Prayer For The Stranger

James 5:15 – And the prayer offered in faith will make the sick person well; the Lord will raise him up. (NIV)

I was in a dining room recently when a caregiver for troubled children came in with a few of her charges. A little girl, possibly between ten and twelve years of age, dropped her fork and spoon. Her hands were filled with her plate of food and drink, and not knowing how to retrieve the items without more spillage, she burst into tears.

"I can't do anything right," she wailed.

The caregiver grabbed the plate and drink, set it down on a table, and immediately rushed the girl, crying pitifully, from the room. I don't know how the caregiver handled the situation outside. She later came back without the girl and ate with the other children.

These were people I did not know. However, the pain of the suffering child touched me. I prayed for her.

The world is filled with suffering people who need our prayers. We may not be able to do anything for them other than pray.

The world codes emotional problems into categories, gives them names, and treats such problems as illness. This does little, however, toward removing the cause of the pain, other than covering it with sedatives.

James 5:16 – The prayer of a righteous man is powerful and effective. (NIV)

Praying for others is often the only way we have of ministering to them. The Bible is filled with many instances of prayers of the faithful being answered.

In living a life of faith in God through Jesus Christ, we are called to have concern for others. In some instances, all we can do is pray. It will open our hearts toward God, and through faith, it is possible that the other person may be helped.

Prayer: Lord, You have touched our hearts and made us sensitive to the suffering of others. Hear our prayers as we lift them up to You. Amen.

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