Arguably, James was an authority on prayer. He was known to have prayed so much and so long on his knees until he developed calluses. Expectedly, such a man would have one or two counsels to give about prayer. Interestingly, he touched on prayer in chapters one, four, and five of his epistle. Reading through his writings, we note two things that can render prayer an unrewarding exercise. In chapter four, he stressed that prayers made just to consume the results on our selfish passion have no guarantee. That would suggest that prayer is not designed to indulge our every whim. It is a solemn duty to help people align with the will of God and receive things that will bring Him glory.

When we pray, it must be with great confidence, bearing in mind Romans 8:32. If God gave us Jesus, He will freely give us all other things as an addition.

In chapters one and five, he touched on the importance of faith when we are dealing with prayer. In chapter five, it is the prayer of faith that will heal the sick. In our text, He wrote that those who need wisdom should ask God for it in prayers. I believe this applies to every other need as well. The caveat, however, is that in asking, faith must be applied. Asking God for a thing and doubting at the same time reduces the potency of the prayer. Being double-minded makes one look like the waves of the sea being turned every side. Such an attitude robs one of the dividends of praying. When we pray, it must be with great confidence, bearing in mind Romans 8:32. If God gave us Jesus, He will freely give us all other things as an addition. Again, if God raised Jesus from the dead, then He can raise us from any valley of despair to a height of glory.