0812 RESPONDING TO TROUBLE

AUGUST 12 = JAMES 5

RESPONDING TO TROUBLE

James is a practical book, filled with brief instructions on what to do, not just what to think or believe. It’s a lot like the book of Proverbs in that sense. Today we find in just four verses a great example of how James can quickly jump from one thing to another, giving quick pieces of advice to believers on what to do in different situations. Let’s delve into it.

“Is anyone among you in trouble? 

The trouble might be financial. Or legal. Or Mom and Dad found out about you-know-what. Perhaps some relationship has gone bad, or you have lost a job, or you lost your keys, or there is a big test coming up. Did you do something wrong, or was something wrong done to you? The list could be long as to what “in trouble” means for you. But there is a solution to any of it, and we would do well to let our default mode be to jump immediately to this, no matter what the trouble was:

Let them pray. 

Does Jesus care? Oh, yes, he cares! Is your trouble an inconvenience to God that he should resist us. God is not like a human, troubled that we come to him and waste his time. So we pray. We pray for deliverance. We pray for peace. We pray for God’s will to be done. Maybe we simply recite the Lord’s Prayer (Our Father) or pray the rosary. Maybe we are very specific and we ask God for an answer. And maybe we don’t know what to say and we sit in silence, knowing that he is and is willing to help. No matter what, we take our burden to the Lord and leave it there.

What about if you are not in trouble? What’s next?

Is anyone happy? 

Happy is a nice problem to have! Things are good, my relationships are stable, my favorite song is running in my head, I’m with my friends, I am free from some debt I had been in. All is well. What do I do now, James?

Let them sing songs of praise. 

This is fantastic! Music can speak more strongly than words alone can. And songs of praise to God are especially helpful in letting God be the center of my joy. So today is the day to learn some songs of praise, so that I will have them at the ready. Notice he says “songs” not just “song.” We’re talking about a season of thanks, along with gratefulness for the songs themselves that speak what your heart wants to say to the Lord.

Is anyone among you sick? 

Oh, I know the answer to this! “Go to the doctor!” Take your medicine. We think of medical science as our savior, and it has become our instant default for what to do when we are sick. But here’s what James says to do:

“Let them call the elders of the church to pray over them and anoint them with oil in the name of the Lord. And the prayer offered in faith will make the sick person well; the Lord will raise them up. If they have sinned, they will be forgiven.

Elders and prayer and oil and faith open up the healing of God. And when that happens, who is glorified? Is it medicine? Or are we thanking our Creator for healing us? Can we do both/and?

Wait a second! What’s with this “if they have sinned” thing? Could God ever make someone sick in order to bring them to repentance? James did not exactly tell us to confess and repent, but I guess that was implied by the last sentence, saying that they will be forgiven.

Just the other day, a dear friend had heard that I had fallen and been injured. He got some olive oil in a cup and walked to my house and said he wanted to pray for me. He also had a recent medical event, so I offered to do the same for him. It was a beautiful and touching time. I started by saying, “If we’re going to pray, then let me start by confessing my sins.” The next verse is why I said that.

“Therefore confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you may be healed. The prayer of a righteous person is powerful and effective.”

So I confessed, and he anointed and prayed. Then we changed roles. And since we are both righteous (we are, aren’t we?), our prayers were powerful and effective. This is biblical practice, and we would do well to have it be our first response to any sickness. Amen.