Understanding God, Myself, and the WorldSample

The prayer of Jabez

As human beings, we often have to grapple with being relatively powerless in the universe. We might think that we have a lot of power as human beings until we grasp the vastness of the universe and everything that is beyond our control. For example, there are natural disasters and incurable diseases that can completely overwhelm and destroy us. Similarly, we can be forced to live under the dictates of an oppressive government without any freedom. We don’t need many examples to see that we are quite powerless. But God is the source of all power. He is all-powerful. He has control over all things. Nothing is too big for Him. How then can we relate to Him if such a great contrast exists between us and Him? 

Jabez was clearly a man of great character. He is mentioned to be more honourable than his brothers, but there is a flipside. He was a source of great pain to his mother during birth, so much so that his mother thought that he will be defined by pain, and she named him Jabez. This label of pain that defined Jabez was thrust on him by someone else. He didn’t have any control over it. As a baby, he couldn’t resist the label his mother placed on him. Yet, he called out to God who is all-powerful. Where his mother called and defined him by her pain, he called unto God and God redefined what his life was all about. This is a powerful example of the redemptive power of God in our lives, found in an almost obscure passage hidden in a genealogy. 

The prayer of Jabez also gets to the heart of petitionary prayer. When we ask for God’s help, we are vulnerable. We sometimes get the idea that God is only interested in high and lofty prayers, and that He favours requests that are noble and selfless. But when we come with our naked selves before God, we come with all our frailties and insecurities. Here we have a man that we can easily relate to, because the prayer he prays is one we have prayed many times in many disguises. His story may be unique, but his experience of pain is not. As God heard him, God will hear us when we speak to Him!

Think of a difficult situation in your life that is out of your control. In prayer, talk to God about this situation. Ask Him to help you regarding this. Thank Him also for giving you peace that surpasses all understanding.