The Prayer of Jabez

1. The Perspectives on the Jabez "Hand of God"

A. The "Hand of God" intervenes to make PROVISION

God can provide the needed personal and ministry RESOURCES

^* Moses said, “There are 600,000 soldiers here, and you say, ‘I will give them enough meat to eat for a whole month!’ If we were to kill all the sheep and cattle, that would still not be enough to feed this many people for a month. And if we caught all the fish in the sea, it would not be enough for them!” But the Lord said to Moses, “Don’t limit my power! You will see that I can do what I say I can do.”* -Numbers 11:21-23
* “Don’t worry and say, ‘What will we eat?’ or ‘What will we drink?’ or ‘What will we wear?’ That’s what those people who don’t know God are always thinking about. Don’t worry, because your Father in heaven knows that you need all these things. What you should want most is God’s kingdom and doing what he wants you to do. Then he will give you all these other things you need.* - Matthew 6:31-33
*My God will use his glorious riches to give you everything you need. He will do this through Christ Jesus.* -Philippians 4:19

B. The "Hand of God" intervenes to cause an authority to grant PERMISSION

God can make your authority change his mind and grant your REQUEST

* To the Lord, a king’s mind is like a ditch used to water the fields. He can lead the king wherever he wants him to go.* - Proverbs 21:1

* I also said to the king, “If it would please the king to do something else for me, let me ask. Please give me some letters to show the governors of the area west of the Euphrates River. I need these letters so that the governors will give me permission to pass safely through their lands on my way to Judah. I also need lumber for the heavy wooden beams for the gates, the walls, the walls around the Temple, and my house. So I need a letter from you to Asaph, who is in charge of your forests.” The king gave me the letters and everything I asked for. The king did that because my God was kind to me.* - Nehemiah 2:7-8

C. The "Hand of God" intervenes with His PRESENCE

God Can make His presence known in a specific PLACE

*Elisha said, “Don’t be afraid. The army that fights for us is larger than the army that fights for Aram.”

Then Elisha prayed and said, “Lord, I ask you, open my servant’s eyes so that he can see.”
The Lord opened the eyes of the young man, and the servant saw the mountain was full of horses and chariots of fire. They were all around Elisha.* - 2 Kings 6:16-17
*Then he said to Him, “If Your Presence does not go with us, do not bring us up from here. For how then will it be known that Your people and I have found grace in Your sight, except You go with us?* -Exodus 33: 15-16a

D. The "Hand of God" intervenes to defend and PROTECT

God can protect you from any human or spiritual ATTACK

 *Pilate said, “You refuse to speak to me? Remember, I have the power to make you free or to kill you on a cross.” Jesus answered, “The only power you have over me is the power given to you by God. So the one who handed me over to you is guilty of a greater sin.”* - John 19:10-11
*If you throw us into the hot furnace, the God we serve can save us. And if He wants to, He can save us from your power. But even if God does not save us, we want you to know, King, that we refuse to serve your gods. We will not worship the gold idol you have set up.”* - Daniel 3:17-18
*To end my letter I tell you, be strong in the Lord and in His great power. Wear the full armor of God. Wear God’s armor so that you can fight against the devil’s clever tricks.* - Ephesians 6:10-11

E. The "Hand of God intervenes to overcome limitations with His POWER

God is not limited by any of your inadequacies or LIMITATIONS

*But the Lord said, “My grace is all you need. Only when you are weak can everything be done completely by my power.” So I will gladly boast about my weaknesses. Then Christ’s power can stay in me. Yes, I am glad to have weaknesses if they are for Christ. I am glad to be insulted and have hard times. I am glad when I am persecuted and have problems, because it is when I am weak that I am really strong.* - 2 Corinthians 12:9-10

*Christ is the one who gives me the strength I need to do whatever I must do.* - Philippians 4:13

2. The Practical Steps for the Jabez "Hand of God"

• HUMBLE yourself under the mighty "Hand of God"

*So be humble under God’s powerful hand. Then he will lift you up when the right time comes.* - 1 Peter 5:6

• ADOPT a lifestyle or proactive dependency upon God

* Stay joined to me and I will stay joined to you. No branch can produce fruit alone. It must stay connected to the vine. It is the same with you. You cannot produce fruit alone. You must stay joined to me. “I am the vine, and you are the branches. If you stay joined to me, and I to you, you will produce plenty of fruit. But separated from me you won’t be able to do anything.* - John 15:4-5

• NARROW your focus to what God wants done

*What you should want most is God’s kingdom and doing what he wants you to do. Then he will give you all these other things you need.* - Matthew 1:16 

• DEDICATE yourself to live an ever increasing walk of faith

*So I never stop being grateful for you, as I mention you in my prayers.* - Ephesians 1:16
*And you will know that God’s power is very great for us who believe. It is the same as the mighty power  He used to raise Christ from death and put Him at His right side in the heavenly places.* - Ephesians 1:19-20
*With God’s power working in us, he can do much, much more than anything we can ask or think of.* - Ephesians 3:20

3. The Potential Results from the Jabez "Hand of God"
    A. You will see the "Hand of God" miraculously INTERVENE
    B. You will see the "Hand of God" move beyond your INABILITIES
    C. You will see the "Hand of God" overcome the IMPOSSIBLE

Conclusion:
*He said, “This is the message from the Lord to Zerubbabel: ‘Your help will not come from your own strength and power. No, your help will come from My Spirit.’ This is what the Lord All-Powerful says* - Zechariah 4:6

Story:
George Mueller opened a children's home and depended solely on God to handle its every need. Once there was no food for the children's breakfast, and a meat truck broke down just outside. The driver provided the meal. These miracles were common occurrences, and Mueller logged 10,000 answered prayers during his career.