YOU PRAY FOR ME by Marvin Morrow
Channel: Helen Mutono
Date: 16/06/2020

James 5:13-18 _*Are any among you in trouble? They should pray. Are any among you happy? They should sing praises. Are any among you sick? They should send for the church elders, who will pray for them and rub olive oil on them in the name of the Lord. This prayer made in faith will heal the sick; the Lord will restore them to health, and the sins they have committed will be forgiven. So then, confess your sins to one another and pray for one another, so that you will be healed. The prayer of a righteous man has a powerful effect. Elijah was the same kind of person as we are. He prayed earnestly that there would be no rain, and no rain fell on the land for three and a half years. Once again he prayed, and the sky poured out its rain and the earth produced its crops.*_

God speaks to us in several ways and we need to speak back to Him. He has designed it that through prayer we can communicate or talk back to Him. He earnestly and eagerly awaits that communication and it is always His wish to listen and answer them. However sin normally stands in the way and blocks answers to our prayers and that is why many never get answered! 

As we go into prayer, therefore, we need to first repent and appear righteous with a clean heart before Him - having repented of all sins, including those to our fellow men. Only then shall our prayers be effective and fervent, aligned with God's Will, yielding the desired answers. 

It is emphasized here that we should confess our sins to one another and be healed. Indeed many have gotten sick and others died because of unconfessed sin. 1 Corinthians 11:30-31 _*That is why many of you are sick and weak, and several have died. 
If we would examine ourselves first, we would not come under God's judgment.*_  The same God who answered Elijah will do it again to Your prayers. We need to hold each other's hand as we walk home.

*Prayer:*
Lord, we are glad to know that You forgive our sins when we earnestly repent of them. We therefore present ourselves before You, yearning for Your forgiveness and seeking for Your redemption from our sins. In Jesus' name we pray, Amen.

Have a blessed day!