Pray for Rain

Though Thomas Jefferson painstakingly cut every miracle from his New Testament, desperately trying to reduce Jesus and His narrative to that of a good man with great wisdom, the reality is that the Scriptures are filled with the miraculous activity of God and of people God works in and through. I have the privilege of sharing with you that I have seen several miracles firsthand. I have seen arms permanently bent from birth, straightened. I have seen a young woman get out of a wheelchair and walk. I watched as my mother prayed, and God took Cancer from her body.

I have seen miracles done by God through prayer. But the moment that stands out, which I have shared and will continue to share for all of my life, is the miracle of my son's birth. Breanna was diagnosed with a rare condition called vasa previa, and in one night, I almost lost my wife and my newborn son. Though I have told this story from my perspective, I would love for you to read it from her perspective.

I had a rare condition called Vasa Previa and was hospitalised at 28 weeks pregnant. During this time, we had to homeschool the girls in the hospital for four weeks. It was a time of great uncertainty waiting for our little boy. The doctors were going to try to deliver him via c-section at 34 weeks, but at 32 weeks, he came into the world fighting for his little life. I was recounting God's grace recently. Just over seven years ago, which I still cannot believe, I woke up to the scariest night of my life. I woke up bleeding profusely (my son's blood). I'll never forget the shock or the nurses' faces when they rushed into my room. They went to work quickly, preparing me for surgery and searching frantically for LB's heartbeat. I remember seeing the lights flash overhead as they ran me down the hallway, desperately trying to get me to surgery before it was too late. I remember the doctor who told me, "we are gonna do everything to save him, Breanna; just take some deep breaths." Then I remember waking up, in a quiet OR, with no baby in sight. It felt like a dream. A bad, scary dream. As they wheeled me into recovery, the nurse said, "congratulations!" It was a relief like you wouldn't believe. I'll never forget Leonce walking into my recovery room carrying this picture. We both burst into tears. My son had lost half of his blood volume, his heart rate was down to 30 bpm (normal is 140-180), and he didn't breathe for 7min 20 sec. The nurse did chest compressions on his little 4lb3oz body for 7 minutes. For some reason, on that night, the doctor just refused to give up! I'm so thankful that God protected my son, an answer to the many prayers of many people, including my husband, who was not even allowed in the delivery! He's full of life and so much joy!

There were many variables at work in saving our son's life, but we do not doubt that the miracle-inducing prayers of His people undergirded it all. The doctors did not stop, though they usually call a newborn dead after three minutes of not breathing. And he, tiny as he was, would not stop fighting. But it was God's strong hand that ultimately pulled him through!

The power of prayer to produce miracles is what James has in view as he closes his letter to a beleaguered church. His prescription for their problem will seem problematic to many—it is simply... prayer. There are, of course, several reasons that this answer is problematic for many. For those of us still trying to decide if we even believe that Jesus is who He said He is, perhaps this is one more superstition tied to a faith you do not yet embrace. For many who follow Jesus' way, prayer has been reduced to one-way communication with God, with no genuine belief that it will effect any change. In other words, if we are honest, for many, the answer as to why James' prescription seems problematic can be reduced down to one idea:

We do not believe in the power of prayer. 

If we are versed in church speak or have spent our time in church spaces, we will pay due homage to prayer's place in the life of a Christian, but if we believe in its power to our core, then why do we not pray more? Why do we not put prayer in its place as the most incredible instrument at our disposal? Why do we not believe in miracles? It is because you and I do not honestly believe prayer is as effective as we say we believe it to be. Yet prayer, throughout the scriptures and countless accounts throughout history, has produced the impossible through its power. The prayer of a righteous person is powerful. How powerful? So powerful that James asks the question, "is anyone suffering among you," and answers his own question with, "they must pray." 

James reminds us that we must pray and keep on praying. Continue to seek the listening ear of the Lord and enlist His wisdom, kindness and guidance. Prayer is not a passive resignation to a situation; it is a revolutionary tactic that taps us into the very power and presence of God. These, of course, are not just private, personal prayers but also communal prayers in which we petition God with and for one another. With this in mind, we learn from James that prayer does three things.

Prayer comforts the suffering.

By inviting the Divine presence of God into our very human exoperience of suffering, we can find comfort that we will not find anywhere else. Jesus’ presence produces comfort, and all who have experienced it are sure of this truth. Prayer, though, does more than comfort the suffering. 

Prayer can save the sick. 

James here may seem to straddle the charismatic and institutional, concerning healing and anointing, but also summoning the Elders. Early Christians believed God could and did heal and prayed for healing in several ways.

James' words are clear and are scripturally congruent with all the teaching of scripture—God can and does violate the natural unfolding of finite reality with eschatological in-breakings of His future reality. 

In other words, healing is a symptom of the Kingdom, the Kingdom that Jesus said was already here but not yet fully manifested. If we believe Jesus' words, what gives us the right to limit the effects of His power? Healing the sick and raising them up was a common scene in the gospels, as Jesus took Peter's mother-in-law by the hand, having healed her, and "lifted her up." In the Acts account of the early church, Peter is said to have done the same with a lame beggar: "And he took him by the right hand and raised him up."

Thus, we must believe that God can and does heal physical and spiritual sicknesses. He raises up the low and lowly, taking the sick by the hand and standing them up on feet of wellness again. A righteous person's confident, faith-filled prayer is powerful when exercised. Or, more literally translated, the working prayer of a righteous person accomplishes much. It even produces miracles.

Prayer produces miracles.

Your prayers can be powerful, and you can participate in miracles as wondrous as watching the rain cease and begin again, as James records in the last chapter of his letter.

As followers of The Way of Jesus, we must be people of prayer who believe prayer produces miracles. We must believe that prayer is our truest power. We must believe in the effectiveness of prayer. We must believe in the necessity of prayer. We must lead out with prayer, undergird our lives with prayer, and bolster all our efforts with prayer.

"We are working with God to determine the future! Certain things will happen in history if we pray rightly. We are to change the world by prayer." — Richard Foster, Celebration of Discipline

Your prayers can be powerful and unleash the power of God!