Powerful prayer

11 January 2022

2022 has started. I think there are many important things in Christian life, but the most important of these is prayer. Because through prayer we connect with God, experience God’s miracles, and the Holy Spirit comes to work.

Take up the prayer of Jabez. The prayer he offered is very simple. However, it was a powerful prayer.

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. (I Chronicles 4:10)

Jabez has started his underprivileged life. The meaning of the name Jabez is “sadness. ” His mother had named him Jabez, saying, “I gave birth to him in pain “ (Ⅰ Chronicles 4: 9). How did he spend his childhood and adolescence with such a name? Today is also a time when many children and young people are hurt. But he was changed through prayer and had a good ending. As it is written at the end of verse 10, God granted his request.

Jabez’s life began with sadness, halfway through it was full of sadness, but the end was good. He was able to finish with blessings and joy. What is the secret? The secret was a short, simple, but true prayer. Let’s hope that each of us will have a good ending at the end of 2022.

Let’s look at this part. Jabez cried out to the God of Israel.

Jabez shouted to God. “Change my sad life. Intervene in my life. Help me out of this situation.” This is a type of prayer that we pray in a loud voice. It was not a calm prayer. Of course, there are various prayer methods, including meditation prayers. But Jabez shouted and prayed. He really wanted to change his life. In David’s Psalms, there is a passage that says, “Speak out” and “Scream to the Lord.”

So is praise. Some songs should be sung quietly, and some songs should be sung loudly. There are quiet prayers and screaming prayers in prayer, but the Jabez prayer we see today is a screaming prayer.

The baby shouts. “I want milk.” The parent then responds and grants their wish. We are children of God. If we pray, God the Father listens, responds, intervenes in problems, and gives us solutions. The Korean church can be said to be a church that screams and prays. That is why it is said that a revival has occurred.

Let’s take a look at the contents of Jabez’s prayer.

1) Bless me a lot

“A lot” is said to be emphasized in Hebrew as much as five exclamation marks. So we’ll feel like, “Bless me a lot, affluently, absolutely, overwhelmingly.”

What is your wish? Let us, like Jabez, urge God to “bless me greatly and abundantly.” Jesus said. ” Seek, and you will be given ” (Matthew 7: 7) What is your number one wish? Let’s pray specifically. If the prayer of faith reaches heaven, the answer will come down to the earth. Prayer connects the heavens and the earth.

2) Please expand my border

Jabez wanted more land. As with the actual land, there may have been a desire to let people in the world know more about the God of Israel.

Through the encounters we are given now, and through the new encounters given this year, we hope that our borders will become even more influential in order for the name of Jesus to be honored for the glory of God. Think about what we can do.

Let’s hope that we can spread the gospel to Japan and the world through SNS and various methods so that our borders (influence) can be expanded and the gospel can be delivered to more people. Now is the time to be able to preach the world while in Japan. Let’s pray that the gates of evangelism will be opened so that we will have more opportunities to share the gospel this year. If we come up with something we can do, not just pray, don’t think too much about it and start. Once we start, we’ll be on track. If we make a mistake, we can fix it. But if we don’t start, in many cases nothing will happen.

3) May your hand be with me

The hand of the Lord is the power of God, the presence of God.

Jesus commanded his disciples to expand the territory. That is the Great Commission. ” Go out to the whole world and preach the gospel to all the creations ” (Mark 16:15) It was impossible for the disciples to do this command with human power, their own power. .. So they prayed. Then the Holy Spirit came down and was able to serve as a world ministry. Let us pray for the power of the Holy Spirit.

Jesus reached out and touched the sick and was healed. Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today and forever (Hebrews 13: 8) Jesus who has risen from the dead and is still alive is with us. Let us pray that the hand of the Lord will be placed on us and that the works of salvation and healing will occur through us.

4) Keep away from the hassle and do not suffer

We receive the blessing of God. It’s not just for me. This is to give blessings to others. We pray for greater influence so that the borders can be expanded and the gospel can be preached. God’s hand is with us . It means that the power of the Holy Spirit will be poured and the signs and wonders that accompany the gospel will appear. But if God works, the devil also works there. Therefore, the protection of the Lord is needed.

Jesus also encourages us to pray at the end of the Lord’s Prayer, ” Don’t let us see the trial, save us from evil ” (Matthew 6:13). We pray that all calamities will be kept away. Let us pray that we will not suffer , as we may have the blood of Jesus and the protection of angels. We pray that we will be saved and protected from coronavirus infections, illnesses, accidents, and various troubles.

Jabez’s prayer reached God and his wish was granted. Our prayers will also reach to God. Prayer has the great power.