And the reason you don’t pray is because you don’t believe prayer helps.  You accomplish your goals.  If prayer worked, you’d do it.  Since prayer doesn’t work, why waste your time? And the reason prayer doesn’t work, deep down, is because your God is too small.  He can’t respond to your prayers because he’s not in control.  Instead, you’re in control, and you walk around with the weight of the world on your shoulders since it’s all up to you. 

Ben Young and Glenn Lucke, Common Grounds: Conversations about the Things That Matter Most

 James 5

13 Is any one of you in trouble? He should pray. Is anyone happy? Let him sing songs of praise. 14 Is any one of you sick? He should call the elders of the church to pray over him and anoint him with oil in the name of the Lord. 15 And the prayer offered in faith will make the sick person well; the Lord will raise him up. If he has sinned, he will be forgiven. 16 Therefore confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you may be healed. The prayer of a righteous man is powerful and effective.

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ht: image