TWO BY TWO
James 5:16
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.
Learning to pray and staying consistent is probably one of the most important things we can grow in our relationship with God. It has absolutely changed my life, so much so that I find myself praying all the time. Whenever I’m doing chores around the house, walking into meetings at work, as im writing these devotionals before and after, I am praying.
It’s not a nervous tic, it’s not over the top; it’s a simple dialogue with God, as you would talk to a close friend.
On that note, today in our reading, James is encouraging us in another step in our prayer life, and that’s by praying alongside others or asking for prayer.
In our services every other week, we offer prayer at the front by the stage during our worship, and we do this because while God loves to hear His children pray personally, and believe me, when you do, He hears you, there’s also something about praying with someone else that truly blesses Him. My mom would tell my siblings and I, growing up, that nothing would make her happier than seeing all of us get along. I believe God looks at us the same way.
If you’ve never come up to pray with someone during our services before, please, the next time we announce it, don’t be shy, don't feel judged. This is a powerful moment you shouldn’t pass up because His word also tells us in Matthew 18: ”Where two or three are gathered in my name, there am I with them.”
Here’s another nugget if you really want to grow in this: Develop relationships with people that you can reach out to in a pinch for prayer. Right now, on my phone, I have people and group chats that I shoot a quick text to during the week whenever I have something big coming up or when an unexpected hits. I will just quickly reach out and say, “Hey, could you pray for ect ect…” and these are close people I know I can trust, because they are stronger prayers and will always reply: “Hey, I am on it.”
It doesn’t always need to be a paragraph or detailed. As I said, most of the time it’s very short text, but we just need people in our lives who will pray for us. Most importantly, we need to be willing to reach out. We weren’t made to do life alone or internalize everything!
If you’re listening to this and thinking, “I don’t have people like this,” “How do I find them?”
My friend, you are in the right place. We have so many groups and classes you can attend and meet great people. So many opportunities to serve that let you make a difference while meeting others. We have a prayer wall on our website right now, where you can go and ask for prayer or pray for others.
I can already feel my boss Matt Clayton cringing at this next one, but like the animals on Noah's Ark, we gotta walk on this boat two by two. Not on our own!
Prayer:
Father, thank you that you hear us when we pray. Help me be more open to praying with others or better at reaching out when needed because you say “the prayer of a righteous person is powerful and effective.” And I want to experience everything you have to offer me in this life!