Expect a Blessing
“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.’
1 Chronicles 4:9-10 (NKJV)
“Bless me indeed.”
Learn a lot about people from the prayers they pray. You can also learn about God by listening to the prayers people have prayed… and how they were answered.
In 1 Chronicles 4 the long litany of rulers and family blood-lines is interrupted and we’re given a brief, yet compelling, observation about a ruler named Jabez. And most of what we know grows from one sentence of biography and a one-sentence prayer. But there are nuggets of gold here, and we’re going to mine them out.
Jabez begins his prayer by praying, ‘Oh, that You would bless me indeed…’
“Bless” – There’s a word that’s lost all its meaning and power these days.
“Bless you” – Excusing some one for sneezing
“Bless you” – Thank you, or have a nice day
“Blessing out” – Giving someone a verbal ‘gift’
But clearly, from the Judeo-Christian heritage a blessing was much more. We’re told to ask for blessings, to give blessings, to be blessings. So what does it mean to be blessed? What is a blessing?
A blessing is an announcement of God’s favor.
“For You, O Lord, will bless the righteous; with favor You will surround him as with a shield.” Psalm 5:12 (NKJV)
A blessing is an appeal to God’s gifts.
“May their land be blessed by the LORD with the choice gift of rain from the heavens, and water from beneath the earth; with the riches that grow in the sun, and the bounty produced each month; with the finest crops of the ancient mountains, and the abundance from the everlasting hills; with the best gifts of the earth and its fullness, and the favor of the one who appeared in the burning bush.” Deuteronomy 33: 13-16, NLT
A blessing is an attaching of God’s name.
“This is the way you shall bless the children of Israel. Say to them: The Lord bless you and keep you; The Lord make His face shine upon you, And be gracious to you; The Lord lift up His countenance upon you, And give you peace. So they shall put My name on the children of Israel, and I will bless them.” Numbers 6:22-27
A blessing is an avenue of God’s will.
Now the Lord had said to Abram: ‘Get out of your country, from your family and from your father’s house, to a land that I will show you. I will make you a great nation; I will bless you and make your name great; and you shall be a blessing. I will bless those who bless you, and I will curse him who curses you; and in you all the families of the earth shall be blessed.’” Genesis 12:1-3
Some blessings come in times of difficulty or distress
“Blessed are you when they revile and persecute you, and say all kinds of evil against you falsely for My sake. Rejoice and be exceedingly glad, for great is your reward in heaven, for so they persecuted the prophets who were before you.” Matthew 5:11-12
Some blessings come in cooperation with or submission to God.
"See, I have set before you today life and good, death and evil, in that I command you today to love the Lord your God, to walk in His ways, and to keep His commandments, His statutes, and His judgments, that you may live and multiply; and the Lord your God will bless you in the land which you go to possess.” Deut. 30:15-16
All blessings come as a result of God’s very nature.
“His name shall endure forever; His name shall continue as long as the sun. And men shall be blessed in Him; All nations shall call Him blessed.” Psalm 72:17
"Ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you. For everyone who asks receives, and he who seeks finds, and to him who knocks it will be opened. Or what man is there among you who, if his son asks for bread, will give him a stone? Or if he asks for a fish, will he give him a serpent? If you then, being evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father who is in heaven give good things to those who ask Him!” Matthew 7:7-11
“Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places in Christ” Ephesians 1:3
“Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, and comes down from the Father of lights, with whom there is no variation or shadow of turning.” James 1:17
Make sure you don’t confuse God with the blind lady of Justice who promises and insists on fair and impartial judgment. That’s not how God works. God is not impartial. He is very partial – toward you.
He has a favorite – you!
And not because you’re smart…
Not because you’re good…
Not because you’re an American…
Because you are His child.
ž How does it change what goes through your mind, when you’re asking your boss for time off, if you know you’re her favorite?
ž How does it change the way you talk about needing a raise in your allowance, if you know that your Mom has a soft-spot in heart for you?
ž How does it change how you try to talk your mate into going out to dinner, if you’re going to their favorite restaurant?
ž Playing favorites is a part of life. Growing up, I was Grandmom’s favorite…
God is not impartial – he is very partial – towards you!
Expect A Blessing
God wants to proclaim His favor.
God wants to provide His gifts.
God wants present you in His name.
God wants to promote His will.
"Ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you. For everyone who asks receives, and he who seeks finds, and to him who knocks it will be opened. Or what man is there among you who, if his son asks for bread, will give him a stone? Or if he asks for a fish, will he give him a serpent? If you then, being evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father who is in heaven give good things to those who ask Him!” Matthew 7:7-11
“This is the confidence we have in approaching God: that if we ask anything according to his will, he hears us. And if we know that he hears us--whatever we ask--we know that we have what we asked of him.” 1 John 5:14-15
What would happen if we actually expected God to bless us…
In worship…
In the workplace…
In our marriage…
When we pray for our children…
When we talk to a neighbor about God…
Instead of expecting the worst, let’s expect God’s blessings!
How will this affect my prayer life?
I Will Approach God with Confidence
“This is the confidence we have in approaching God: that if we ask anything according to his will, he hears us. And if we know that he hears us--whatever we ask--we know that we have what we asked of him.” 1 John 5:14-15
I Will Ask God with Eagerness
“But Jacob replied, ‘I will not let you go unless you bless me.’” Genesis 32:26
I Will Aspire to Be a Blessing
“I will make you into a great nation and I will bless you; I will make your name great, and you will be a blessing.” Genesis 12:2
I Will Anticipate God’s Action
“And I will do whatever you ask in my name, so that the Son may bring glory to the Father. You may ask me for anything in my name, and I will do it.” John 14:13-14
Approach God with confidence
Ask with eagerness
Aspire to be a blessing
Anticipate God’s action
Once there was a young boy who lived with his father in a cottage deep in the forest. His father worked him hard from sunrise to sunset and still almost every evening he would hear his father say the same thing: "Poor me! Poor me! I will die a sad old man because you are a fool and will never amount to anything."
But the boy was not a fool, in fact, he showed a lot of wisdom for his age, and he had a generous heart besides. One day, after helping an old widow stack some wood, he was about to go home when she stopped him and placing her hand on his head spoke these words: "You are a reflection of the face of God. The world is brighter for the joy you have given me this day. I bless you my child!"
The boy stepped back, amazed: "What was that?"
"Why, it was a blessing my child! Haven’t you ever received a blessing before?"
Back at home he asked his father: "Papa? Why do you curse me? Why do you not bless me?"
"What a ridiculous question! Because it is against my nature to bless and I will not do what feels so unnatural to me. What a ridiculous question. Poor me! Poor me! I will die a sad old man because you are a fool and will never amount to anything."
"Oh." said the boy, and he felt sorry for his father, but that night he decided that no matter how uncomfortable it felt, he would become the kind of person who blessed others. And so he did.
The boy grew to be a man, left the forest and built a home for himself out in the meadowlands. In time had a family of his own. He was still haunted by the curses of his father, and it would make him sad for days at a time, but he had decided to bless, so even though he felt sad, almost every evening, he would call one of his children to himself, lay his hand upon their head and speak these words: "You are a reflection of the face of God. The world is brighter for the joy you give me this day. I bless you my child."
One night he had a dream in which he saw his father and heard him saying over and over: "Poor me! Poor me! I will die a sad old man because you are a fool and will never amount to anything."
And it upset him so much he woke up, got out of bed, and went out into the backyard. He stood there by the trees in the moonlight and was so angry his hands became fists as he spoke out loud to the wind: "What’s the point in being someone who blesses? I’m still so haunted by these curses of my father! Well, maybe I should curse as well!"
And he kicked the ground as hard as he could which shook loose a stone. He picked it up to throw and just then the wind became very strong and he thought he heard a voice: "Do not discard your father’s heart!"
He looked at the trees and then at the rock in his hands. The voice called again: "Do not discard your father’s heart!"
"Who are you?"
"I am the Father of every son and daughter and I tell you, the stone you hold in your hand is like the condition of your father’s heart!"
He looked at the rock. He could tell it was badly misshapen, that it had broken off from a larger rock and had many cracks and flaws within.
And then again the voice: "You can try to change this rock. You can press it until your fingers bleed, but you will not succeed in changing the rock! Neither will you succeed in changing the heart of your father by force or manipulation. Hold your father’s heart gently within your own and pray for him. You have no idea what forces shaped this rock. Neither do you know the forces that shaped the heart of your father. Hold your father’s heart gently within your own and pray for him."
"When did his heart become like this?"
"When he chose to curse instead of bless. But do not become proud...Your heart would look just like this, if I had not blessed you as a child."
"I only remember the old woman."
"The voice was hers, but the words were mine."
"Then why didn’t you bless my father when he was a child?"
"I bless every one of my children. But I never force them to bless in return. In eternity you will have no questions. For now, it is enough that you decide to bless and not curse. Hold your father’s heart gently within your own, and pray for him"
"Father of every son and daughter, bless my father."
