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Power of Prayer – James 5:16

Prayer is powerful! And the power of prayer is real and tangible. As real as anything we can see or touch. It is a source of strength that we, as Christians, can tap into at any time, day or night. This verse from James 5:16 sums up this incredible power perfectly.

The effective, fervent prayer of a righteous man avails much.

James 5:16

As I was researching, I came across some articles that claimed the power of prayer is a mysterious force. Honestly, I just don’t believe that. Prayer is not a mystery that we can’t comprehend. Like most things pertaining to God, it is simple and easy to understand.

So, if prayer is not a mysterious force, what is it? And why is prayer so powerful?

Prayer is our direct line to God. When we call on Him, He hears us and He answers. It’s simple, maybe too simple for some people. Maybe they want it to be mysterious and complicated for some reason that is beyond me. But I believe in a God who loves me and wants to hear from me as much as I want to hear from Him. And I believe in the power of prayer too.

Prayer has the power to make things happen. Not because of our own strength, but because we have been declared righteous through faith in Jesus. He alone is the reason that our prayers have power!

What does James 5:16 mean?

For the answer let’s look at an example of the power of prayer in action in the next scripture…

Elijah was a man with a nature like ours, and he prayed earnestly that it would not rain; and it did not rain on the land for three years and six months.And he prayed again, and the heaven gave rain, and the earth produced its fruit.

James 5:17-18

Elijah believed in God and therefore was a righteous man. He prayed for the rain to be withheld and the Lord answered him. Then he prayed for the rain to come, and the Lord answered again.

Through his faith, Elijah shows us the meaning of fervent prayer and how it avails much. He didn’t just say a little prayer every now and then. He prayed continually and earnestly that God would keep the rain from falling. Then he prayed for the Lord to bring the rain. In both circumstances, the Lord heard and answered Elijah’s prayers. (You can read more about Elijah in 1 Kings)

And because we are righteous in God’s eyes, our prayers are effective and powerful tools too. We just need to practice the same kind of faithful and consistent prayer that Elijah did. Then the results will be undeniable.

Prayer has the power to make things happen. Not because of our own strength, but because we have been declared righteous through faith in Jesus. #Prayer #FaithClick To Tweet

Is there real power in prayer?

The answer is a simple yes. But for us to see the power of prayer in our lives we must first believe in it and have faith in God. This is where the real power comes from… our faith.

Have faith in God. For assuredly, I say to you, whoever says to this mountain, Be removed and be cast into the sea, and does not doubt in his heart, but believes that those things he says will be done, he will have whatever he says. Therefore I say to you, whatever things you ask when you pray, believe that you receive them, and you will have them.

Mark 11:24

With His words here in Mark 11:24, Jesus emphasized believing in the power of prayer and having faith that God will not only hear our prayer but answer it also.

Sometimes we pray but we don’t really believe that anything will actually happen. Or we pray and think that our problems are too big, too small, too whatever for God. We have a “wing and a prayer” mentality. Kind of like luck or happenstance. Maybe our prayers are heard and maybe they’re not.

But what Jesus is talking about here is the condition of our hearts. Do we really believe deep down inside that God will hear our prayers? Do we have faith God will answer us? Because if we want to see the power of prayer, we must truly believe in our hearts that He will.

Beyond just believing, we can have confidence in the power of prayer. Here’s an open invitation from God to us…

Let us therefore come boldly to the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy and find grace to help in time of need.

Hebrews 4:16

Prayer is not a last resort. Even though we may see it that way sometimes. When something bad happens, we try to fix it on our own and only turn to praying once we have failed. (Believe me, I’m guilty of this sometimes too!)

But prayer is not our last hope. Instead, it is our greatest offense and our best option in all circumstances. No matter what is going on in our lives, good or bad, God wants to hear about it. There is no need to worry about if it’s okay to pray or how our prayers will be received. We can boldly take all of our problems right to God’s throne of grace in our time of need.

Learn more with these inspirational the power of prayer verses.

In my life, I have seen the power of prayer many times. But never more than when my mom had cancer. The doctors gave her about three months to live, however, God gave us three more years together. And I have no doubt that it was the power of prayer at work. So many people were praying for my mom. Our family and friends, two whole churches, even people we didn’t know. They were all praying for her.

And guess what… God heard their prayers. He listened and He cared. He knew that our family was in need and He didn’t let us down. It was during this time that God allowed me to experience the power of prayer firsthand. I could see how prayer is the solution to all of life’s problems and how we can have complete confidence in taking everything to God in prayer.

So, you see, understanding the power of prayer is not a mysterious thing. We are simply having a conversation with a loving and faithful God.

Isn’t it amazing to know that the Creator of the universe, the One who spoke the world into motion wants to speak to you? God loves you and He wants to hear from you.

Today, I pray you will claim the power of prayer, find encouragement and strength in it, and see the undeniable results in your life.

Now is the time to declare I believe in the power of prayer!

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By Connie Rowland|2021-08-22T19:38:04-05:00August 21st, 2021|Christian Life, Prayer|5 Comments

How a Prayer Journal will Change your Life

A few years ago I started keeping a prayer journal. A lot has happened in my life since then. Truthfully, it’s been quite a rollercoaster ride. Along the way, I’ve offered up many prayers to God and received many answers back. So much happens that it’s easy to lose track of all of the things He has to say. That’s why I’m glad I started a prayer journal. When I get discouraged and think I’ll never hear from God again, I can look over my journal entries and see the goodness of God as He answered my prayers and kept me going when I wanted to give up.

I tend to keep journaling pretty simple and I don’t write in it every day. But when God has something important to say to me or I have a deep down need to write to Him, I get it out and make an entry. Whether I feel good or bad, I pour my heart out to God on paper. Sometimes I’ll write out a prayer directly to God just as I would say it to Him. And sometimes it’s just my feelings about the day or situation I’m in. (Hey, sometimes its silly doodles of flowers, cuz I’m girly like that!)

No matter what I write or have to say about my crazy life, the best part of my prayer journal is keeping track of what God says back to me. His answers always give me comfort in the moment. But I also know that I will look back over them sometime in the future and find strength in His words again.

It’s interesting to see the many different ways God has of answering prayer.

God uses His own word to speak to us. So it’s no wonder that the pages of my prayer journal are filled with scripture after scripture. Each one of them holds a special meaning to me, so I make sure to write out not only the verse but also why God gave me that particular scripture in response to my prayer.

Recently I read through some of my old entries and found a verse from Romans 15:5 “Now may the God who gives perseverance and encouragement grant you to be of the same mind with one another according to Christ Jesus.” What really sticks out to me in this verse are the words perseverance and encouragement. I’m positive that God spoke these words into my heart that day because I had asked Him for those two exact things the day before. But if I had not recorded that response from God in my journal along with my thoughts and prayer I wouldn’t be able to look back on it now and remember just how good God is in answering my prayers.

Sometimes God will speak to us through a thought or just one word. When He speaks to us in this way, there is no doubt that the one word or thought is directly from Him. I have pages and pages of notes God has given to me in a sudden burst of inspiration. A single thought or word that He has shared to inspire and encourage my heart. Heck, once it was a number. That one was interesting!

God speaks to us through other people. How many times have I been minding my own business and God has said something to me through another person? More times than I can count. It could come from hearing the pastor preach a sermon that gets right to the heart of the matter. Or having a conversation with a dear friend who openly shares her own circumstances with me. Or even sitting in traffic and listening to a song on the radio. However, God speaks to me I try to write about it in my journal. I don’t want to forget what He said and I don’t want His words to fall away unnoticed just because I get busy in this crazy mess we call life.

Just like me, I’m sure you’re on your own rollercoaster ride of nonstop action. And I promised you in the title of this post that a prayer journal would change your life. So I’d like to share with you three things that have really changed in my life since I began keeping a prayer journal in the hope that it will change yours too. Each of them builds on the next. And before you know it your life, in particular, your prayer life will be changed!

#1 I realized God really does listen when we pray.

Then you will call upon Me and come and pray to Me, and I will listen to you.

Jeremiah 29:12

Seeing is believing. So, when we see God’s answers to our prayers written down in black and white, we start to understand that God really listens when we pray. As I said before, it is incredible to look back at my previous journal entries and see the way God has faithfully answered my prayers. In those times when I was desperate for an answer and couldn’t wait to hear from God, He listened and He answered.

#2 Thankfulness filled my heart.

but in everything by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God;

Philippians 4:6

How is it possible to go through difficulties and at the same time pray with thanksgiving? The answer is simple, as the pages of our journals begin to fill up, thankfulness is a natural reaction to so many answered prayers. That thankfulness builds up inside and covers all of the dark places we try so hard to hide. It grows and takes root until our hearts are filled to the brim with thankfulness for everything God has done.

#3 My relationship with God grew closer and closer the more I prayed.

The Lord is near to all who call upon Him, To all who call upon Him in truth.

Psalm 145:18

Isn’t it amazing to know that God wants to talk to us? And He wants to have a real and meaningful relationship with us? Closeness with God is what I crave the most and it’s what I’ve found through my prayer life. The more time I spend with Him, the better my relationship with Him becomes. If like me, you’re longing for closeness with God, it’s just a prayer away. The more you call upon Him the nearer He is to you. All you have to do is start the conversation, He’ll do the rest.

I hope that this Bible Study has given you a few ideas of where to start with your prayer journal. There is no right or wrong way to do it. A lot of people fill their journals with pictures and artwork or maybe stickers that have meaning to them. (Who doesn’t love a cute sticker?) Others just want to write down their feelings, thoughts or answered prayers. Whatever you choose to put in your journal, the real power within its pages is knowing that God is listening when you pray and that He is answering you too. It may sound simple, but that’s how a prayer journal will change your life! Praying for you to see answered prayers filling up your pages soon!

Here are some excellent choices for starting your Prayer Journal…

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Plus, They make great gifts too! 🥳

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By Connie Rowland|2021-08-02T18:58:27-05:00July 26th, 2021|Prayer|8 Comments

Encouraging Bible Verses about Prayer

Prayer has the ability to accomplish so much in our lives! It’s our direct line to the Creator of the world. And a huge part of our faith. Each prayer lifted up to God is a powerful and effective tool. So, let’s read some Encouraging Bible Verses About Prayer and see the power this simple act of faith has to change our lives.

Scriptures on Prayer for Encouragement and Strength

What does the Bible say to pray for? The answer is simple… pray for anything and everything. And pray without ceasing. Do it with joy in your heart, Do it believing you will see the results. And be thankful for this tool of the faith.

Rejoice always,pray without ceasing, in everything give thanks; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you.

1 Thessalonians 5:16-18

rejoicing in hope, patient in tribulation, continuing steadfastly in prayer;

Romans 12:12

Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God

Philippians 4:6

The effective, fervent prayer of a righteous man avails much.

James 5:16

God hears our prayers.

The Lord hears our prayers. Every single one of them. And we can be sure God will answer our prayers too. This is our promise, God hears our cries for help, and He will not ignore or forsake us in our weakness. That’s the kind of promise that gives us complete confidence in our loving and faithful Father.

These scriptures on God hearing our prayer are a testament to the fact that we can take anything to God in prayer. No matter how big or small our troubles are, He wants to hear about it.

Now this is the confidence that we have in Him, that if we ask anything according to His will, He hears us. And if we know that He hears us, whatever we ask, we know that we have the petitions that we have asked of Him.

1 John 5:14-15

The Lord is near to all who call upon Him,
To all who call upon Him in truth.

Psalm 145:18

Then you will call upon Me and go and pray to Me, and I will listen to you.

Jeremiah 29:12

The Lord is far from the wicked,
But He hears the prayer of the righteous.

Proverbs 15:29

Inspirational Prayer in the Psalms Bible Verses

The Psalms are filled with heartfelt cries to Our Heavenly Father. Here are a select few to start with. I encourage you to seek out others. They will lift you up as you lift up your prayers to God. And don’t forget, praying scripture, God’s own word, back to Him is powerful. So, don’t be afraid to recite these verses or even part of them to God.

I have called upon You, for You will hear me, O God;
Incline Your ear to me, and hear my speech.

Psalm 17:6

My voice You shall hear in the morning, O Lord;
In the morning I will direct it to You,
And I will look up.

Psalm 5:3

He shall regard the prayer of the destitute,
And shall not despise their prayer.

Psalm 102:17

Let my prayer be set before You as incense,
The lifting up of my hands as the evening sacrifice.

Psalm 141:2

Hear me when I call, O God of my righteousness!
You have relieved me in my distress;
Have mercy on me, and hear my prayer.

Psalm 4:1

I love the Lord, because He has heard My voice and my supplications. Because He has inclined His ear to me, Therefore I will call upon Him as long as I live.

Psalm 116:1-2

What did Jesus say about praying?

Here’s an amazing thought… Jesus prayed for help the same way we do. When He needed help, He went to God in prayer. And we can follow His example when we need help. During hard times we should take a cue from our Lord and Savior and take our troubles to God too.

Again, a second time, He went away and prayed, saying, “O My Father, if this cup cannot pass away from Me unless I drink it, Your will be done.”

Matthew 26:42

Now it came to pass in those days that He went out to the mountain to pray, and continued all night in prayer to God.

Luke 6:12

Read: How a Prayer Journal Will Change Your Life

The Lord’s Prayer teaches us how to Pray

With the Lord’s Prayer Jesus taught us how to pray. It’s a passage of scripture we’re all familiar with. We’ve heard it many times and probably know it by heart.

But there is a pattern to this prayer that teaches us how to pray. Within the Lord’s Prayer, there are six requests. The first three are to see the kingdom come, or God’s will in our lives. The second three are to meet the daily needs of the one praying. Then it ends with praise for God. It’s perfectly okay to recite these words of Jesus as is. Or we can use them as a template to follow in our own prayers. Here’s what Jesus said about how to pray.

In this manner, therefore, pray:

Our Father in heaven,
Hallowed be Your name.
Your kingdom come.
Your will be done
On earth as it is in heaven.
Give us this day our daily bread.
And forgive us our debts,
As we forgive our debtors.
And do not lead us into temptation,
But deliver us from the evil one.
For Yours is the kingdom and the power and the glory forever. Amen.

Matthew 6:9-13

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The Holy Spirit Intercedes for Us

Sometimes we just don’t know what to pray. The words get caught in our throat or they just don’t come at all. But that’s okay. Because in these moments, the Holy Spirit, prays for us. Jesus sent the Holy Spirit to be our Helper, Comforter, and Counselor. When we don’t know what to pray, the Holy Spirit intercedes on our behalf.

This verse about the Holy Spirit praying for us is one of my favorite Bible verses for hard times. It shows how much love God has for us and how He accounted for every hardship we could possibly face. It gives me so much encouragement to know that in my weakness the Holy Spirit is praying for me. If you’re facing a hard time, I hope knowing the Spirit is praying for you gives you the same encouragement it has given me. Here’s the scripture on intercession in the Bible that will change your life!

Likewise the Spirit also helps in our weaknesses. For we do not know what we should pray for as we ought, but the Spirit Himself makes intercession for us with groanings which cannot be uttered.

Romans 8:26

Read: The Power of Prayer

Bible Verses About Praying for Others

As Christians, we spend a great deal of time praying for other people. It’s what we do! And it’s Biblical too. We believe in God, in the power prayer has in our lives, and that it will change the lives of others also. So why wouldn’t we lift up the needs of those closest to us? This Bible verse is meant to remind us of this power and to pray for one another.

Therefore I exhort first of all that supplications, prayers, intercessions, and giving of thanks be made for all men

1 Timothy 2:1

This is not a comprehensive list of Bible verses about Prayer. There are many more scriptures on prayer. But I hope each one here encourages you in your daily walk with Christ. And I pray they give you a starting place to search out more scriptures for a fulfilling prayer life. May you pray without ceasing and see the results today!