We talked earlier in our Bible study this week about the importance of remembering Whom we are praying to when we come before God. Of course, we are praying to the God of the universe every time we approach Him. Remembering Whom we pray to changes how we approach Him in prayer. One of the truths that we learn about God in Scripture is that He is all-powerful. He can do anything. He can work in our lives in ways we never would have expected. The question is, do we approach Him in faith, believing that He is capable of working in our lives and that He will?
James encourages us to come before God in prayer with faith in James 1. In this passage of Scripture, he tells readers, “If you need wisdom, ask our generous God, and He will give it to you” (verse 5). Do not miss the truth found in this Scripture. When we ask God for wisdom, which we all need, He will give us the wisdom we are desperate for. Next, James wrote, “But when you ask Him, be sure that your faith is in God alone. Do not waver, for a person with divided loyalty is as unsettled as a wave of the sea that is blown and tossed by the wind” (verse 6). James specifically addressed the prayer for wisdom in this chapter, but what he teaches us in this passage of Scripture applies to any of our prayers. When we pray, we are called to pray in faith. Praying in faith means believing that God hears us and will respond according to His perfect will. It also means trusting that His knowledge is infinitely greater than our own, so if His answer is “no,” we can trust that His plans are better than our own.
What about you? When you pray, do you pray in faith, trusting God to respond to your prayer according to His good plans and His will, or do you have doubts? My friend, you have a God who is faithful and all-knowing. He is working in our lives each and every day. Like any good father, we can trust our Heavenly Father to respond to our prayers according to our good and His glory.
Memorize James 1:6. Bring this verse to mind often, especially as you prepare to come to God in prayer. Let this verse compel you to come before God the Father in faith, believing that He is at work in your life every moment of every day. After all, you are praying to your all-powerful God who takes care of His people.
Prayer Prompt: Use this prompt to guide you as you pray.
1 This letter is from James, a slave of God and of the Lord Jesus Christ.
I am writing to the “twelve tribes”—Jewish believers scattered abroad.
Greetings!
Faith and Endurance
2 Dear brothers and sisters, when troubles of any kind come your way, consider it an opportunity for great joy. 3 For you know that when your faith is tested, your endurance has a chance to grow. 4 So let it grow, for when your endurance is fully developed, you will be perfect and complete, needing nothing.
5 If you need wisdom, ask our generous God, and he will give it to you. He will not rebuke you for asking. 6 But when you ask him, be sure that your faith is in God alone. Do not waver, for a person with divided loyalty is as unsettled as a wave of the sea that is blown and tossed by the wind. 7 Such people should not expect to receive anything from the Lord. 8 Their loyalty is divided between God and the world, and they are unstable in everything they do.
9 Believers who are poor have something to boast about, for God has honored them. 10 And those who are rich should boast that God has humbled them. They will fade away like a little flower in the field. 11 The hot sun rises and the grass withers; the little flower droops and falls, and its beauty fades away. In the same way, the rich will fade away with all of their achievements.
12 God blesses those who patiently endure testing and temptation. Afterward they will receive the crown of life that God has promised to those who love him. 13 And remember, when you are being tempted, do not say, “God is tempting me.” God is never tempted to do wrong, and he never tempts anyone else. 14 Temptation comes from our own desires, which entice us and drag us away. 15 These desires give birth to sinful actions. And when sin is allowed to grow, it gives birth to death.
16 So don’t be misled, my dear brothers and sisters. 17 Whatever is good and perfect is a gift coming down to us from God our Father, who created all the lights in the heavens. He never changes or casts a shifting shadow. 18 He chose to give birth to us by giving us his true word. And we, out of all creation, became his prized possession.
Listening and Doing
19 Understand this, my dear brothers and sisters: You must all be quick to listen, slow to speak, and slow to get angry. 20 Human anger does not produce the righteousness God desires. 21 So get rid of all the filth and evil in your lives, and humbly accept the word God has planted in your hearts, for it has the power to save your souls.
22 But don’t just listen to God’s word. You must do what it says. Otherwise, you are only fooling yourselves. 23 For if you listen to the word and don’t obey, it is like glancing at your face in a mirror. 24 You see yourself, walk away, and forget what you look like. 25 But if you look carefully into the perfect law that sets you free, and if you do what it says and don’t forget what you heard, then God will bless you for doing it.
26 If you claim to be religious but don’t control your tongue, you are fooling yourself, and your religion is worthless. 27 Pure and genuine religion in the sight of God the Father means caring for orphans and widows in their distress and refusing to let the world corrupt you.
