Why do Christians believe in prayer? 

It seems like when bad things happen, Christians always respond with "I will be praying for you." Why is that? What can the prayers of a simple man or woman do for someone in need?

The Bible says this:

James 5:16:  Therefore, confess your sins to one another and pray for one another, that you may be healed. The prayer of a righteous person has great power as it is working.

1 John 5:14-15:  And this is the confidence that we have toward him, that if we ask anything according to his will he hears us. And if we know that he hears us in whatever we ask, we know that we have the requests that we have asked of him.

But then, how come when we pray for someone to be healed, there are times they don't get healed? 

Psalm 115:3:  Our God is in the heavens; he does all that he pleases.

Job 42:2:  “I know that you can do all things, and that no purpose of yours can be thwarted.

So we are stuck in this place of "God, help me with this thing" yet also "God, I know you do as you please." Yet, even in that place of pain and unanswered prayers, we must trust God. For His promises are true. He loved us before the creation of the world. He has a plan for our lives that is special. He doesn't abandon us. And our physical life is temporary but our life after death is eternal. We must praise God in all things, continue to have faith in Him, and know that even in unanswered prayers that God loves us and wants us to draw near to Him.

Proverbs 3:5:  Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and do not lean on your own understanding.

Jeremiah 17:7-8:  “Blessed is the man who trusts in the Lord, whose trust is the Lord. He is like a tree planted by water, that sends out its roots by the stream, and does not fear when heat comes, for its leaves remain green, and is not anxious in the year of drought, for it does not cease to bear fruit.”

If you have any life situations that need prayer from a group of Christians, please click on the button on the screen to submit your prayer request. It would be our honor to pray to God on your behalf.