Daily Devotional for Saturday, March 30

The Example of Prayer

“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,” James 5:16.

When Hudson Taylor was sailing to China to begin his missionary work, his ship was in great danger. The wind had died, and the current was carrying them toward sunken reefs which were close to islands inhabited by cannibals who were so close they could see them building fires on the shore. In his journal, Taylor recorded what happened next: “The Captain said to me, ‘Well, we have done everything that can be done.’ A thought occurred to me, and I replied, ‘No, there is one thing we have not done yet. Four of us on board are Christians. Let us each retire to his own cabin, and in agreed prayer ask the Lord to give us immediately a breeze.’ ”

Within minutes the wind began to blow, and it carried them safely past the reefs. Taylor wrote: “Thus God encouraged me ere landing on China’s shores to bring every variety of need to Him in prayer, and to expect that He would honour the name of the Lord Jesus and give the help each emergency required.” (Source: The Works of J. Hudson Taylor, Hudson Taylor.)

Prayer may very well be the most powerful tool in the Christian’s arsenal. Yet, I fear it may also be the most neglected and rusted tool. Scripture has revealed to us, along with the testimonies of many faithful Christians, that prayer can move the hand of God in our lives like nothing else can.

FINAL THOUGHT
Never minimize the power of a faithful prayer habit in your daily life.

Steven Ridings