Sometimes I cry out. Sometimes I just praise Him. Sometimes I even laugh at myself and the circumstances surrounding my talk with him on particular days. I imagine He smiles or chuckles with me. I sometimes imagine him sitting on a chair in front of me while I talk with him each morning. I tell him about my family, friends and enemies and I pray for them all.

Pastor James has more “meat” to prayer that we need to know as we approach God with more than our own lives. He teaches us to pray for others with the same confidence as we pray for ourselves.

“Are you hurting? Pray. Do you feel great? Sing. Are you sick? Call the church leaders together to pray and anoint you with oil in the name of the Master. Believing-prayer will heal you, and Jesus will put you on your feet. And if you’ve sinned, you’ll be forgiven–healed inside and out.” James 5, Msg

“Make this your common practice: Confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you can live together whole and healed. The prayer of a person living right with God is something powerful to be reckoned with.” James 5, Msg

Yes, it’s personal. It’s believing-prayer that forgives, heals, restores and refreshes our very souls. Prayer is a conversation with the One who never leaves us, made us and loves talking with us, even though He knows what we are going to say even before we say it. But it must be said so we grow, mature, understand, gain insight into ourselves and our motives for worship of our Father in Heaven. Ask others to agree with you in prayer…this is the really amazing part of prayer! The kind of prayer that “moves mountains.” 

A side effect? We complain less when we praise more.