¹⁷Elijah 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. ¹⁸Then he prayed again, and the sky poured rain and the earth produced its fruit.

Elijah had a reputation for being a man of prayer (see 1 Kings 17–19). In the only other reference to this prophet in the epistles, the apostle Paul presumes this familiarity when he writes, “[Do] you not know what the Scripture says in the passage about Elijah, how he pleads with God against Israel?” (Rom. 11:2). In praising this man of prayer as a motivational example, James follows his teaching on healing, confessing our sins, and praying for one another. We may have many applications for prayer in our lives, but in particular, we need to be intentional in our prayer for each other as believers as we are related to one another.

This is similar to praying for our governmental leaders, for that will benefit us in living a peaceful life:

First of all, then, I urge that entreaties and prayers, petitions and thanksgivings, be made on behalf of all men, for kings and all who are in authority, so that we may lead a tranquil and quiet life in all godliness and dignity. (1 Tim. 2:1–2)

So too, praying for each other with the impulse and persistence of Elijah will make for a much more peaceful fellowship among believers.

Looking at the example of the prophet, Elijah’s prayer spanned three and a half years. For a new believer, that may seem like an impossibly long time frame, but for a person who has lived righteously (as James outlines in his letter), the time is not so long. Who of us has not had to learn patience when praying for a family member, restoration of a sinner believer, or healing for an unrelenting illness? How long have we had to wait for an answer to prayer that we want right now? How many times have we exceeded Paul’s example of three-peated prayer concerning his thorn in the flesh (2 Cor. 12:7)?

All of us have struggled with waiting on answers to our prayers. That is normal. Though we tend to put prophets like Elijah on pedestals, they are still just mere human beings. Prayer is not for the super-religious; we all have the same needs for prayer, and we need to pray for each other. The only question is this: will we do it? Will we, will I, make it a priority? Do I value the fellowship of believers enough to bring every relationship need to God in prayer? Yes, prayer is hard; genuine faith will lead us to make this central in our lives.

Lord, I commit to stepping up praying for my fellow believers.