Scripture of the Day
1 Chronicles 4:10 (NIV)
“Prayer of Prosperity”
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.
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Have you been praying for an increase? Do you have a prayer of prosperity? I know it seems like we should not pray for increase with all of the one-sided preachers giving prosperity a bad name! But GOD does want us to prosper! HE wants us to be blessed, as well as bless others! If we pray like Jabez, then our prayer of prosperity will not be selfish. This simple prayer can be broken down even further, but lets just look at four major points!
1) Although Jabez’s mother gave him the name because she bore him with pain, he was considered more honorable than his brothers (vs. 9) In your prayers . . . have you been honorable? Have you been humble?
2) Jabez is crying out to the Almighty GOD of Israel! He is not relying on himself as honorable, but he is calling on his GOD who is holy! Who are you crying out to in your prayer of prosperity?
3) Jabez asked to be blessed before the increase! Now that is big! We think the increase is the blessing. But first we must ask that every blessing come from GOD so that we may be equipped to handle more territory. You can’t ask GOD to give you more, without HIM blessing you first! After Jabez asked to be blessed, then he asked for an increase in territory.
For unto whomsoever much is given, of him shall be much required (Luke 12:48). Are you asking for GOD’s blessings before the increase, in your prayer of prosperity?
4) Jabez asked the LORD to be his protection from harm and pain! Most successful businesses have a team of experts and a large insurance policy to protect their increase , but Jabez is asking for a reassurance policy from the LORD to protect his increase! Are you praying that GOD keeps the increase safe? Are you asking GOD to give you guidance to do what is right with the increase?
Again, GOD wants us to prosper! And by the example of the Jabez Prayer of Prosperity, we can see that GOD will grant your request! Hopefully your prayer of prosperity is like that of Jabez’s. If not, it’s time to change it! Don’t feel bad . . . after much meditation on this devotion . . . I have had to make a few minor adjustments to mine as well! Just keeping it truthful!
My favorite prayer for others is: May the GOD of hope fill you with all joy and peace as you trust in HIM, so that you may overflow with the hope by the power of the Holy Spirit! (Romans 15:13). May GOD continue to bless you and enlarge your territory of hope! In JESUS name, Amen!
5 comments:
OMG! This is exacly what I needed. I have been praying for an increase in territory, to include children. And now I have had to ask myself have I been asking for more than I am ready to handle. This one is really clear after reading yesterdays "Trust HIS Timing". God has me in a place for a time such as this. First to be blessed, and then to be ready for increase. I don't want more, yet have no peace! I don't want more, yet have no love! I don't want more, yet have no God of salvation in my life. Thank you for making it so simple to understand! May God continue to show favor on you too.
Purell
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This is a good one. I see churches talking about expanding, yet they are deep in debt! GOD will bless the church first, then he expands the church, and I am not talking about the walls, I am talking about the people. It can be ten people who make up the church, but if all ten are blessed, that body of Christ is expanding beyond the walls of a facility. But you can have ten thousand people, yet have now growth. I am asking GOD to bless and protect before the increase.
O.K. I have been receiving your scriptures of the day for almost two years via email, and I have never posted or replied to them. But the part about the preachers and books giving prosperity a bad name is too funny but so true. They talk about all the blessings as if God needs to give them to us, to make us like him. Just like you said, God does want us to prosper, but he wants us to be obedient first. He wants us to love second. If we are obedient and filled with love, we are already living a prosperous life. I don't have a whole lot of money, my car is 10 yrs old, and my house needs some work! But I feel so rich and prosperous. Thanks for puting this in perspective. I pray that others are just as blessed.
What I so love about the prayer of Jabez is that it lines up with the prayer of Solomon....God was already prepared to increase Solomon's territory, as He has informed us all through Jeremiah 29:11, but he still asked Solomon what his desires were and Solomon asked for wisdom. This is how this correlates to the prayer of Jabez, after Jabez made his request known; he asked that the LORD's hand would be with him (WISDOM & guidance). There is nothing worse than being in a vast territory with no direction.... that's called being lost!
Secondly, Jabez prayed against the curse of his name. As you touched on in the SOD, his mother name him "Jabez" because she bore him with great pain and in essence that is the meaning of his name and he knew it. He was not content to keep living with this label and asked God to "keep me from harm so that I will be free from pain".
How many times do we continue to ask God for the tangible things alone instead of asking God for the wisdom (Thou hand be with me) and the liberty (freedom from the curses in our lives) so that we can truly enjoy the territory that He has already placed before us. I am in agreement that there is nothing wrong with seeking God's favor and He encourages us to be good stewards over these blessings; being careful not to act like spoiled children tossing one present/gift aside as we race to another with total disregard for the Giver of the gift or the thought and love that went into preparing the gift.
To Purell: Your post is great! We should not want anything more than salavation! HE will bless us and increase our territory in due time! Keep praying!
To Anonymous 1: You are sooooo right when you say churches . . . actually anyone who is in debt should first ask to be released from the bondage of financial burden (blessed) before asking GOD to increase their territory. I think some folks think that if they go bigger or risk even more, it will turn their situation around.
To Feeling Rich: You are truly blessed! Knowing the importance of obedience and love is an awesome testimony! Can you imagine if every supervisor operated in the obediance and love of JESUS?
To Anonymous 2: Your post will preach! "There is nothing worse than being in a vast territory with no direction.... that's called being lost!" Wow! I wonder if the Israelites felt like their territory was increasing during their 40 year walk!
May GOD continue to bless all of you! It is very encouraging to see what GOD has put on the hearts of Christians!
Rejoice In HIS Blessings Today!
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