“Confess your faults one to another, and pray one for another, that ye may be healed.  The effectual, fervent prayer of a righteous man availeth much.”  James 5:16

Is prayer time an issue for you?  Do you get tired of praying for the same thing over and over?  Is it hard to pray for others?  Are you open and honest in your prayers?  These are common questions regarding prayer.  In fact I, like many, struggle with a consistent prayer life.  Another common issue is that no matter how committed we are to pray – we often do it in ways not necessarily requested or instructed to us from God.  I have a poem in the front of my Bible about prayer:

The secret of living – is learning to pray,
It’s asking our Father – for strength for the day!
It’s trusting completely – That His boundless grace,
Will overcome care – And each problem we face!
It’s walking by Faith – every mile we plod,
And knowing our Prayers – Bring us closer to God!
Author unknown

So, what does the Bible teach about prayer? Let me give you a brief answer that I ran across somewhere and have marked in James 5:16.

Prerequisites to Effective Prayer
* Need to be Righteous – James 5:16 (Is your life in order?)
* Must be Abiding in Christ – John 15:7 (Do you cling daily to Him?)
* Need to ask with the Correct Motives – James 4:1-3 (Are your prayers selfish?)
* Are you sensitive to others’ needs? – 1 Peter 3:7 (Put others before yourself?)
* Pray in His Name – John 14:13 (Prayers must be consistent with what God is Like)

Review your prayer life – what changes do you need to make?  Do you pray more for others and His will, or yourself and your desires?  Are you patient enough to believe that God can do the miraculous?  Are you ready to submit your desires to whatever He wants?  God always answers prayer when it is done as instructed, but His answers are not always what we want.  That is always a tough one for me.  Pray for what you are asking, but pray also that God gives you the strength and courage to accept the answer.

Lynne Jahns
Christian Counselor