7 Prayers That Work

I read James 5:16 today. I think I should follow its commands. It's a good, albeit humbling, cleansing method. "Therefore confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you may be healed. The prayer of a righteous person is powerful and effective."  I am proud : I care what people think and want them to respect and like me. I want to think I'm better than other people at the things I value. I am petty : I worry and obsess over things that don't really matter in life. I am unforgiving:  I sometimes harbor secret resentment toward people who have wronged me. I cover it up by being nice to them, but deep down, I probably don't want them to prosper. I am selfish: I think of my own needs and desires first. Even when I serve people, I am often aware of what I'm "giving up." This is still being self-oriented. I am forgetful : I focus on the present, to the detriment of the past and all God has already done for me. I am faith...

Dear Holy God, You feel the ache I'm feeling. You know the weight and sorrow of sin, even another person's sin, especially when it affects me. Shame rolls in like a tidal wave, wave after wave, hitting the shores of my soul. I want to cower and cover up my sins and the sins of the people I love. I chafe under conviction (the very thing that seeks to release me)-- while I protect my shame (the very thing that keeps me in bondage). Oh, Father, give me the courage to welcome conviction for my sin and the tenacity to fight the shame. Your Spirit convicts, but Your enemy shames, because he knows that shame will make me hide in the shadows, hide from the body of Christ, and hide from You. Lord, make us freedom-seekers! Give us the desire to live freely in Your convicting presence, in the holy of holies, where our souls are laid bare before You. Help us confess our faults to one another and pray for one another so that we will be healed! There is no...