Making Prayer Efficacious

Focus: James 5:16 KJV - 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.

A righteous man isn't someone who is never with a fault, but someone whose heart is right with God and surrendered to His will. He bears no grudge: keeping a pure heart and even praying for his supposed enemies. When such a person prays with intense passion, his prayers avail much—meaning they have immense power and produce massive results. The major reason why prayers are unanswered are traceable to asking amiss by not asking according to God’s will and particularly with the evil heart of consuming the proceeds after our own lusts.

Elijah was subject to like passions as we are. He wasn't a superhero. He got scared, exhausted, and discouraged just like any normal person. His power didn't come from a special status; it came from his faith in God. When he prayed for the rain to return to Israel, he didn't whisper a casual, rushed prayer. He cast himself down upon the earth, put his face between his knees, and pleaded with God. He sent his servant seven times to look for a cloud. He was relentless, agonizing, and deeply earnest. Because he was a righteous servant operating in God's will, his prayers literally controlled the weather patterns of a nation. He shut heaven up for three and a half years to bring a rebellious nation to repentance, and opened it up again when they turned back to God.

God does not just answer the prayers of perfect spiritual giants. He answers the earnest, heartfelt prayers of ordinary people who are deeply committed to Him. When you pray with fervency and alignment with God's heart, your prayers carry historic, life-changing power. Take time to think about your ways again today: are you truly in alignment with the will of God, and is your heart right with Him? Are you at peace with your neighbors, and do you live in holiness? You can prove God today in the place of prayer if your answer to these questions is in the affirmative. The result will stun even you.

Prayer:

Father, I love you and I know you love me more than I do love you. I am determined to do your will for the rest of my life. Let my prayers from today affect my world positively to the glory of your name, so that the world may know that I serve the living God, in Jesus’ name. Amen.

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