The Prayer of Jabez

And Jabez called on the God of Israel saying,
“Oh, that You would bless me indeed,
and enlarge my territory,
that Your hand would be with me,
and that You would keep me from evil, that I may not cause pain!”
So God granted him what he requested.

- 1 Chronicles 4:10 New King James Version

Our good friends Kris and Malou gave us a copy of the book, The Prayer of Jabez. I had heard of this book, so I was extremely happy to find it together with their baby shower gift for Javi. I showed the book to Jed, and to my surprise he finished reading the book before me. It was unusual as he is not really a book lover.

That same evening before we both sleep, he asked me if I knew the prayer of Jabez. Well, how could I when I haven't had the chance to read the book. Then he told me what they are and explained them to me.

Jabez asked for four things:

1. To bless him indeed
2. To enlarge his territory
3. That God's hand would be with him, and
   
4. That God would keep him from evil, that he may not cause pain

It was a very simple prayer. Yet, they are exactly what we need to ask God in order to have a better life.

The following morning, I grabbed the book, and read it. I wanted to find out how the author Bruce Wilkinson expounded on the prayer.

I learned:

• How the Lord loves us and that we should not be reluctant to ask God to bless us indeed. Remember, His cup overflows and would only want the best for His children.
• How we should ask God to continue to expand and increase our territory for us to reach out to more people and make a difference in each their lives. He wants us to grow in every aspect of our lives.
• How we need to depend on only Him.
  
• How we constantly need to ask for the Lord's protection as we will be regularly tempted to sin.

It is easy to pray to God. Just talk to Him like you would engage your best friend. Jabez's prayer is not complicated at all.