THE PRAYER OF JABEZ: UNDERSTANDING THE SECRET BEHIND ANSWERED PRAYERS

‘And Jabez was more honourable than his brethren: and his mother called his name Jabez, saying, Because I bare him with sorrow. And Jabez called on the God of Israel, saying, Oh that thou wouldest bless me indeed, and enlarge my coast, and that thine hand might be with me, and that thou wouldest keep me from evil, that it may not grieve me! And God granted him that which he requested.’ (1 Chronicles 4:9-10) 

This week, I will be starting a series on the Prayer of Jabez. I have often wondered about the ardent desire that stirred Jabez’s prayer; the depth of his pain, the urgency of his demand and the earnestness for change that catalyzed his fervent prayer to God. I have also pondered on the swiftness and the magnitude of God’s response to his prayers. In my musings on the subject of prayers and drawing from a personal walk with God over the years, I have come to certain conclusions:

Never underestimate the Power of God. God is all-powerful. Anyone that desires to receive anything from God must first believe in the power of God. Jabez believed that for there to be a change in his situation, he must approach God. He believed in God’s power to make a difference. Job was a man who understood this power; he declared, ‘God stretches the northern sky over empty space and hangs the earth on nothing. He wraps the rain in his thick clouds, and the clouds don’t burst with the weight. He covers the face of the moon, shrouding it with his clouds. He created the horizon when he separated the waters: he set the boundary between day and night. The foundations of heaven tremble; they shudder at his rebuke. By his power the sea grew calm. By his skill he crushed the great sea monster. His Spirit made the heavens beautiful, and his power pierced the gliding serpent. These are just the beginning of all that he does, merely a whisper of his power. Who, then, can comprehend the thunder of his power?” (Job 26:7-14 NIV)

God gives good and perfect gifts. God loves us and he is determined to give us good gifts when we ask him. Apostle James says, ‘Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, and cometh down from the Father of lights, with whom is no variableness, neither shadow of turning.’ James 1:17 KJV. What good thing have you prayed for? What gift do you desire of the Lord? He will give it to you, if you persist in prayers.

God is great. There are no limitations to God. There are no impossibilities in God’s dictionary. He is great and powerful. The vast resources of heaven and the earth are within His jurisdiction. He owns and controls the universe and commands the flow of possessions. With God there is no limitation; it only exist in the mind of man. Jesus told the disciples, ‘…With men it is impossible, but not with God: for with God all things are possible’ (Mark 10:27 KJV). In Luke 18:27, He emphasized, ‘…The things which are impossible with men are possible with God.’ What problems have you encountered that seem impossible? What is the mountain before you that seems insurmountable? What is the challenge that seems to defy all solutions? God has the key, why not ask Him?

God is generous. His generosity cannot be quantified. His kindness and goodness cannot be measured. He gives to the good and the evil alike. Luke 6:35-36 says, ‘But love ye your enemies, and do good, and lend, hoping for nothing again; and your reward shall be great, and ye shall be the children of the Highest: for he is kind unto the unthankful and to the evil. Be ye therefore merciful, as your Father also is merciful. 

Finally, there are no roadblocks to heaven. When Christ died on the cross, the veil of the temple was torn in two from the top to the bottom, that we might have direct access to the Father, the King of kings and the Lord of lords. Christ removed the obstacles and opened a throughway to the Father. Hebrews 10:19-20,22 say, ‘Having therefore, brethren, boldness to enter into the holiest by the blood of Jesus, By a new and living way, which he hath consecrated for us, through the veil, that is to say, his flesh; Let us draw near with a true heart in full assurance of faith…’

We must daily draw near with this full assurance of faith and come boldly to the throne of grace, that we might receive the answers to our petitions like Jabez and that we might testify to the goodness of the Lord in the land of the living. We will continue this series. Stay in touch and God bless you.