Who God Hears

“Again he prayed earnestly and heaven gave rain and the soil yielded its produce.” James 5:18

I think nearly everyone prays. Put a driver on an icy mountain road in the middle of a blizzard. Let the tires start to lose traction and her car slide precariously near the ridge where it drops off hundreds of feet. You are certain to hear her cry, “Help!” Who is she talking to? Even the faintest instinctually cries out.

Or, look over the shoulder of a high school senior taking a chemistry final. Instead of studying over the weekend he was up late playing Wii (Xbox 360, Play station; you pick). With dry and burning eyes he tries to quickly scan the semester’s chapters moments before the test. If ever there was silent prayer, it is when the student picks up his pencil to begin the test.

But this is not the sort of prayer James is speaking of. He encourages us to be like Elijah who prayed and no rain fell for three and half years; he prays again and the heavens once more give their rain. This is not the “Help me, I’m about to die” prayer we are probably familiar with. This is partnership with God.

The story about Elijah’s prayer is recorded in 1 Kings 18:42-46. I find it interesting that the content of his prayer is not recorded. It merely records that he did pray. And, it is not on his own initiative. Chapter 18 begins with the Lord telling Elijah to approach King Ahab and “I will send rain upon the land.” He is partnering with God, not just hoping to pray in a better harvest.

God had withheld rain from Israel because of her disobedience, and now God is bringing reprieve to show His gracious nature. Elijah’s prayer is a simple and faithful response to what God has said will happen. Elijah bends over toward the earth, puts his hands between his knees and then asks his servant to go look toward the sea.

The servant returns to say there is nothing on the horizon. In fact, he returns with the same message seven times. Elijah simply continues to send him back, looking for the promised rain. The seventh time the servant sees “a small cloud the size of a man’s hand coming up out of the sea.”

That was enough for Elijah. He sends the servant off to tell Ahab the rain is on its way. The heavens darken with clouds and wind and a heavy rain begins to fall. This is a far cry from our “Help me” prayers in the midst of a crisis.

Make no mistake; “Help me” is certainly appropriate in a time of need. But James is encouraging us to something greater; a prayer of faith that takes God’s will for His world into account. If we are honest, most of our prayers concern personal comfort. We need rain for the crops, healing from sickness, or a new job. We may also find ourselves asking God for the salvation of loved ones.

But what if God is asking us to look beyond our personal world to the greater things that occupy His heart? This is not to discount God’s interest in our personal lives, or even our comfort. But what if He wants us to take a little time and let our hearts be moved by the desires of God Himself?

We might be tempted to say, “That sort of prayer is well and good for spiritual giants. Pastors and people who have memorized the Bible; they get to pray the big stuff. As for me, I’m just not qualified.” James addresses that when he says, “Elijah was a man of similar weakness with us.” In fact, we find Elijah battling a major bout of depression immediately following this prayer episode.

What if faith is not about trying to work up more “believingness”? You know, 80% faith versus 20% doubt will get me more results than 70% faith and 30% doubt. What if faith is more about aligning myself with God’s intentions? That seems to be the case with Elijah.

We don’t see him trying to stir up more ability to believe the rain will fall. He prays based on what God said! Too many people try to get their “faith level” high enough so they can pray away sickness or pray in finances. What if we took the time to say, “God, what is on Your heart? Let me pray in faith for that!” Do we not believe that the other “needs” would be provided if our prayers were more about a personal partnership with God?

Spend some time asking yourself what moves God’s heart, and then begin to pray along those lines. He may inspire one person to pray about world peace and another about human trafficking. But, taking the time to hear God’s heart allows us to truly pray in faith, aligning ourselves with God’s love for His world.

If anything, this passage reminds us that God hears folks just like us!