James 5:14-15 New International Reader's Version [1]

¹⁴Is anyone among you sick? Then that person should send for the elders of the church to pray over them. They should ask the elders to anoint them with olive oil in the name of the Lord. ¹⁵The prayer offered by those who have faith will make the sick person well. The Lord will heal them. If they have sinned, they will be forgiven.

Operation game piece: Tweezers to represent taking care of the entire body.

Message

God gave us life. God protects and supports our life every moment of every day. So even when we are sick, we should pray to God to heal us and make us strong again.

How does God heal us? (Allow children to answer.) There are many ways that God can heal. Have you ever had a cut that turns to a scab and then turns to new skin, and the cut is gone? God did that. God gives us medicines and doctors and nurses who can provide us with those medicines. God gives us other Christians to pray for us as well. No matter how we are healed, we should always give thanks to God.

Sometimes sick people don’t get better. That doesn’t mean that they didn’t have enough faith or that people didn’t pray hard enough. Whether we are sick or healthy, we know that God’s love will never let us go.

For the last few weeks, we have learned from both James’s letter in the New Testament and from the board game Operation. We have learned about hands, feet, tongues, and hearts. We have also learned about needing to slow down before we speak or get angry. We have learned that our tongues are very small but can do a lot of good. We have learned that we are to be the hands and feet of Christ to show our neighbors in this world how much they matter to God. We have learned that God’s love can heal a hurting heart; and if we live life the way God wants us to, we will grow to be wise people.

The game pieces of the game Operation also remind us of those things. Today, as we conclude our series on James’ letter, he reminds us that we all should pray for one another. In the game of Operation, we are the “doctors” or “surgeons” trying to remove the game pieces. We need a steady hand. We need patience. We need a sense of peace. We use the tweezers to remove the game pieces when it is our turn to do so. If we think about it, the entire game of Operation is designed to help someone else, isn’t it? We are helping “Cavity Sam,” which is what James wants us to remember in this final verses of his letter. Pray for one another. If someone is sick, pray for that person. If we are a follower of Jesus, we should do something about it to show others exactly who we are. We are children of God. And Children of God pray for those who are sick.

(If you are worshiping in person, mention someone in your congregation who is sick. Perhaps find someone who has just recovered in recent weeks or is hurting because they have experienced loss in recent weeks. Ask permission to possibly have children lay hands on them and pray over them or invite all in attendance to extend their hands toward them as you pray over them. If no one is sick, say a general prayer for the health of the entire congregation).

Let’s do that now. Let’s pray over (name of person(s)) as they need healing.

Prayer

Lord of life, thank you for healthy bodies. Hear us when we pray for those who are sick among us. Hear us when we pray for those who are too sick to be with us. Hear us especially for (name) as we lay hands upon them. Provide your healing touch to them as well. Heal them and make them well again. Amen.