear for a loved one, or starting over again in a new city, God has always supplied whatever I needed. And He hears my prayers, and does indeed answer. Maybe not always how I prayed, but definitely, always, for my good.
Reflections:
1) Are any unresolved issues hindering my prayers?
2) Confess any problem areas and accept God’s forgiveness.
3) Do I hesitate to take everything in prayer before God?
4) Do I need to ask Him to ‘help my disbelief?’
5) Keep a prayer log and note how God answers prayers over the next month!
Note: Thank you loyal readers! I missed last week completely, the only time since this blog’s inception. Many emailed and asked why? I and my family were desperately ill with the flu, strep throat, ear infections and bronchitis. (All last week I was praising God we have only three children!)
Todays post was a few hours late, but we are back to health, and I anticipate being on time again in the future. I truly appreciate hearing from you and appreciate your prayers. IF there is anything I can do for any of you, I am only an email away!
Have a great week! Please return by Monday, October 29, for the next post.
Amen! I love the phrase “holding us”. That is a visual I use often is God’s loving hands and we are cradled right in the middle of them. Makes for a warm and cozy feeling when things are in chaos around us. Love Ya Sis for sharing your talents yet again. :o)
Thankful that you posted, I was going to call you soon to find out if you were! LOL!
I appreciate your lesson. I sometimes feel like I’m going to continue pray (and beg sometimes) for particular things. In my mind, I feel like I can be so focused on a concern that I allow it to “consume” me. I am afraid of what else I may be missing because of this.
Thanks Sonya! I do the same thing, and every time I do it I get irritated with myself! But, as a mere human, I am continously learning! Have a blessed week!Stefanie > Date: Wed, 24 Oct 2012 14:02:12 +0000 > To: Stefanie_L_Brown@hotmail.com >
** Oops “find out where you were”!