James 5: 16 “Therefore, confess your sins to one another and pray for one another, that you may be healed. The prayer of a righteous person has great power as it is working.”
Bible Verse for Meditation: James 5: 13-16
About one year ago, God began to nudge me to form an online prayer group. I was not sure why and did not feel qualified enough to organize it, but I did so after much hesitation. It started with five and then decreased to four around the fifth month, but then began to pick up great momentum. We all started to recognize the power of prayer, in being in agreement with each other and using its effect to assist us all in making challenging decisions that would shift us to a different level spiritually, personally and professionally.
Around the eighth month of our “Chat and Pray” group, I felt a whisper instructing me to expand our virtual gathering, not recognizing why then, but truly understanding the need now. In one of our prayer calls, I brought up the topic and asked them to pray on it. They all mentioned that they wanted to keep our core group together, but deep down that feeling would not go away, which was confirmation that it was needed. God planted that seed which started to germinate and then a few months later, I felt the spiritual urge to bring up the topic again. God’s persistence created an opportunity to develop another prayer group with the original “four” plus additional ladies that we each invited and the fruit of this is becoming more evident in our lives daily.
In this season, where we may be struggling with so many emotions, finding time to pray with someone to align thoughts, to discuss issues and to be in agreement with is so critical. In thinking about the verses today along with Matthew 18: 20, which says “where two or three are gathered in my name, there I am with them,” it provides evidence of the authority that prayer gives us to God’s power. Whether we have another person living with us that is sheltering in place or if we virtually commune, prayer must become purposeful. As we confess to God and pray for each other, power is being generated and God is literally there with us hearing our petitions and listening to our requests. Day by day you begin to see the thing you were praying for being presented to you and how God is working on your behalf.
As you become more deeply rooted in prayer, your mind begins to focus on your relationship with God and less on what is happening in this chaotic world. As you pray with purpose, seeking God’s help in everything, not just the monumental moments, but in everything, you begin to receive daily downloads about what you need to do each day. As you pray for others and others pray for you on the same matter, you begin to recognize its manifestation and as you tap into that power, you begin to feel the healing that is at work within and around us all.
