PRAYER

“Faith without Works is dead,” observes the writer of the epistle of James (2: 14 - 17). I think this comment is especially true with reference to prayer. We as Christians are often admonished to pray for all kinds of things – peace, healing, comfort, reform and so forth. But I wonder if a legitimate prayer might not carry with it a responsibility for some accompanying activity on my part as the one praying. Does not a prayer for someone’s healing require that I do something myself to promote that healing – a card, a visit, a gift, a donation to medical research, etc.? A prayer to end the violence in our country implies a commitment to be a peacemaker in my casual conversations as well as in my behaviors. Perhaps we do not even have the right to pray unless we can back it up with something tangible.