I’ve read about the Prayer of Jabez in High School from a small book, “The Prayer of Jabez: Breaking Through to the Blessed Life” by Bruce H. Wilkinson. It was a short read, but it changed how I see the influence of prayers.
The book focused on a passage in 1 Chronicles 4. What started as a genealogy of the descendants of Judah (vv. 1-8) began to shift and zoom into the life of a man named Jabez, whose name means pain (v. 9).
Jabez was more honorable than his brothers; and his mother called his name Jabez, saying, “Because I bore him in pain.”
1 Chronicles 4:9 ESV
Can you imagine what growing up feels like for someone with a name that means pain?
We weren’t told much about Jabez and his life, but we were told he was more honorable than his brothers. Perhaps he strived to live an honorable life to redeem himself from his name, but we weren’t told any of that. Yet, we could imagine that Jabez could be the type who doesn’t let any label define who he is in the Lord. And then, what we get in the next verse is his prayer:
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.
1 Chronicles 4:10 ESV
His prayer could be pouring out from a heart that has been weighed down by his name. Perhaps he’s been defined by his name that he wanted to break free from the label and the pain it causes him. And as Jabez sought the Lord, God granted his prayer.
What a joy, right? It felt like a delightful ending for Jabez.
And do you know what happened in verse 11 of 1 Chronicles 4? It continued again with a list of names.
I could still memorize the Jabez prayer since I read it in high school.
So, why did I bring up the story of Jabez?
Because today, I look back to how I dreamed of so many things and asked the Lord about them in prayers. And now, I am living the life I have been praying about. Sure, I still have a long way to go, but I’ve already come this far. And indeed, I did not get here because of my might but because the Lord has established me.
The heart of man plans his way,
but the Lord establishes his steps.
Proverbs 16:9 ESV
God has granted my prayers and strengthens me wherever I go, and I can’t imagine living without the Lord.
The story of Jabez really resonated with me because growing up without a father is challenging to grasp, especially when your father died at a time when you can barely see with your eyes. And I have been labeled “the fatherless,” which felt like a handicap but an absence you can’t see. It’s like a shadow that keeps following you and haunts you about everything you don’t have, especially a father.
So, growing up, as early as I learned about who God is as taught in children’s church, I began to see God as my father because who else is?
And just like Jabez, I grew up to become a woman you wouldn’t even think about as fatherless. I never allowed the label to define who I am in Christ. And just like Jabez, my life has never been the same again when God granted what I asked of Him.
jessa 