Prayer 

Beautiful People,

Be extraordinary in your prayer life.  I love the story of Jabez in 1 Chronicle 4:10. His name was synonymous with pain. His mother gave him the name Jabez because she bore him in pain. Yet, regardless of the circumstances that surrounded his life and name, Jabez was an honorable man. Jabez was also a courageous man. He cried out to God and said, “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 Chronicle 4:10). I think about my prayer life in light of Jabez’s time in the spotlight. He uttered 29 words and believed God could bless him, enrage his influence, and keep him from causing pain. What a testimony of faith.      


Another such man was Elijah. “Elijah was a human being, even as we are. He prayed earnestly that it would not rain, and it did not rain on the land for three and a half years” (James 5:17). And let’s not forget Jacob, a man that wrestled with God and demonstrated resilient faith. But don’t forget about Hannah either, the mother of Samuel who, through her pain, prayed for a son and dedicated him to God. My friends, the stories of Jabez, Elijah, Jacob, Hannah, and the saints of old teach us that God is gracious. “Ask, and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock, and the door will be opened to you” (Matthew 7:7). Let us live a life of faith in the graciousness of God. One thing to note before we close, the graciousness of God is not to make us rich but to bless those around us. Our prayers and blessings should overflow to those around us. To live a blessed life is to find pleasure in blessing “the least of these.”