“Are any of you suffering hardships? You should pray. Are any of you happy? You should sing praises.Are any of you sick? You should call for the elders of the church to come and pray over you, anointing you with oil in the name of the Lord.Such a prayer offered in faith will heal the sick, and the Lord will make you well. And if you have committed any sins, you will be forgiven.” (James 5:13–15 nlt)

　　Jesus retreated to the Garden of Gethsemane for one reason. It wasn’t to hide from His enemies. It wasn’t to spend quality time with His disciples. Jesus went there to pray. Knowing that, in a matter of hours, He would submit to unimaginable physical, emotional, and spiritual agony, Jesus wanted to spend His remaining hours of freedom in the presence of His Father.

　　The circumstances were unique, but the discipline wasn’t. The Gospels record several instances in which Jesus set aside time for prayer. Mark 1:35 says, “Before daybreak the next morning, Jesus got up and went out to an isolated place to pray” (nlt).

　　Luke 5:15–16 says, “But despite Jesus’ instructions, the report of his power spread even faster, and vast crowds came to hear him preach and to be healed of their diseases.But Jesus often withdrew to the wilderness for prayer” (nlt).

　　Jesus understood the power of prayer, and He wants us to understand it as well.Whenwefindourselvesintryingcircumstances,oftenthetemptationistostrike outatthose we hold responsible.OrtogetmadatGodforallowingthose circumstances to disruptour lives. Or towallow in self-pity.

　　But those are things the devil wants us to do because he knows how counterproductive they are. When we’re afflicted, when we’re suffering, or when we’re in trouble, prayer should be our first response, just as it was for Jesus. Why?Well, foronething,Godmay answer our prayer andremovetheproblemfrom our life. He may directly intervene in our circumstances. The Bible is filled with stories in which He did just that.

　　Even if He doesn’t intervene immediately, He still works in and through us when we take our needs to Him. Prayer affirms our dependence on Him. It puts us in a right relationship with Him. It also allows us to place our burdens in His hands. When we turn our requests over to God, we can breathe a sigh of relief, knowing that He will be doing the heavy lifting.Through prayer we also receive the grace we need to endure trouble and grow closer to God.

　　James5:13–15says,“Are any of you suffering hardships? You should pray. Are any of you happy? You should sing praises.Are any of you sick? You should call for the elders of the church to come and pray over you, anointing you with oil in the name of the Lord.Such a prayer offered in faith will heal the sick, and the Lord will make you well. And if you have committed any sins, you will be forgiven” (nlt). Thewordsufferingcouldbetranslated“introuble”or“indistress.”Isanyoneamongyouintrouble? Are you distressed?Then you should pray.

　　When the bottom drops out, when you feel as though you’re hanging by a thread, when circumstancesseem togrowworsebytheminute, pray.Praywhenyou’reafflicted.Pray whenyou’resick.Praywhenyouneed forgiveness.Praywhen specific needs occur. Pray for God’s will to be done.

　　Just like Jesus did in Gethsemane.

　　Reflection question: How can you make prayer a more integral part of your daily life?

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　　Greg Laurieis the pastor and founder of the Harvest churches in California and Hawaii and of Harvest Crusades. He is an evangelist, best-selling author, and movie producer. His latest film ‘Jesus Revolution,’ from Lionsgate and Kingdom Story Company, is now available on-demand worldwide.

　　For more relevant and biblical teaching from Pastor Greg Laurie, go to www.harvest.org

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