Can You Trust Your Faith?
Do you trust your faith?
There is a wonderful story in the Old Testament found in 1 Chronicles 4:9-10,
“Now Jabez was more honorable than his brothers, and his mother called his name Jabez, saying, ‘Because I bore him in pain.’ 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.” (NKJV)
Before Bruce Wilkinson wrote his bestselling ‘Prayer of Jabez’, hardly anyone had ever noticed this guy. Hidden within a long list of genealogies in your Old Testament is a golden nugget of truth, only recently discovered by popular Christian culture.
Sadly, even though it sold millions of copies and no doubt had a great effect on all who read the book, most Christians don’t seem to live any differently because of this powerful passage.
We are supposed to pray for God’s will, yet let’s not miss that God also wants us to pray for His blessings. He wants to bless us!
Jabez’ name means “pain,” “sorrow,” “burden,” or “miserable.” Can you imagine what a hard time this little fellow must have had when he was a boy?
His name meant misery. Maybe some of the children came knocking on the door, asking if Misery could come out and play. What a name!
The Bible says that his mother called him Jabez because she had borne him in pain. It may have been a difficult birth. Or maybe she had lost her husband and was going through her own test of faith.
This label would be with him the rest of his life. To the Hebrew child, a name meant destiny. A name was often taken as a wish for the child’s future.
If there ever was a guy who could be bitter, it was Jabez. His very name could have driven him to a life of hate and bitterness. But Jabez, rather than letting his name determine his destiny, rose above his name, becoming a man of noble nature.
What does that tell me?
It tells me that your past does not have to determine your future. So Jabez decided to do something about this. He decided he would not live an ordinary life.
The only way to do that was to place himself totally in the hands of an extraordinary God.
We have many examples of faith and faithfulness in God’s Word. They are there to help us see the good and the bad in people. They were people who once had strong faith and faltered, or who stayed the course like Jabez.
Not only did Jabez ask God to bless him, but he also called on the God of Heaven to enlarge his territory. Jabez was asking God to increase his influence for God.
He wasn’t asking for more property or more wealth; he was surveying his circumstances and asking God to help him do more in God’s kingdom.
God wants us to have a faith that we can trust. Only when we trust God through tests that stretch us will we grow in our faith in Him. Can you trust your faith?
Keep looking up!
Heaven is closer than you think.
May God bless your day.
Related devotionals: James 2:14 real faith · Faith makes the impossible · When did prayer begin?
Want more from Pastor Rodney?
If today’s devotional spoke to your heart, my books carry these same themes deeper. Stories of God moving in ordinary lives, scripture for tired pastors and weary parents, and steady reminders that heaven is closer than you think.