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The Bible ASSURES us that “the effectual fervent prayer of a righteous man availeth much” ( James 5:16 ). Effectual prayer is summed up by Christ Jesus when he said that knowing the truth would make us free (see John 8:32 ).

Desperate circumstances, strained relationships, perilous events, even physical beatings and imprisonment—the Apostle Paul knew them all. In a letter to the Christian church at Corinth he recounts his sufferings for Christ, then makes a startling statement: “I take pleasure in infirmities, in reproaches, in necessities, in persecutions, in distresses for Christ’s sake: for when I am weak, then am I strong” ( II Corinthians 12:10 ).

One of the major issues that humanity is trying to deal with is the fear of climate change and its effect on the environment. Understandably, there is a great deal of concern about this issue, and a lot of human effort is going into combating climate change physically and chemically.

One evening I was driving home from work and got pulled over for speeding. While I was waiting for the police officer to give me a ticket, I prayed.

When my husband and I moved to Sacramento, California, from Carson City, Nevada, in 2002, I was shocked at the number of homeless people within the capital city. I decided to pray about how I could help.

One of the most beautiful illustrations in Scripture appears in the last chapter of Revelation: “And he shewed me a pure river of water of life, clear as crystal, proceeding out of the throne of God and of the Lamb” ( 22:1 ). Water is referred to numerous times in the Bible as a symbol for the Word of God (see, for example, Isaiah 55:10, 11 ), so this “pure river” is evidently pouring forth from the throne (a representation of God’s all-power) to cleanse and heal us, and further still, to teach us knowledge of the living God and His Christ—and of our inseparable relationship to God as His loved sons and daughters.

While we may feel the need to fix problems in our life, we can relinquish personal control and understand and experience God’s ever-present harmony.

In the Christian Science textbook, Science and Health with Key to the Scriptures, Mary Baker Eddy explains, “It is only by acknowledging the supremacy of Spirit, which annuls the claims of matter, that mortals can lay off mortality and find the indissoluble spiritual link which establishes man forever in the divine likeness, inseparable from his creator” ( p. 491 ).

Can we actually hear God’s voice? We read in the Bible how God communicated directly to Moses, Abraham, David, and the prophets. Christian healer Mary Baker Eddy said we can hear God, too.

In the book of Acts we read, “And at midnight Paul and Silas prayed, and sang praises unto God: and the prisoners heard them” ( 16:25 ). Paul and Silas had been beaten and thrown in prison, and had their feet bound in the stocks, and yet they continued to glorify God in songs and prayer.