"Faith works" vs "Dead works"

The following scripture has been brought to my attention twice since yesterday:

James 2:20
But do you want to know, O foolish man, that faith without works is dead.

I paused on this scripture because I have heard it taught in many different ways.  I don't know if I have always heard it, in it's proper context.  Because today it meant something different to me then it ever has.  Maybe it's just where I'm at in my life right now.  I have not prayed for this yet but something has been on my heart lately;  I have come across some "only God could of showed you that" teaching lately.  It's not necessarily something I come across often in the body of Christ, even though I should.  That is the teaching with the greatest power in my life.  Education is great but revelation is even better.  I have found it on my heart that I need God to show me some things that only He can show me.  I have found myself in the same position that I found myself in right before I got saved.  The church where I got saved had a pastor that preached every Sunday "only God could of showed you that" teaching.  When I got saved one of the things I said to God is "I want what he has" talking about the "only God could of showed you that" kind of teaching in my life.  I have not felt this way in years, but I heard Joseph Prince say some things in one of his sermons and I said, "only God could have showed him that" and I want it!  That annointing.  I don't even know why.  God's wisdom has always been the character trait that has most amazed me about God.  As I go back to this "faith without works is dead" and I look at the other text in the chapter, I realize that 2 of the examples of faith they used was Abraham sacrificing Isaac and Rehab hiding the spies.  These instances meant putting family and home on the line.  I have felt a nagging in my heart.  I don't really know what it is, not sure about it.  But your works have got to come from faith.  They can't come from any other place or it is sin.  The bible says whatever is not from faith is sin.  I believe that Jesus came so that we could have peace, joy, victory, and even excitement in our lives.  But those things will only pour out of faith.  Many of us are living a partially dead life, with alot of dead works.  That's why we are uptight all the time, that's why we don't have any joy, that's why we worry, that's why we are sick.  But the thing is, we are not doing it on purpose.  We don't realize our works are dead.  Matter-a-fact we think what we are doing is glorifying, but is it really? If u don"t have joy, if u don"t have peace, if u don't feel like you are really living, then your works are dead.