James 5:16 Confess your trespasses to one another, and pray for one another, that you may be healed. The effective, fervent prayer of a righteous man avails much.

In this verse we have an illustration of the necessary heart condition and the actions that the individual needs to take to heal. Notice that the individual has to take an action before any healing can take place.

It is much like the story of the man with the withered hand (Mark 3:1-6; Luke 6:6-11). He had to stretch it out before it could be healed. The faith of the man had to be exercised and appropriated before the healing could take place. He first had to overcome what he felt or saw, and second, he had to believe Jesus was greater than the current set of circumstances that he found himself in.

This individual needs to cry out to God and agree with God that he has transgressed. Then he needs to confess to another individual that he has sinned. He needs to pray with them, pray for them, and thank God that he has them in his life. He needs to ask God for his healing and believe that he will receive it.

Lastly, he needs to believe that the prayer offered up in faith will bring about the desired healing being requested and that the prayers of the righteous will bring about great results. These prayers are not to be a one-time event but are to be frequent and consistent. They are to be offered up with the heart, the mind-set, and attitude that are described in Matthew 7:7-8. We are to believe that God hears us, and we are to ask according to His will. When we do, we will have what we petition. We have His Word on it (1 John 5:14-15).

There is an undiscovered blessing of doing and completing this principle. It is a fact that we now will have confidants who love and care for us in a way that we have never had nor experienced before. They will bring the Word of God to us in a way that will bring healing for our hearts and souls. They will encourage and uplift us in such a way as to cause us to aspire to new heights in faith that we couldn’t have ever imagined. They will encourage, rebuke, correct, and train us in the ways of the LORD. We will, in turn, desire to learn this new way of living and will respond to them, as well as the LORD, with obedience. We will build confidence in their counsel and will learn to compare what counsel is given with the Word of God. We will grow in the habit of using the Word and in our dependence upon it for everyday situations and circumstances. We will learn to take in, as well as to give away. We will learn to grow in the area of being served, as well as the importance of serving others. We will become a vessel and a source for living water to be poured out of, as well as knowing where the source of living water comes from. We will have a joyful mouth and an obedient ear. We will be able to answer in season, as well as out of season. We will have confidence and boldness in the counsel that we give. (Proverbs 15:23; Proverbs 25:11-12)