I was working on these Scriptures and asking myself, “Do I really believe this?” As in, does my life and actions reflect that I believe this? That my prayers are powerful and effective? If I truly believed that my prayers were powerful and effective, I would be taking advantage of that and praying more diligently. Instead, my mind fixates on unanswered prayer. I find myself subconsciously looking to prove that a lie is true, that my prayers have only minimal results, as opposed to believing the truth of the Lord that my prayers are powerful and effective.
I think we all stumble on the caveat listed–the prayers of a “righteous” man. None of us feels righteous. But the reality is that I am righteous in Christ, I continue seek to live for him, and I continue to repent of sin when it occurs or when its brought to my mind. Although I’m sure if I asked the Lord to go deep that there would be a significantly greater amount. It would probably be a good thing to do…
Back to the subject. I think at times we/I live in unbelief from this scripture. Perhaps this unbelief is the lack of “righteousness” that hinders our prayers. Crazy circle it would seem, but I think there’s a grain of truth to this. Just read James 2. If we really believe, we will do. Hm.
On an entirely different note, the good news is that after I learn today’s verses, I will have memorized all of James! It’s surprising how quickly it has gone. I’ve been impatient to get through James and lo and behold, here I am. Life comes at us quickly and therefore requires our intentionality. I’m glad I started the journey. I’ve not “officially” checked the book of James off the list though as the schedule I’m creating has that I recite each chapter once a day for 20 days, take 30 days off, then 10 days back on. And so for that I have a little bit longer to go. But now I will be starting in on a couple of more Psalms and then 1 Peter will be the next book. Enjoying this journey.
