James 5:16
Confess your faults one to another, and pray one for another, that ye may be healed. The effectual fervent prayer of a righteous man availeth much.

Why do we confess our faults to one another?  So we can have the inside scoop and gossip about what is going on?  So we can sympathize with someone?  So we can unburden ourselves and say what it is on our minds?  No, but it is so that we can pray for each other.  We can bring difficult situations before the Lord and ask for healing from the brokenness caused by sin, for help in the struggles people are facing, for peace amidst the burdens that overwhelm our hearts.

Sometimes it seems like we underestimate the importance of prayer.  Sometimes when we feel helpless, it can seem like just praying about something is not enough.  But it’s no small thing to bring our petitions before Almighty God.  It is not an ineffective “sit back and do nothing” approach to dealing with problems in our lives.  Because when we pray, we invite God’s power to work in the situation, His mercy and grace to be upon it, and His will to be done.

Prayer is not a last-ditch effort to make something happen, but may it be our first response when others share their struggles with us.  May we lift one another to the Lord out of love and compassion and seek God’s intervention.  When we are willing to share our burdens and join in prayer together, it unites us as the family that we are as believers in Christ.  We need to be a support system for each other.  The world isn’t going to help us when we find ourselves at a complete loss.  The world has no power to intervene.  We need God, and we need to seek Him in prayer for each other.

May we depend on the power of prayer.  Let’s not take it lightly, but be faithful to pray for one another.  May we have a heart of faith behind our prayers that trusts God to work and believes He can and will do what is best.  We have the freedom to go to God Himself with anything that we need to talk about.  He is big enough to handle anything we bring before Him.  So may we be someone whom others can trust to pray for them when they are in need of help.