Read James 5:13-20.
But today, we find that lip service is very much part of James’ thinking, too! Well, not really, but these key verses towards the end of James’ letter call us to prayer. Our lips are our voice. In Psalm 34, the psalmist says, “I will extol the Lord at all times; his praise will always be on my lips”.
James calls us to prayer in the good times. Give God credit for the good that happens to us. “Is anyone happy? Let them sing songs of praise” (Jas5:13).
James calls us to prayer in bad times. “Is anyone among you in trouble? Let them pray.” (Jas5:13).
Whether times are good or bad, God should be in on our conversation. God is always present. We should have a constant sense that God is nearby. We should be in a habit of prayer. Like incense in the days of old, our words should rise like perfume. There is a sense in which we think of God as high and exalted. We should have a prayer language going. Even if we don’t always use words of English or our mother tongue, we should be in the habit of framing our thoughts as prayers. If God is truly included, the thought will be more elevated, more acceptable, more in tune with what God wants. Prayer puts us on higher ground – we become better servants as our message goes up.
But prayer is not just about up. It’s also about reaching out. What good is a prayer life if your neighbour is suffering? This is a classic James test (Jas 2:16).
In these times of restriction, it’s hard to meet physically together. It’s often a hard legal puzzle to do anything with another person. But we do have the phone. And we do have Internet. We have ways to connect, and we should use them.
It’s one thing to say, “I’ll pray for you”. It’s a good and sometimes strengthening thing to say that. But it should never be the only we involve people in our prayer.
What does James say? “Is anyone among you sick? Let them call the elders of the church to pray over them” (Jas 5:14). Include them so they can hear the prayer. Let them be present as the words are spoken. Our words should not just go up, but out as well. Out to our fellow human beings.
In James, there is oil of anointing as well (Jas 5:14). If we can’t bring oil, our words will be even more important.
The sick person might be burdened by sin. Any of us might be (Jas 5:15-16). This is a perfect time for prayer to go both up and out. We confess to God and to each other. We pray for forgiveness and seek it also from our fellow travellers on the road."
A Christian life will always bear fruit. But James doesn’t focus on how to be more active in these tasks. He doesn’t provide a schedule and a checklist. The final message is about connecting. Connecting to God, connecting to community. Binding all our work in the power of prayer. This above all is the habit to guide our lives, here and into eternity.
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