The Grands Letter

Dear Grands,

James 5:14-20, “Is anyone among you sick? Then he must call for the elders of the church and they are to pray over him, anointing him with oil in the name of the Lord;
15 and the prayer offered in faith will restore the one who is sick, and the Lord will raise him up, and if he has committed sins, they will be forgiven him.
16 Therefore, confess your sins to one another, and pray for one another so that you may be healed. The effective prayer of a righteous man can accomplish much.
17 Elijah was a man with a nature like ours, and he prayed earnestly that it would not rain, and it did not rain on the earth for three years and six months.
18 Then he prayed again, and the sky poured rain and the earth produced its fruit.
19 My brethren, if any among you strays from the truth and one turns him back,
20 let him know that he who turns a sinner from the error of his way will save his soul from death and will cover a multitude of sins.

I love football, yet I was not watching when Damar Hamlin of the Buffalo Bills
collapsed this week on the field. Damar had been hit by the football while attempting to catch a pass.

As I write, Hamlin is alive in hospital and receiving competent treatment for his injury. I have prayed for him and invite you to pray for him also.

What grabbed my attention was that members of both teams knelt on the field
in what was a joint time of prayer for their teammate. That is not to say that I was surprised. I have known former NFL players who were true, strong believers in
the LORD and in prayer. It was rather to say that I rejoiced to see that thoughts
of the LORD were at that moment in the players’ hearts and minds.

Truth be told, we are all like that. When disaster occurs, we immediately seek the
LORD for help and for blessing. Our passage above gives us clear instruction regarding prayer. There are several “directives” in the passage (calling for the elders; anointing the sick with oil), but none is more telling than the phrase, “the prayer of faith.”

Admittedly and embarrassingly, I confess to having prayed while thinking, “Will He really do this?” Such is hardly a “prayer of faith.”

I know better now; and it’s sometimes actually scary to pray, knowing that the
LORD is going to answer, despite what all appears to operate against His answer.
Don’t let Satan discourage you! Just ask the LORD in pure faith. Let Him speak
for Himself. It’s “the prayer offered in faith (that) will restore the one who is sick.”
Trust and obey.

Heartily in Christ Jesus,

(Dado III)

correct this, as we continue to publish daily. Your prayers are deeply appreciated.

Gene L. Jeffries, Th.D.
Springdale, Arkansas 72764
United States of America

“We never know that Christ is all we need until He becomes all that we have.” – Corrie ten Boom