It seems to me that over the course of the past decade or so, the media has revealed a lot about Christians getting caught doing very un-Jesus-like things. And it hurts.

It hurts to reflect on the fact that someone who loves Jesus got caught up in something that breaks Jesus’ heart. It hurts to know that people who were on the receiving end of those choices are in need of serious help and healing now. It hurts to fight off questions internally about the people we thought they were and the things we thought they stood for. It hurts to wonder why they didn’t reach out for help before temptation turned into action.

And it hurts to realize that I’m just as guilty every single time I think a jealous thought, talk behind my friend’s back, or fail to take my spouse’s words and actions in the kindest possible way.

Is your heart aching about this too? Does it leave you wondering what on earth is going on? Does it make you desperate for a solution?

I recently discovered that God gave James, Jesus’ brother, some pretty powerful stuff to say about all this:

Make this your common practice: Confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you can live together whole and healed. The prayer of a person living right with God is something powerful to be reckoned with. Elijah, for instance, human just like us, prayed hard that it wouldn’t rain, and it didn’t—not a drop for three and a half years. Then he prayed that it would rain, and it did. The showers came and everything started growing again.

 My dear friends, if you know people who have wandered off from God’s truth, don’t write them off. Go after them. Get them back and you will have rescued precious lives from destruction and prevented an epidemic of wandering away from God. (James 5:16-20 MSG)

James says to make these things your common practice:

1. Confess your sins to each other.
2. Pray for each other.
3. If you know someone has wandered, go after them.

This sounds a lot like a concept I learned in my youth group a long time ago. We called it “accountability partners.” We were each supposed to choose someone we trusted to pray for and to share our struggles and celebrations with regularly. It also reminds me of a summer camp concept called the “buddy system.” When swim time came, we had to choose a buddy and stay within arm’s length of that buddy the whole time we were in the water. That way if we got hurt or were in danger, the buddy could let the lifeguard know right away.

Do you have someone whom you feel comfortable confessing sins to?

Do you have someone whom you pray with and for?

Do you have someone in your life who will go after you if you start to wander off? Someone who will immediately let our Lifeguard, Jesus, know as soon as they see you in danger?

Are you that someone for a person in your life?

I’m going to throw a challenge out to anyone reading this, including myself. Before you go to bed tonight, pick someone you trust whom you know loves Jesus and text them this message. (I mean it. You can copy/paste it and hit “send.”)

Hey, I need someone in my life I can be honest with about my struggles and who will pray with/for me. Will you be that someone? (I want to be that someone for you too.)

James said that the prayer of a person living right with God is something powerful to be reckoned with. He gave the example of Elijah’s prayers being enough to stop the rain for three years.

Let’s stop this rain together, in Jesus’ mighty name.