First Baptist Church
1 Chronicles 4:9-10
Enlarge My Territory (#2)
June 2, 2002
It’s becoming more and more normal to hear a professional athlete talk about their faith after a big win. In fact, some athletes talk about praying before their games. The typical prayer includes a petition to God to help their team win that game. They don’t pray for their opponents to get injured, or for the other team to play lousy, just for their team to play to the best of their abilities and for victory so they can honor Christ. Obviously players from both teams are praying for victory and in most sports, only one team will win. But, is there anything wrong with praying for victory?
What about the person who runs a business, is there something wrong with praying for more business clients? Or what about the farmer who’s interested in another piece of land, should they pray to receive it? Or what about praying for more responsibility in your job?
On the surface we would say there’s nothing wrong with asking for more. Yet, some people may question what your motivation is when you ask for additional land or more sales or a salary increase. And that’s a good question, because the reason we’re asking for something is contingent upon our motivation. For example, if I want more people in the church because it will boost my ego, that’s wrong, but if I want more people so they have the opportunity to hear the word of Christ and embrace Him and a new lifestyle, then my motivation is appropriate.
When we look at this 2nd part of the prayer of Jabez, we see Jabez asking for his territory to be expanded. Some say that this is a selfish and crude prayer, while others say Jabez is right on. So, who’s right?
Last week we began to look at the prayer of Jabez. Jabez’s name means he was a "Pain", in spite of this, he became the most honorable in his family. He prayed a 4 part prayer: to be blessed by God; to expand his territory; he asked God to stay with him and that Jabez would not be a pain to others.
Last week we looked at the first part of Jabez’s prayer, "Oh that You would bless me." To ask God for a blessing is to ask for nothing more and nothing less than all God has for us. It’s asking God to do for us what we cannot do for ourselves. It’s asking for the blessing and then being aware of how God brings that blessing into our lives. Our attitude needs to be focused on using that blessing for the benefit of others in the name of Christ, not for ourselves. Today we move on to the 2nd part of his prayer.
Bruce Wilkinson calls this section of the prayer, "Living large for God." And I like the way that sounds. Have you ever thought about your life in Christ, as living large for Him? Wilkinson wrote: "If you’re doing business God’s way, it’s not only right to ask God for more, but He is waiting for you to ask. Asking God to increase the people you can influence in the name of Jesus Christ brings delight to God"( 31-2).
I agree with that. And that request is entirely contingent on your motivation. If you want more sales so you can earn more money so you can buy yourself more toys, then don’t expect more sales. But if you want more sales so you can earn more money so you can give more money to the church and to those in need, then expect your prayers to be granted. But watch out, God will be watching to make sure you aren’t giving in to temptation.
We’re called to have a greater impact for Christ. God may allow your business, your investments, your exposure, or whatever, to grow, but with the idea of using that growth to actually influence people for Christ. It means we might end up in some situations that we don’t want to be in, yet often times those are the moments when we have the greatest opportunity to make an impact in the name of Christ.
Ron Hutchcraft is a Christian writer and minister. He tells of the time this year, when he had the flu. He thought it would pass, but he ended up being admitted at a hospital for observation and tests. Hutchcraft wasn’t a happy camper and was grumbling about his situation, when his sister- in-law stopped by and reminded him of something he had told her, she said "Ron, remember who you are, and remember why you’re here."
As a result of this reminder, Hutchcraft and his wife set up a little Christian bookstore in his room. As nurses and aides came and went, he gave them books or booklets that present the love of Jesus Christ. He said there were great spiritual conversations and just before he checked out, one of the hard-core nurses came by and said, "Ron, we know why you were here now. It was for all of us pagans here."
Hutchcraft concluded this wasn’t about the flu or dehydration or medical care. Those were simply God’s tools to assign him (or as Jabez would put it, "TO ENLARGE his BORDERS) to do something to help people change their lives. And in essence, that’s exactly why he was where he was and why he was experiencing what he was experiencing. (A Word With You, 5/29/02)
You see, when we ask God to open up doors so that we can do ministry and we desire to bring glory and honor to God, doors will open and open. The only prerequisite is to be aware of the doors as they’re opening and then to use those openings to proclaim the love of Christ.
Let me give a couple of examples from my week. As I was praying this week most especially to be blessed and to find new ministry opportunities, someone who looked familiar drove up to the church and asked me if I would perform his wedding. I’ve never seen this person at church, but God opened up a great opportunity to share Jesus Christ with this young couple.
On Thursday Joshua was sick, he threw up during the night, he, Debbie and I didn’t sleep well, the cleaners had come to clean out the basement Wednesday night and unhooked the washing machine, on Thursday, when we did laundry the tube to let water into the pipes wasn’t rehooked, and you know what happened, when I went downstairs we had flood #2. Things weren’t going well, and then Pat stopped by our house and took Joshua and Zachary home with her and gave us a huge break. That was God blessing us.
God loves to answer our prayers. Especially when they sound like this — "Lord bless me, in fact, Lord, shower me with your blessings so that I can bless others with your love and grace, and Lord bring on more ministry. Bring it on so that I can help others know you and your love."
Have you ever heard of Fred Smith? He was a graduate student at Harvard. He had to do a final project on starting up a business, each student needed specific plans that were doable. Smith’s final project was on the slow delivery of packages through the mail. So he devised a plan to start up a business which would deliver packages overnight, anywhere in the world, not next week. The professor thought his idea was nice, but not very practical, so he gave him a "C" on the paper.
After graduating from school Fred Smith began a company called Federal Express. Not practical, huh? Fred saw the box of package delivery and said that there had to be a way, outside what everyone had before. That’s what I mean when I say we need to live large for God.
You see, one of the reasons it’s hard to get excited about new opportunities is because we are thinking wrongly. Wilkinson states we have the formula wrong.
Let me show you two formulas that Dr. Wilkinson offers in his book. Now you’re going to have to pay close attention here, okay? I know school is over, but this is the beginning of summer school spiritual math. It’s a new subject.
My abilities + experience + training + my personality and appearance + my past + the expectations of others = my assigned territory. To pray with this in mind would sound like this: "Lord, please use my abilities, as limited as they are. I don’t have much experience and need training, and help me to be a better person and don’t let anyone find out what I’m really like. Help me to be what everyone expects me to be so I can have more influence."
Think about it, isn’t that how we often determine if we will do something or not. If it fits into our criteria, then we may give it a try, but if one of those 7 factors fall outside of the box, we’re prone to give up and don’t do it. Wilkinson says that’s human math, not God’s math.
Now, let’s look at God’s math formula — "My willingness and weakness + God’s will and supernatural power = my expanding territory."
How’s that? God factors in our weaknesses from the get go. You wouldn’t think our weaknesses would be beneficial for anything did you? And it makes no sense, especially in business, to factor in our weaknesses as being something that can be good. But God is in the business of using weakness for His glory.
"When you start asking in earnest — even begging for more influence and responsibility with which to honor God, He will bring opportunities and people into your life. You can trust that He will never send someone to you whom you cannot help by His leading and strength. You’ll nearly always feel fear when you being to take new territory for Him, but you’ll also experience the tremendous thrill of God carrying you along as you’re do it" (page 41).
In his book "Restoring Spiritual Passion," Gordon McDonald writes, ‘People comment "I’ve got to cut down! I’m into too many things. I think I’m on the edge of burnout... and the list goes on." You comment on how busy the last few weeks seem to have been, and someone agrees and you wonder, "why are we doing all of this anyway?"’
The last thing anyone probably wants to think about is "doing more!" Most of us are living a life that is larger than us. Jabez was praying just the opposite — he wanted to live larger than life! He was "Wanting to be more and do more for God."
If we are going to be "living larger than life" we have to move the boundaries lines of our lives. We have to start praying differently by asking for more rather than for less.
You ever wonder, as Jabez did, and think to yourself, "Surely I was born for more than this!" What were you born for . . . to live larger than life or smaller than life?
Let us pray,
"Lord, Bless me indeed. Do something so big in my life that it is obviously from you. Increase my influence and opportunities for you, and give me a sense of your continual presence and direction. Protect me, and keep me from falling into satans’ traps. Amen (The Prayer Experiment by Jay Dennis)
