1. Authentic Faith Series – The Book of James

2. “Pray when you are cheerful,” James 5:13
Is anyone among you suffering? He must pray. Is anyone joyful? He is to sing praises [to God].

3. As a believer, how do you pray cheerfully to God?
Acknowledge who God is
Acknowledge what God is able to do
(In Him we live, move and we have our being Acts 17:28)

4. How to joyfully or cheerfully praise God?
We are to praise God through:
• Prayers
• Songs (Praise and worship)
• Songs with music instruments /Clapping / dancing and sometimes with shouts of joy

5. When do you cheerfully praise God?
Philippians 4: Rejoice in the Lord always. I will say it again: Rejoice! 5 Let your gentleness be evident to all. The Lord is near. 6 Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. 7 And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.

6. As faithful Christians, we have to give praise and thanksgiving to God in every situation:
1. In good and bad times
2. In sickness and good health
3. In temptations; tribulation; persecution; in bondage / freedom

7. Examples from the Bible
1. In Exodus 15:1- 18 the Israelites successfully crossed the Red Sea
2. In 2 Samuel 6: King David danced with might
3. In the book of Psalms King David gave thanksgiving prayers to God; Psalm 121

8. In Luke 19:37 – 40, Jesus’ triumphal entry into Jerusalem riding on a donkey:
37 When Jesus came near the place where the road goes down the Mount of Olives, the whole crowd of disciples began joyfully to praise God in loud voices for all the miracles they had seen:
38“Blessed is the king who comes in the name of the Lord!” “Peace in heaven and glory in the highest!”
Some of the Pharisees in the crowd said to Jesus, “Teacher, rebuke your disciples!”
“I tell you,” He replied, “if they keep quiet, the stones will cry out.”

9. Conclusion:
1 I lift up my eyes to the mountains— where does my help come from? 2 My help comes from the Lord, the Maker of heaven and earth. 3 He will not let your foot slip— He who watches over you will not slumber; 4 indeed, He who watches over Israel will neither slumber nor sleep 5 The Lord watches over you— the Lord is your shade at your right hand; 6 the sun will not harm you by day, nor the moon by night.

10. 7 The Lord will keep you from all harm— He will watch over your life;
8 the Lord will watch over your coming and going both now and forevermore.