Transforming Pain into Blessing: The Prayer of Jabez

``But what does it mean, really, to say, God bless me? What are we asking for? Are we not asking for the wonderful, unlimited goodness that only God can give? God, may I have more of you in my life. God, bless me. Bless me with more of you. Bless me with more of your work. Bless me with more of your activity. Bless me with the knowledge to know where you want me to be, how you want me to act so that I can be walking a blessed life. Lord, bless me. [00:59:55] (41 seconds)  #FaceOfGodsGrace

To bless is to distinguish with favor, to act in a man's life or a woman's life and accomplish his purpose instead of allowing us to have our own way. To have God's blessing is to say, God, your will, not mine. To have God's blessing is to say, your purpose, not my purpose. I want to live a blessed life means I want to be in the center of your will, in the center of your activity. [01:05:04] (29 seconds)  #BlessMeToBlessOthers

When the subject is God and his speaking is action, because when God speaks, he creates, right? God's speaking is action. For God's speech is energy realized when God is said to bless us or speak well of us, he acts for our good. He sees our need and not necessarily our desire. And therefore, he blesses us by pouring out his goodness, God's will shaping our lives. Oh, bless me. Bless me indeed, God. [01:05:33] (36 seconds)  #AligningWithGodsWill

That should be a prayer that we should be able to have on our lips. God, bless me today, because what are we saying when we're asking for God's blessing? What we're saying is that we're leaving it up to God to decide what that blessing is going to be. It's saying, God, I want what's best for me in your world. I want your will to be accomplished in my life. Bless me, God. And let me be your blessing to others. Bless me, God. [01:06:09] (37 seconds)  #LivingBlessedThroughLove

It's saying, I want my life and my will to be subservient to your will. Kind of like Jesus praying, our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name. Your kingdom come on earth as it is in heaven. Bless me, God. May your will be done here on earth, even as your will is done in heaven. Lord, let me be in the middle of that. Bless me, God. [01:06:47] (27 seconds)  #BlessingInEveryTask

To pray God's blessing is also to say, Lord, I put my sinful ways behind. I put my sinful desires behind so that I can be in the middle of what you want to do. [01:10:15] (19 seconds)  #GratefulForGodsBlessing

To pray God's blessing is to say, Lord, I want what you want. And if we want what God wants, it will be done. That's pretty amazing. [01:10:41] (18 seconds)

And let it be a part of our language when we say things like, bless you, that it remind us to be more than just like good health to you, but to say, bless you indeed. May God pour out his goodness on you. And even use coughing and colds as a way of being reminded to say, bless you. May God's goodness pour out on you. [01:12:06] (29 seconds)

But, people of God bless you. Lord, bless me. Let's practice. Lord, bless me. Go ahead. Lord, bless me. Say it again. Lord, bless me. We're going to have to practice that a little bit in our prayer life just so that it doesn't feel selfish. But remember what you're asking for. [01:12:47] (33 seconds)

Thank you, Lord, for your goodness to us. Thank you, Father, for pouring out your blessing like a waterfall. Bless us indeed. In Jesus' name, Amen. [01:13:20] (17 seconds)