Today’s devotion comes from James 5:13-15.
“Is anyone among you suffering? Then he must pray.
Is anyone cheerful? He is to sing praises.
Is anyone among you sick? Then he must call for the elders of the church and they are to pray over him, anointing him with oil in the name of the Lord; and the prayer offered in faith will restore the one who is sick, and the Lord will raise him up, and if he has committed sins, they will be forgiven him.” James 5:13-15.
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We endure, because we have faith that the Lord will sustain us while we wait for healing or the end of the suffering. We pray, because we have faith in the Lord that He will heal us or otherwise help us in our suffering. We praise, because we have faith that the Lord is the One Who healed us or otherwise helped us. In summary, we believe that “the Lord is full of compassion and is merciful.”
“We count those blessed who endured. You have heard of the endurance of Job and have seen the outcome of the Lord’s dealings, that the Lord is full of compassion and is merciful.” James 5:11.
“15 Call upon Me in the day of trouble;
I shall rescue you, and you will honor Me.”
I shall rescue you, and you will honor Me.”
…
22 “Now consider this, you who forget God,
Or I will tear you in pieces, and there will be none to deliver.
23 “He who offers a sacrifice of thanksgiving honors Me;
And to him who orders his way aright
I shall show the salvation of God.” Psalm 50:15 and 22-23.
Or I will tear you in pieces, and there will be none to deliver.
23 “He who offers a sacrifice of thanksgiving honors Me;
And to him who orders his way aright
I shall show the salvation of God.” Psalm 50:15 and 22-23.
Don’t forget God! Pray to Him! Praise Him!
We don’t pray as much as we should, but we praise much less.
How often do you pray for others in response to a request for prayer but you never hear back from them as to what God did for them?
How often do you pray for yourself but you forget to praise God for what He did for you?
It seems like there is only one praise report for every ten prayer requests. It should not be so. It reminds me of the story of the ten lepers who were all healed by Jesus, but only one “turned back, glorifying God with a loud voice, and he fell on his face at His feet, giving thanks to Him. And he was a Samaritan.”
“While He (Jesus) was on the way to Jerusalem, He was passing between Samaria and Galilee. As He entered a village, ten leprous men who stood at a distance met Him; and they raised their voices, saying, “Jesus, Master, have mercy on us!” When He saw them, He said to them, “Go and show yourselves to the priests.” And as they were going, they were cleansed. Now one of them, when he saw that he had been healed, turned back, glorifying God with a loud voice, and he fell on his face at His feet, giving thanks to Him. And he was a Samaritan. Then Jesus answered and said, “Were there not ten cleansed? But the nine—where are they? Was no one found who returned to give glory to God, except this foreigner?” And He said to him, “Stand up and go; your faith has made you well.” Luke 17:11-19.
Reformed Doctrine Daily Devotions 