"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." 1 Chronicles 4:10 (NIV)
"Oh, that you would bless me and enlarge my territory!"
How many of us have prayed this prayer.
It is most likely that many of us have cried out this prayer, or at least yearned for it, for God to BLESS us with much, with more than we can imagine, beyond our borders, to stretch our abilities and extend influence beyond what our eyes can see.
This prayer may mean many things to us - from increasing our influence, adding more ministry or tasks, expanding our reach. "LORD, I WANT TO DO MORE FOR YOU. MAKE ME MORE ______, GIVE ME MORE___." We all want to increase our impact on what we do and on others, we want to take on larger tasks, a bigger mission or a wider reach.
And it can be a noble desire, especially if our motivation for asking this of God is for the benefit of the body of Christ.
With God, nothing is impossible. He can and will enlarge our territory, as he has done for Jabez.
But the question that needs to be asked first is this.
Are we right with God, as Jabez was?
Before we desire to step up to the plate and cry out to God to BLESS US, we need to examine ourselves first.
Are we even honourable before God? Are we right with God?
Are we honourable before men? Are we living an honourable life - one of integrity?
Do we have an honourable heart - one that seeks to please God above all else?
Hmmm..."everything we do flows from our heart" (Proverbs 4:23)
So, do we find ourselves still in the same place, crying out to God, petitioning for his BLESSing? Are we there yet?
No? Then perhaps we ought to check the list above. Are we honourable in all three?
I understand how it can get exciting...to be on fire to receive God's blessing. But the fire must be from within, not just from the thought of greatness that we can achieve, even if it is for His glory. Yeah, it can be deceiving.
Or perhaps, the reason why that we do not experience our "enlarged territory", in our lives and ministry is because we still have gates in our lives that are closed, that we refuse to open and step out of. We know that when God calls, it often means getting out of our comfort zones, right? We can't move in our "enlarged territory" if we refuse to get out of our gated ones.
Receiving, experiencing and moving in the "enlarged territory" that He has graciously granted us to be in, requires that we STEP OUT. It requires that we OPEN UP. It requires that we LET GO.
Let's consider this.
Blessings,
Donna Hope
Image used with permission from https://en.clipdealer.com/photo/media/A:53278619
