Is anyone among you suffering? Let him pray. Is anyone cheerful? Let him sing praise.
James 5:13
There is a measure of difficulty in life that presses us to pray. We pray when we don’t know what to do, or when we are concerned or fearful about a situation or a loved one or finances. We pray when we don’t know how we are going to pay bills. We pray when we are in conflict with others. In the case of the Church in the time of James, we can add persecution to this list as well.* James tells us to pray when suffering comes. When we pray, what is it that we are doing?
The Greek word for “pray” used in verse 13 tells is two things: 1) it’s the most general term for prayer used in the Greek; it means simply, “talking to God,” and 2) its tense implies a continuous “all the time” instruction.*
When life is tough and feels like suffering, we are to talk to God about it and keep talking to Him about it. The lingering, lengthy affect of trials sometimes make an ongoing conversation with God come naturally, but there is an additional invitation in this command to pray. The invitation, aligning to the rest of the letter of James, is to persevere - praying always.
When we turn to God to talk to Him during difficult times, the danger can be to attempt to kill our emotions in the name of “pressing on,” or to turn our emotions against God and others because we don’t understand.* The gift of prayer has great potential for us to process our pain well.
David Nystrom sums up the struggle well by saying,
James is well aware that life, and perhaps especially the Christian life, is one in which we experience trouble—and in such a way that we may feel tempted to call the goodness of God and of our fellow human beings into question. In such times James advocates neither anger nor stoic resignation, for the former poisons the spirit and the latter dulls the mind. Instead, he advocates prayer. It is a response that allows us to be active and positive and keeps us in communication with God.
James is aware of how difficult life is for us, and because of that, we know that God is aware.
But what of good times? James permissions us to adjust our approach to the seasons of life. When we are feeling cheerful, we are to praise. This word in the Greek implies “psalm.”* Sing to God!
I have felt condemnation at times that the passion for God in my pain looks differently than my passion for Him in my cheer. James helps us to avoid that unnecessary and ungodly condemnation. Whether times grieve us or times bring us cheer, the appropriate response is to turn to God in honesty.* The invitation to persevere includes a continuous turning to God no matter the season or situation, pleasant or otherwise.
Sing a song to God when appropriate. Talk to God always. He is for us.
Today, take a step.
Maybe today the one step God wants you to take is to be honest with God about where you are at. Perhaps God would ask you to sing Him a song or chat about life. Maybe God wants you to repent for allowing your emotions to accuse Him and others wrongfully. Perhaps today God wants you to take a step closer to Him.
Whatever the step, ask God to direct it. Take a moment to take that step. Invite Him to speak. He will.
Life is a long road. Walk it with Jesus.
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*Blomberg, C. L., & Kamell, M. J. (2008). James (Vol. 16, pp. 241–242). Zondervan.
Guthrie, G. H. (2006). James. In T. Longman III & D. E. Garland (Eds.), The Expositor’s Bible Commentary: Hebrews–Revelation (Revised Edition) (Vol. 13, pp. 269–270). Zondervan.
Stulac, G. M. (1993). James (Jas 5:13–14). IVP Academic.
Moo, D. J. (2021). The Letter of James (D. A. Carson, Ed.; Second Edition, pp. 298–300). William B. Eerdmans Publishing Company.
Nystrom, D. P. (1997). James (pp. 303–304). Zondervan Publishing House.
Martin, R. P. (1988). James (Vol. 48, pp. 205–206). Word, Incorporated.