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Effective Prayer

 James 5:16 – “Confess your trespasses to one another, and pray for one another, that you may be healed. The effective, fervent prayer of a righteous man avails much.”

To say we live in troublesome times is an understatement.  The Bible defines the days we are living is as “dangerous times” (II Timothy 3:1). When we face perplexing problems, they will only be changed by God’s intervention. When we pray, we are inviting the Sovereign God of creation to intervene in our circumstances. Someone has said, “If you are swept off your feet it is time to get on your knees.”


James 5:16 says, “the effective, fervent prayer of a righteous man avails much.” How do we pray effective prayers? We pray effective prayers when we pray the Word of God over every circumstance that comes into our lives. We need to meditate and memorize the Scriptures. Psalms 119:105 says, “Your word is a lamp to my feet And a light to my path.”


When we are faced with adverse circumstances and don’t know how to pray, we must go to the Word and find out what it says about our circumstances. Hosea 4:6 says, “My people are destroyed for a lack of knowledge.” God reveals His will on the pages of the Scriptures. We pray God’s will into our circumstances when we pray the Word.  


If our prayers are going to be effective, we must be specific. C. M. Ward says, “Prayer is the highest form of communication.”  God has established prayer as a means of communication. We speak with Him and He answers us. Throughout the Scriptures God meets with His people and communicates His will to them. Moses met with God and God gave Him the Law on Mount Sinai and defined His covenant with His people.


Effective prayer is earnest heartfelt prayer.  John Bunyan says, "In prayer, it is better to have heart without words, than words without heart. Prayer will make a man cease from sin, or sin entice a man to cease from prayer. The spirit of prayer is more precious than treasures of gold and silver. Pray often, for prayer is a shield to the soul, a sacrifice to God, and a scourge for Satan."

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