Jabez

‘Oh, that You would bless me indeed.’ 1 Chronicles 4:10 NKJV

Jabez prayed that God would bless him in three specific ways:

(1) ‘Enlarge my territory.’ He had a dream of owning more land, and he asked God to bless that dream. When you stop dreaming you lose direction. When you stop setting goals you stop growing. You must have something you’re pushing towards. As long as your horizon is expanding, you’ll be spiritually and emotionally healthy.

(2) ‘That Your hand would be with me.’ God’s hand represents His power. Jabez realised that if he got more territory it meant he would have more responsibility. He would have greater demands and more pressure, and he would really need God’s help in his life. So he requested God to be with him. And when you ask for God’s presence in your life, you can be sure He’ll answer.

(3) ‘That You would keep me from evil, that I may not cause pain.’ Jabez asked God for His protection. Why? Because in those days the more land you owned, the more influence you had, and the better known you were. And that made you a bigger target. It’s still like that today. The more successful you are, the more critics you have. The more territory you own, the more your enemies will attack you. The closer you grow to the Lord and the stronger you become as a Christian, the more the devil will harass you because he doesn’t want you to grow. But you can be sure, as Jabez was, that with God’s protection you don’t have to fear anyone or anything.

Do you want to break out of mediocrity? Then pray the prayer that Jabez prayed.

雅比斯

雅比斯求告以色列的　神说：“甚愿你赐福与我，扩张我的境界，常与我同在，保佑我不遭患难，不受艰苦。”　神就应允他所求的。——历代志上4:10

雅比斯祈求神以三种具体的方式祝福他：

(1) “扩大我的境界”。他有一个拥有更多土地的梦想，于是他就向神祈求，求神祝福这个梦想。当你停止梦想的时候，你就迷失了方向。当你停止设定目标的时候，你就停止了成长。你必须有一些什么东西推动着你不断向前。只要你的境界在扩展，你在灵性和情感上都会保持健康。

(2) “你的手常与我同在”。神的手就代表祂的能力。雅比斯意识到，如果他获得了更多的领土，这意味着他将承担更多的责任。他将面临更大的命令和更大的压力，他将实实在在地需要神在他的生活中帮助他。所以他祈求神与他同在。当你在你的生命中请求神的同在时，神必然会回应你。

(3) “保佑我不遭患难，不受艰苦”。雅比斯请求神保护他。为什么呢？因为在当时，你拥有的土地越多，你的影响力就越大，你的知名度也就越高。这会把你变成一个很多的靶子。今天仍然是这样。你越成功，你受到的批评就越多。你拥有的领土越多，攻击你的敌人也会越多。你离主越近，在属灵上越强壮，魔鬼就越想要骚扰你，因为牠不想你长大。但你可以像雅比斯一样确信，在神的保护下，你不必害怕任何人或任何事。

你想摆脱平庸吗？然后为雅比斯祈祷。

（翻译：段麦克 @ 20180502）