“Humble yourselves, therefore, under God’s mighty hand, that He may lift you up in due time.  Cast all your anxiety on Him because He cares for you.”  (James 5:6-7)

This was written by a man who had been there.  Peter was the guy who, when in the middle of a storm on the Sea of Galilee, was terrified like the rest of the disciples. When he saw Jesus walking on the water he said:  “Lord, if it’s You, tell me to come to You on the water.”  Jesus simply told Peter to come and Peter walked on the water just like Jesus!  That was unbelievable faith to even jump out of the boat!  The Bible goes on to tell us that “…when he saw the wind, he was afraid and, beginning to sink, cried out, ‘Lord, save me.’”   That was a pretty specific prayer!  I’m sinking, Lord save me!  Does that prayer sound familiar?  If not, maybe something like one of these does:  I’m scared, Lord save me!  I cannot take it anymore, Lord save me!  I’m tired and I need rest, Lord save me!  I’ve done all that I can and I am seemingly getting no where, Lord save me!  I am afraid of all kinds of things, Lord save me!  I worry about everything, Lord save me!  Are you beginning to sink? 

Whatever your situation, have you prayed with the earnestness that Peter did as he was sinking?  I mean really prayed?  How can prayer help us transition from panic to peace?  How can we move from panic, to peace, to praise?  Is it even possible?  You might say that you do pray with earnestness.  You have begged God to save you.  You have prayed continuously, even to the point where you have gotten very little sleep if any at all.  When you “awake” in the morning, you have come to the realization that your bedtime prayer has driven you to be a morning wreck and you are beyond yourself for the rest of the day.  Let me ask you something:  did your bedtime prayers focus on your negative feelings rather than on God’s assurances and promises?  Let me ask that again:  were your prayers last night focused more on the negative and all that could go wrong and asking God to not let it go wrong, than on the promises and assurances that God has given us all throughout His Word?  More than just His Word, has He ever fallen short in His care for you?  Ever?  Has He fallen asleep and your worry is that He just might not come through this time?  Really???  Unless we pray in faith, our prayers can do more harm than good!  When you start to bring your laundry list of all that is going wrong to God in prayer, your focus moves from Who you are praying to, to what you are praying about.  You are putting your focus on something other that the One who has the power to change things.  Now wonder you are beside yourself!  No wonder you are overcome with worry!  No wonder you are consumed with fear!  Your God has become too small for you!  Your problems, your problems, are bigger than your God!

Someone said:  “God doesn’t always say yes to all our requests, but He listens with unusual attentiveness when two or three gather in united prayer-and He responds in His own way and time with power and wisdom.”  When the Israelites stood between the Red Sea and the oncoming Egyptian army, do you think they prayed?  Their prayer was not only united, they had never been more earnest.  There was no religious ritual that they practiced; they were panicked and their outburst was real!  Exodus 14:10 tells us that “they were terrified and cried out to the Lord.”  This is a perfect example of how we pray sometimes.  Disaster is all around us and yes we cry out to the Lord.  Yes we are earnest.  But do you really believe that God is going to answer your cry?  The fact is that we are more like the Israelites than we realize.  Exodus 14:11 says:  They said to Moses, “Was it because there were no graves in Egypt that you brought us to the desert to die?  What have you done to us by bringing us out of Egypt?”  Does that sound like a prayer of faith?  Does that sound like the Israelites really believe that God can and will do something?  They prayed, but they definitely didn’t imagine that God would actually answer their prayers.  Do your prayers sound like that?  You pray for all that is going on around us, and you ask God to move in a special way, and then you turn around and give your viewpoint on the matter.  You complain and tell people about the problem and the mess rather than about the God to whom you just prayed.  You pray and ask God to give you strength and peace in the middle of a pandemic, and then you talk to your spouse or friend about all of the worries of the world.  Does that sound like you?  Does that sound like a prayer of faith?  Think about your prayers for a minute.

Listen to the way the men and women of the Bible prayed, and then compare it to the way that you pray:

• Then one of the synagogue rulers, named Jarius, came there.  Seeing Jesus, he fell at His feet and pleaded earnestly with Him. “My little daughter is dying.  Please come and put Your hands on her so that she will be healed and live.”  (Mark 5:22-23)
• There was a centurion who heard about Jesus and he had a servant that he loved who became sick and was about to die.  When they came to Jesus, they pleaded earnestly with Him…(Luke 7:4)
• Elijah was a man just like us.  He prayed earnestly that it would not rain, and it did not rain on the land for three and a half years.  (James 5:17)
• Continue steadfastly in prayer, being watchful in it with thanksgiving.”  (Colossians 4:2)

When you pray, do start by recognizing just Who it is that you are talking to?  Do you acknowledge Him for Who He is?  Do you understand that He is the only One who can do anything?  Do you then even think about thanking Him?  Knowing that He is all powerful, and that He already knows your needs, that He loves you, do you thank Him that He would even consider hearing your prayers?  Do you thank Him for all that He has already done?  Have you counted your blessings?  Is the focus of your prayer on your problems or on Him

James 5:17 tells us this:  The prayer of a righteous man is powerful and effective.  Do you believe that?  Really?  Are your prayers not powerful and effective?  Why is that?  That would imply that one of two things is wrong:  You are not a righteous man, a believer.  Lots of people pray in times of crisis.  How often have you heard non-believers say that we need to pray?  The other implication is that your prayers do not line up with the will of God.  Maybe you are asking God to remove something from your life, a stress or worry, and God has it there to draw you closer to Him.  You keep praying and asking God to remove it but He wants it there for your good and His glory.  Not my will, but Yours be done.  That is not easy!  That can open up a can of worms that you never expected.  “Why would God allow this?” you ask.  You then go on to complain that “God doesn’t care” or that “He is not listening.”  Try this instead:  “God, you know my heart.  You know my worries.  You know about all of the stress in my life.  I cannot do anything on my own other than to pray.  So that is what I am doing right now.  Please show me what You would have me to know as I cast all of my anxiety at Your feet, because I KNOW that you love me and care for me (1Peter 5:7).

May God bless each of you as you work through these difficult times.  God remains on His throne.  Nothing has ever gotten past Him and nothing ever will.  Do you really believe that?  My hope is that you will experience His presence in a very special way as you pray with earnestness!  If we can be of help to you or pray for you, please let us know.  Know that we pray for each of you regularly.

Jerry & Robbi