The commentary today in the Chronological Bible contains a very profound statement.  "Undoubtedly a man of God such as Ezra would be particularly concerned that future generations be made aware of Israel's unique status as a chosen nation through which God has revealed himself to the whole world."

It becomes more and more obvious every day that Israel does have a unique status in God's eyes. Israel is His chosen nation.  God has revealed Himself through the nation of Israel in the "Word made flesh" in Jesus.

The Scripture verses for this day are filled with the official records of Israel, listing many important and seemingly unimportant genealogical names. Among the important records is the one concerning the descendants by Keturah (Abraham's concubine/wife). Among the seemingly unimportant names as recorded in an obscure, seldom-read section of the Bible is the name Jabez.

1 Chronicles 4:10
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.

In December of 2000 we received a book The Prayer of Jabez from some dear friends. As we read through this book again in preparation for writing this blog entry, we were astounded when we reviewed our lives since we first prayed that prayer of Jabez many years ago. We’d like to share a couple of things with you.

The author, Bruce Wilkinson uses the New King James version in his book.

1 Chronicles 4:10
And Jabez called on the God of Israel saying, "Oh, that You would bless me indeed, and enlarge my territory, that Your hand would be with me, and that You would keep me from evil, that I may not cause pain!" So God granted him what he requested.
(NKJ)
This version includes the word indeed…not just bless me, but bless me abundantly!

This prayer has four parts.

Bless me. God has told us that He wants to bless us. (Ephesians 3:20).

Enlarge my territory. God wants to enlarge our lives (our spiritual territories) so that we can make a greater impact for Him. Why not ask Him for ways to make that happen? According to Mr. Wilkinson, “As your opportunities expand, your abilities and resources supernaturally increase, too.”

Keep Your hand with me. Asking that God’s hand be with us is the same as asking for His power and presence to be with us. If we ask for the blessings and the territory, we certainly need His power and presence to be with us. 2 Chronicles 16:9a For the eyes of the LORD range throughout the earth to strengthen those whose hearts are fully committed to him. “God is not scanning the horizon for spiritual giants or seminary standouts. He eagerly seeks those who are sincerely loyal to him,” says Bruce Wilkinson.

Keep me from evil. Praying that God would keep us from evil is asking that God keep us from even the temptation to sin.

God granted Jabez his requests. What might happen if we all prayed this prayer and really meant it? Do you think your life would change? Our lives certainly did!