Bless Me Greatly Oh Lord!

Go ahead. Ask God to greatly bless you. I dare you! This could be the most selfish prayer ever prayed. As we dig into such a prayer, you may see it a little differently. So go ahead and pray it, “Bless me greatly oh Lord!”

I Chronicles 4:9-10

^9-10 Jabez was a better man than his brothers, a man of honor. His mother had named him Jabez (Oh, the pain!), saying, “A painful birth! I bore him in great pain!” Jabez prayed to the God of Israel: “Bless me, O bless me! Give me land, large tracts of land. And provide your personal protection—don’t let evil hurt me.” God gave him what he asked.

The Prayer of Jabez

So I am just going to give you a high-level view of where this is going over the next several days, but a very interesting view of what the above scripture says.  I was challenged to study this scripture, this prayer. And as a guide, I used the book The Prayer of Jabez by Bruce Wilkinson.  You may have even read it.  It’s only been around since 2000, but the principles and mindset behind it have been around for decades. 

Calling Out for a Blessed Life

If I could sum it up in a phrase I would call it, “Calling out to God for a blessed life.”  Hmmm, to say, “Bless me greatly oh Lord,” sounds selfish, unspiritual, first world-like, Americanized, etc.  We will be taking a deeper look at this and much of the following later.

First, it’s interesting that the author is in the middle of a genealogy regarding the line of Judah but he pauses even for the slightest moment to mention Jabez. Then Jabez is never to be mentioned again.  But what was mentioned about him is significant, at least significant enough for God to bring it to our attention.  If it is good enough for God to mention, maybe I should pay attention!

Extraordinary Favor of God

Just one little sentence with four parts to it, in showing the extraordinary favor of God. Just a couple of things to ponder for today in how this could apply to you:

• A prayer for “just ordinary” people
• God desires to give you so much more…more than you can imagine
  • There is a reason for this!

A Little is a Lot

And here is a big consideration – it reminds me of the 212 Degrees video. 

• There is little difference between people, but that little difference makes a great deal of a difference!
• Jabez put a double exclamation mark on his prayer on the part of being blessed. This seems unspiritual or selfish.
  • This kind of prayer is considered living beyond the limits.

Okay, before you start jumping to conclusions on this verse and my direction of all of this, give it the full week to catch the whole heart of the scripture.  I’ve left a lot out today on purpose to keep it short, but also to give room to circle back around on some of this.  This isn’t a health and wealth message, but one much more vital, focused, and mission-centered. 

Challenge for today – Ask God to bless you!  Yes, YOU!  Go ahead and give it a try. “Bless me oh Lord. And do it greatly!”  So be it.