James

James is one of my favorite books of the bible. Well, I have lots of favorites, but James stands out as kind of blunt. He doesn't go around the bend to make a point. He says that faith without deeds is dead. Dead. As if he is saying, "Did I stutter? You tell me you have faith, I will show it". You want wisdom, ask for it. Don't just listen to the word, do it. You can't praise God and curse someone else, that should not be happening. I have an old commentary titled "Jewels from James", and that is the way I feel about this book, its full of treasures, plain-spoken, in your face gems. One section stands out today.

"Is anyone among you in trouble? Let them pray. Is anyone happy? Let them sing songs of praise. Is anyone among you sick? 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. 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." James 5:13-17

If you have been in church for any amount of time, this has probably come up. This one bit got me, "confess your sins to each other". Let's back up, right before that we are reading about the healing of those who are sick, and what we should do if we are sick. I have been a part of anointings with oil, seen this type of prayer. James adds in the healing of the body with the healing of the spirit by forgiveness of sin. I remember when I first read it, I wondered why he would make that connection. I believe James is referring to all sickness, the physical type and the sin type. Both are in need of healing. So, one way to look at confessing your sin is to the person being healed, that if you are sick, confess your sins, and pray so that you may be healed.

I also look at this from the perspective of the healer, the one who is doing the praying for the healing. That through our confession to each other, our prayers for each other, healings are occurring, both for us and others. The idea is that confession is good for both the one being healed and the one praying for healing. We are praying for each other while we are being prayed for, its a cycle so to speak. The healing physically and spiritually all have this connection with confession and mutual prayers. Like the family that we have at Celebration, or on the smaller level with iYOUth.

I think what we saw yesterday, at Cardboard Testimony Sunday, was seeing part of James in action. We saw it continue with fireside testimony iYOUth as well. By opening ourselves up, even just to hold a sign of what God has done, we are letting people know that we have been weak, are still weak, in need of God and each other. How many of us may pray more for someone now that they held a sign with just a hint of what they go through? I think of the personal testimonies I heard yesterday, and how that build connection even more than before. You see that others struggle and are in need of healing as well as you are. You can't help but feel connection, you can't help but want to pray more for them. We aren't so different, and its our sharing that lets us know that. That is why we left Sunday feeling a bit closer to one another. We opened ourselves up to each other, to give Glory to what God has done, and to share in our needs. This is what family is about.