Bible in 365 Days – Day 98

Focus Chapters:

• Ruth 4:13-22
• 1 Chronicles 2:9-55
• 1 Chronicles 4:1-23
• 1 Samuel 1:1-8

Standout Verse(s):

1 Chronicles 4:9-10 NLT

There was a man named Jabez who was more honorable than any of his brothers. His mother named him Jabez because his birth had been so painful. He was the one who prayed to the God of Israel, “Oh, that you would bless me and expand my territory! Please be with me in all that I do, and keep me from all trouble and pain!” And God granted him his request.

Observation (s):

1. Jabez’s name means painful. That’s what was declared over his life following the pain he caused his mother with his entry into the world.
   
   

   His mother named him Jabez because his birth had been so painful.

   
   
2. Despite the declaration made over his life, Jabez was more honorable than all his brothers.
   
   

   There was a man named Jabez who was more honorable than any of his brothers.

   
   
3. Jabez placed his life and future into the hands of God. His desire was that God would not only bless him but also keep him from all the trouble and pain that was pinned to him by his earthly label.
   
   

   He was the one who prayed to the God of Israel, “Oh, that you would bless me and expand my territory! Please be with me in all that I do, and keep me from all trouble and pain!” And God granted him his request.

Application:

Whenever one hears the name Jabez, we are generally reminded of a man who cried out to God asking His to bless him and enlarge his territory. Few focus on the story of Jabez’s beginning, one defined by pain to the persons around him, and ultimately, Jabez himself.

Despite his beginning and the label “Painful” placed upon his life, the Bible declares that Jabez was “the most honorable of his brothers.” Jabez choose, as much as was in the realm of his power, to refrain from adhering to his label. Yet, it would seem that the label “Painful” was inescapable in a society that valued names and their meanings. Can you imagine a stranger treating you based on the expectations they have of you because of the name’s meaning? Jabez desperately needed God’s help to redefine his story! There is something quite heartrending about a cry to God to keep you from all trouble and pain. In his cry and appeal, Jabez hands his future and current self over to God. And you know what, the Lord grants him, his request.

What has been your beginning? What is the label you are wearing? Are you tired of struggling to bypass your labels and beginning? How about you hand it all to God? When you hand your life over to God, your labels and beginning no longer have the power to define your story.