Just Like Us? How we can pray with power.

Elijah was one of the most influential and important prophets of Israel’s history. He’s the prophet we read about who stood up to the king, provided for the widow, raised a dead boy back to life, and defeated the 450 prophets of Baal.  He was one impressive guy.

We read about his confrontation with Ahab where he declares by the Word of God that the rain will stop at his word and will not return until he tells it to rain, for the punishment of Israel’s sin. Three and half years later, Elijah prays and the rain returns! Wow! That’s awesome faith and powerful prayer!

Yet James says that Elijah was a man just like us. “Elijah has nothing on you!” says James (James 5:17). We find that hard to believe when we read 1 Kings 17-18 and respond with “no way!” Elijah was special. But read into chapter 19 and you can begin to relate a whole lot more.

You see the source of Elijah’s power was not from within Elijah (as is the popular mantra of today), but the power source is in the God to whom he prayed. Elijah was just a human like you and me, but he relied on the power of God through prayer, something that is available to us today.

That is why James is so passionate about prayer in the last section of his book (James 5:13-20). He is concluding his remarks where we need to begin, with prayer. Prayer should not be seen as the last resort but as the constant fountain of strength.

Pray In All Circumstances

Are you going through hard times? Pray. Are you rejoicing? Pray! Pray for others, pray for yourself, pray and then pray some more. Prayer to a believer’s faith is what oxygen is to the human body, we cannot survive without it.

I must confess that I fail at this sometimes…well a lot of times. I know the importance of prayer, I know the power of prayer, but I get in the way too often. When things are going bad, I am quick to go to my knees and cry out for God’s help. But when things are good, I can deceive myself that I can handle life and do things on my own power.

James is warning us not to do that. Develop a prayer life that is consistent and constant. One that knows how to petition God through hard times. A prayer life that knows how to rejoice with God and how to cry on His shoulder.

Elijah figured this out and God used Him mightily.  

Faithfulness Leads to Powerful Prayer

We are instructed to call the church leaders to come pray for the sick. Their prayers of faith will bring healing. James says that the prayer of a righteous person is powerful. Here’s what he is saying, as you learn to live in faithful obedience, your prayers have great power.

The manner in which we live our life will affect the power of our prayers. It’s not the prayer itself that has the power, but God who does. But when we live in faithful obedience to God, we grow closer to Him, trust Him more and keep a continual and constant line of communication with Him.

The Bible says if we cherish sin in our heart, God won’t hear us. Sin leads to broken communication, but obedience leads to power. Do you want to have a powerful prayer life?

Prayer Defeats Sin

Here again James gives a principle that we do not employ often enough, confessing our sins to one another and praying for healing. Prayer itself is a step of humility. It is acknowledging that you cannot do something on your own, that there is someone greater then you and you are petitioning Him. Confession is also a step of humility that helps you realize your place before God.

Here we are encouraged again to find godly people in our lives that we can share are struggles, our faults and our sins with, who will pray for us and with us. When someone confesses sin, it isn’t to be a time of judgment and condemnation, but a time we come together battling against sin. This has been commanded to us over 2000 years ago, but it is something we struggle to do.

Time and again, someone will come to me to confess their struggles with sin and I am saddened by their expectations of what is going to happen. They often expect to be yelled at, that anger will ensue, that I will tell them how stupid and ridiculous they are and ban them from coming back.

Seeing the relief in their eyes when instead of anger I can offer them grace and hope tells me how fearful they were of confession. Confession is good and should not be feared, but we need to develop a culture in the church where people no longer fear, but are willing to confess.

When you are looking for a peer accountability partner who you can confess with and pray with, you should look for someone who has compassion and understanding that they too are a sinner saved by grace. As we remember our own sin, we can battle together.

You may not think of yourself as an Elijah, but your prayers matter. The same God that moved mightily in Elijah’s life is waiting to work in your life. Pray to Him and watch Him prove Himself glorious in your life as well. Trust Him with the formula to confess sin and pray for healing, He will heal you (1 John 1:9).