Prayer By AL SANDERS
We have all seen the interesting and delightful cartoons known as "Peanuts." They certainly have a great deal of adult philosophy and psychology behind them. One that readily comes to mind is of little Lucy. She has her psychiatric stand all set up — a consultation for five cents. The sign is out which de clares that the doctor is "In." The next panel shows Snoopy, the dog, coming in and sitting down on the patient's stool. The friendly little canine Says absolutely nothing. He just looks somewhat bewildered with life in general. Picture after picture shows him just sitting there with nothing happening. Then with the next to last scene, he finally gets up and leaves. As the comic strip closes, Lucy comments rather frustrated and dejected, "Well, what can you do when the patient won't say anything?" I wonder if this is not a very realistic and yet tragic picture of our lives. Without question the Lord could easily feel this way about us, too. When you get right down to it, the Great Physician, the wise Doctor of our souls, is always in. It does not even cost
five cents to come to Him for help and counsel. The problem is that we go through life virtually bewil dered, saying nothing but expect ing that something great is going to happen. Hebrews 4:16 declares, "Let us therefore come boldly unto the throne of grace, that we may ob tain mercy, and find grace to help in time of need." Certainly, God has the help we so desperately must have in order to achieve our goals and live victoriously in all of our experiences. James 5:16 gives us some of the most important words on this sub ject. There are none better to chal lenge our hearts. In the last part of that verse we find the words, "the effectual fervent prayer of a righteous man availeth much." Simply stated, we might say, "Pray ers which are to be effectual are prayers that effect results." After all, why bother to pray if nothing is going to happen? There is noth ing quite so disparaging as those who talk eloquently about prayer and who actually do so little of it. Notice. that the intercession is to be by a "righteous man." From
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