2002-01-01
Good Morning Dear Ones,
Today, the Lord directs me to discuss the fourth element of the Prayer of Jabez, “oh, that You would keep me from evil!” This last request on Jabez’s part is a brilliant strategy for sustaining a blessed life. Remember that Jabez’s name means “pain” in Hebrew, and he was given that name because his mother had a painful childbirth. If the adversary had a hold on Jabez’s life, he might very well have resented both the name he was given and his mother for giving it to him. We can imagine well what kind of evil behavior might have come from Jabez from doing that. But instead, he allowed God to direct Him to a more positive approach. I see this element of his prayer as actually asking two requests: 1) that he should be protected from the evil of others and 2) that he should bring no pain or evil upon others. Both of these requests lead to a blessed life. All four of the elements of this prayer have convinced me personally that I should pray it every day.
Let me share a story that Pastor Bruce Wilkinson told in his little book, The Prayer of Jabez. This story reveals just how involved God is in our daily lives. We all have times when we feel very worn out in response to the stresses of our lives. A faithful person knows that these are the times, when our defenses are down, that the adversary most likes to attack us. Pastor Bruce was having just such a time when he found himself assigned to a center seat on an airplane on his way home from a long conference. He prayed, “O Lord, I’m exhausted and have no resistance left. I’m work out in Your service. I can’t cope with temptation. Please keep me from evil today. Amen.” He was seated between two men, each of whom was reading a pornographic magazine. No doubt that was what prompted him to pray this particular prayer. A few minutes later, one of the men swore under his breath and closed his magazine. The other man on his other side did the same thing shortly after that. The whole situation struck Pastor Bruce funny, and he laughed. The men asked what was so funny, and wisely, he chose a polite way not to tell them. The rest of the flight home was uneventful. We are told our God is omnipresent (all-present), omniscient (all-knowing), and omnipotent (all-powerful). It’s very awesome to see this in action.
God reveals Himself in our daily lives. PS 143: 5, “I remember the day of old, I think about all Your deeds, I meditate on the works of Your hands.” God lightens our cares and burdens. PS 37: 5, “Commit everything you do to the Lord. Trust Him to help you do it and He will.” God is in the details. PS 145: 5, “I will meditate about Your glory, splendor, majesty, and miracles.” PS 118: 23-24, “This is the Lord’s doing; it is marvelous in our eyes. This is the day that the Lord has made; let us rejoice and be glad in it.” When I think about Who God is in our lives, I am awed by the large tasks that He does while at the same time attending to smaller, more personal needs that we have. Remember Pastor Bruce’s story about that warehouse in heaven filled with shelves of white-wrapped boxes with red ribbons which hold all the blessings God is eager to give us which we forget to request of Him? They are there waiting for us: little blessings, like causing Pastor Bruce’s seat-mates to close their magazines and big ones, like healing my dear friend, Audrey Morris. There is no limit or conditions placed on the love God has for each of us.
In MT 6: 13, Christ’s very own words were, “lead us not into temptation but deliver us from evil.” It is God Who gave Jabez a righteous heart, Who kept him from using his name to engender resentment and evil. It is God Who imputes each believer’s account with righteousness when he comes to faith in Christ [RO 3: 22]. Each of us has temptations to which we are particularly vulnerable. We need to take these matters to God and pray about them. Here are three prayers Pastor Bruce gave us as examples. “Lord, keep me from making the mistakes I’m most prone to make when temptation comes. I confess that what I think is necessary, smart, or personally beneficial is so often the beautiful wrapping on sin. So please, keep evil far from me!” Here’s another example: “Lord, keep me safe from the pain and grief that sin brings. For the dangers that I can’t see or the ones that I think I can risk because of my experience (pride or carelessness), put up a supernatural barrier. Protect me, Father, by Your power!” (I can’t resist citing PS 31: 3-4 here. “You are indeed my Rock and my Fortress; for Your name ‘s sake lead me and guide me, take me out of the net that is hidden for me, for You are my Refuge.”) One last example he gave was: “Lord, keep me safe from temptations that pull at my emotions and my physical needs, that call out to my sense of what I deserve, what I have the ‘right’ to feel and enjoy. Because You are the Source of all that is really life, direct my steps always from all that is not of You.” Of course, all these prayers should end with “in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.”
The Scriptures are our “Love Letter From God.” They are so rich His wisdom, His help, and His love that I can’t find a reason not to read them every day. PS 118: 8 [NKJV], “It is better to trust in the Lord than to put confidence in man.” PR 3: 5 [KJV], “ Trust in the Lord with all thine heart; and lean not upon thine own understanding.” These are wise words inspired by an infinitely wise and loving God. Sin breaks the flow of God’s power to us. That’s a convincing reason to get it out of our lives. We need to ask ourselves: What do we believe can happen to our own lives if we pray the Prayer of Jabez every day?
PRAYER: O Lord, this short passage, 1 CH 4: 9-10, hidden in a book of the Bible that is not so frequently read, is a treasure chest of blessings for the person willing to read and pray it. Your word is full of blessings like this for us, if we will only take the time to spend a few minutes every day discovering them. You bless each of us with this Prayer of Jabez. We must not forget the last phrase of this passage, “So God granted him what he requested.” That is a wonderful reminder to us that You listen to our prayers. PS 42: 8, “Through each night I sing His songs, praying to God Who gives me life.” Without You, Dearest Lord, we cannot choose righteousness, be blessed, or feel Your hand (power). We are useless and worthless, With You, we can do anything that is Your desire for us through Your Son Who died on the cross for us. You are eager to bless us abundantly, expand our territory, let us feel Your power in our lives, and keep us from evil. We are truly a blessed people! We humbly confess our sins and offer Your our adoration, worship, trust, obedience, loyalty, glory, honor, praise, and thanks. In Christ’s name, we pray; amen.
Tomorrow, we will begin a new series on this issue of covenants in the Scriptures. Covenants are two-way promises. Learning about their impact on our lives can help us not only to better understand the love our Abba has for us, but we can also learn about what He feels constitutes righteousness and how He has often put Himself out on limb for us. His love is consistent, ever-present, and a great blessing to our lives if we make Him the Lord of them. Peter and I send you our love too.
Grace Be With You Always,
Lynn