In the wake of the tragedies plaguing our nation, there has been an overwhelming amount of “thoughts and prayers” expressed. As our death tolls and crime rates continue to climb, it seems that the sincerity of our condolences continues to decrease. We send our prayers to the families of victims in Orlando and Oakland, but what are we doing about it? This is not a continuation of our national gun control debate: this is a call for Christians to take action. No matter where we each fall politically, we need action to be taken. Prayers are not enough.
I believe in the power of prayer, but I also believe in the necessity of action. God provides, but He uses people to do so. Without people being willing to take action there would be no ends achieved. While the Lord is entirely capable of providing without using others, He does not always do so. This is clear by just opening up a Bible.
The Bible is not a collection of stories in which God did everything without using faithful individuals. Moses did not say “Hey, God. You know what would be great? If you would just snap your fingers and free the Israelites,” while he ate manna in the background. He prayed to the Lord, he went to the Pharaoh and he took action.
David did not look at Goliath, send some thoughts and prayers his way and walk away as he fell. He relied on the Lord and did what he had to in obedience to defeat the giant.
Esther did not just pray that the Lord would protect Mordecai and the Jewish people. She took action and approached the king, even though she put her life at risk.
Of course, there are a fair share of prayer reliance stories within the Bible, from Abraham and Sarah having children at such an old age to Daniel surviving in the lions’ den to the works of the disciples on behalf of the Lord in the New Testament. These accounts show that prayer is powerful.
James 5:16b-18 says
“The effective prayer of a righteous man can accomplish much. Elijah was a man with a nature like ours, and he prayed earnestly that it would not rain, and it did not rain on the earth for three years and six months. Then he prayed again, and the sky poured rain and the earth produced its fruit.”
Earlier in the same book, in James 2:14-17, it says,
“What use is it, my brethren, if someone says he has faith but he has no works? Can that faith save him? If a brother or sister is without clothing and is in need of daily food, and one of you says to them, ‘Go in peace, be warmed and filled,’ and yet you do not give them what is necessary for their body, what use is that? Even so faith, if it has no works, is dead being by itself.”
Elijah’s prayers were effective because his faith was. He had no control over the rain, and no action he could do himself could change the weather. But he was faithful and his actions reflected that. Our faith may be great, but if our actions do nothing to show that faith, then we are not living it. If our actions do not reflect Christ, we are not being faithful to Him and who He has called us to be. The example James uses is spot on. How can we tell people to be okay, or that the situation will get better, then not do what we can to help them? Our words may be full of meaning, but our actions are nonexistent. Faith is dead without works, and our works should not concern only ourselves.
Prayer without action is empty. If you claim to care, if you claim to want to help, if you claim your prayers are sincere, then how can you continue with your daily life without some type of change after prayer?
If you asked the Lord to help with an addiction to smoking, you would not pray and then go out and buy another pack of cigarettes. You would take steps to overcome your addiction, not sit idly by and hope it stops one day. If you prayed for success in finding a job you wouldn’t sit on your couch and watch Netflix all day, hoping to get a phone call offering you the perfect career opportunity. You would go out and look for a job, asking for guidance along the way. So why is it that when we pray for the homeless in our cities, or for the children in our foster system or the victims of senseless violence, we stop at prayer? We are willing to take action when our prayers are directed towards ourselves but rarely when they concern others, especially those we do not know. We are called to be the light of the world, to shine as lights for Christ to direct those in the darkness of the world to the Lord's glory. It is through our actions that people are able to see the glory of God, not through our prayers and Facebook posts.
When tragedy strikes, it is not enough to pray. It is not enough to think about the situation. It is not enough to hope for change. Change comes when people take action; change comes when individuals step up to show the way. Shouldn’t Christians, acting in obedience and faith, be leading the charge?
