James 5:16

Some years ago I contracted whooping cough. To be honest I thought that it was something only children got so was amazed when my GP told me that I had caught it. From time to time over a number of weeks I struggled to breathe. The worst episodes were in the middle of the night; I will never forget those desperate attempts to breathe, which ended in the “whoop” as air finally, slowly and painfully returned to my lungs.

Breathing is essential to life, and I now have a new respect for the process – and a deep gratitude that I can breathe without a struggle. The Bible makes it clear that prayer is the way in which we ‘breathe’ as Christians. Everything depends on prayer. It has been wisely said that we are as strong as our prayer lives and no stronger. It would be impossible to exaggerate the importance of prayer – just as it would be impossible to exaggerate the importance of breathing for ongoing life.

James encourages his readers to pray because it can have incredible results. In the next verse, he points to Elijah who was one of the most popular figures in the Old Testament. When the people started looking for a Messiah to come it was believed that a second Elijah would come to prepare the way. In the course of time, John the Baptist fulfilled that role. Elijah was an amazing prophet of God but James stresses that he was human just like us. He had his ups and downs but when he prayed God worked in amazing ways.

Key to Elijah’s life was the fact that he was a righteous man, which simply means that he lived his life in step with God. That’s how God wants us to live our lives too, and it will only happen as we breathe in the life of God in prayer. Like Elijah, we will have our ups and downs, but as we pray we can confidently expect that our prayers will have great power and produce wonderful results.

Question

What steps do you need to take to ensure that prayer has a more central place in your life?

Prayer

Thank you Lord for the incredible privilege of prayer. Help me never to take it for granted. Amen