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The Prayer of Jabez:

The prayer of Jabez shows us a powerful way we can approach God with our requests. It is not a formulaic prayer to earn anything from God or to twist God’s hand, rather, Jabez’s prayer inspires and challenges us how to call upon God to help accomplish the fulfillment of His promises in our lives.

1 Chronicles 4:10

“Jabez cried out to the God of Israel, ‘Oh that You would bless me and enlarge my territory! Let Your hand be with me and keep me from harm so that I will be free from pain.’ And God granted his request.”

FEBRUARY: A HEART FULLY KNOWING AND TRUSTING IN THE BLESSING OF GOD

2. Jabez not only recognises God as the one and only true God, he also acknowledges that blessings come from God alone. Are you chasing broken promises and blessings that the world tries to entice you with? Are you striving toward prosperity on your own strength? When you pray, do it with a heart fully invested in the blessings of God.

We all long for blessings. Whether it be in our financial life, family-relational life, or in our everyday, we want to be blessed. The problem with our human thinking is that we often look for our blessings in the wrong places and through the wrong means. We try to work things out through our own strength and effort and then either get frustrated when things do not go to plan, or we get into the danger of being proud and forfeiting the power of God’s grace in our lives. It is not bad to long for blessings, for good things, for that job promotion, for that healing, but we have to understand that more than the gift of our blessing, we need to treasure the Giver of the blessing.

We forget that God is our loving Father and He longs to bless us as His children. He knows what is best for us and knows exactly what we need in our lives. You do not need to work at it by yourself and you do not need to be afraid to be bold in your prayer for blessings. As what we have learnt last month, when we know who our God is, and acknowledge Him in all His goodness, we learn to realize the promises that He has for us, and how we may avail of them as His beloved. In the same way, in a life of full commitment and surrender, we need to trust and believe that He will also withhold or close any door that would bring us harm.

In this hour of prayer, do not be afraid to seek the hand of God in your life. Do not be afraid to ask Him for blessings. He is a loving Father who wants to show His glory in your life.

Personal Prayer:

That You Would Bless Me

Dear God, Thank you for your great love and blessing over our lives. Thank You that Your favour has no end, but it lasts for our entire lifetime. Forgive us for sometimes forgetting that you are intimately acquainted with all of our ways, that you know what concerns us, and you cover us, as with a shield. We ask for your guidance so that we might walk fully in your blessing and goodness today.  We ask that Your face would shine on us. That You would open the right doors for our lives and for our loved ones, that you would close the wrong doors and protect us from those we need to walk away from. Establish the work of our hands and bring to fulfillment all that You have given us to do in these days. We pray that you would make our way purposeful and our footsteps firm out of your goodness and love. Give us a heart of wisdom to hear your voice, and make us strong by your huge favour and grace. In Jesus’ Name, Amen.

Additional readings:

Deuteronomy 28:8, Psalm 84:11, Matthew 7:7-12; Philippians 4:19

Song: The Blessing – Kari Jobe and Cody Carnes

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=by-B7MhEdGM