I will extol the Lord at all times;
his praise will always be on my lips
The prayer of faith
13 Is anyone among you in trouble? Let them pray. Is anyone happy? Let them sing songs of praise. 14 Is anyone among you ill? 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. 16 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.17 Elijah was a human being, even as we are. He prayed earnestly that it would not rain, and it did not rain on the land for three and a half years. 18 Again he prayed, and the heavens gave rain, and the earth produced its crops.
19 My brothers and sisters, if one of you should wander from the truth and someone should bring that person back, 20 remember this: whoever turns a sinner from the error of their way will save them from death and cover over a multitude of sins.
James draws his letter to a close with an ode to practical prayer. Whatever you need, whatever you feel, whatever your circumstance - pray! He wants them to take prayer seriously, and use it easily, naturally and regularly.
Heavenly Father, we thank you for all those who have supported us in our faith. For every righteous person whose prayers for us were ‘powerful and effective’. We thank you that at the heart of it all, those people loved us because you first loved us.
We pray for all of those tempted to give up on their faith and we pray you would send us to them in their time of need. Inspire us Lord to grow closer to you, to pray regularly, naturally and easily for all our needs, and to love one another just as we love you.
Amen.
Offer to God your own:
Prayers for other people
Bless one another as you finish – for example 'I bless you now, in the name of the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirt.'
Amen.