1 Chronicles 4:9, 10 (ESV)
Jabez was more honorable than his brothers; and his mother called his name Jabez, saying, “Because I bore him in pain.”
Jabez called upon the God of Israel, saying, “Oh that you would bless me and enlarge my border, and that your hand might be with me, and that you would keep me from harm so that it might not bring me pain!” And God granted what he asked.
A Theme to Remember:
This well-known prayer has many interpretations. One theme that is undeniable, however, is that Jabez recognized that he lived in a fallen world and asked God to protect him and to keep him from becoming ensnared by the sin around him. This is a prayer we should offer regularly so that temptation will not overtake and destroy us.
Words to Remember:
God is more anxious to bestow his blessings on us than we are to receive them.
–Augustine of Hippo