Pray for the Sick

We can pray for the sick and they can recover!

Is any one of you sick? He should call the elders of the church to pray over him and annoint him with oil in the name of the Lord. And the prayer offered in faith will make the sick person well; the Lord will raise him up. If he has sinned, he will be forgiven.

Those of us who belong to a church that actively prays for the sick are blessed. When sickness comes we have the opportunity to call upon mature believers of faith to come and minister to us. When we are sick and in pain it is difficult to pray for ourselves effectively. The strain physically and emotionally that sickness brings can hinder our ability to believe God for healing. That's why James suggests that when we get sick, we call for backup.

The elders don't have to be the church leadership but can be any group of mature believers who know how to pray for others. Their prayers of faith will make the sick person well. If they pray for the sick on a regular basis then their ability to pray the prayer of faith effectively for healing is greatly increased because their faith is built up by regulary exercising it. They will have no trouble believing in God's goodness to heal because they have seen him work and heal in the lives of those they've prayed for in the past. The sick person may not be so full of faith because they are in pain and also they may not have built up their faith by regulary exercising it as someone who does it regulary.

If we desire to pray for the sick and see them healed, we desire a good thing. There is no other way to do this other than to jump in and start praying. Joining a group at church that prays for the sick is a great way to begin strengthening our faith to pray for healing. Alternatively we could seek out to start our own group with the blessing of our pastor. Praying for the sick is not an easy thing, and there will be failures. There could be many variables that need to be addressed before a person is healed. This passage in James 5 mentions the sick person's sin as well. If the sickness is connected to a sin that the person is not willing to give up, it could be a roadblock to healing. But when a person receives physical healing as a result of our prayers, what a glorious victory and faith builder that is.