Jabez was more honorable than his brothers.  His mother had named him Jabez, saying,
"I gave birth to him in pain."  Jabez cried out to the God of Israel,
"Oh, that you would bless me and enlarge my territory!   Let your hand be
with me, and keep me from harm so that I will be free from pain."
And God granted his request.
1 Chr. 4:10

The Fifth Prayer of Jabez

By now you have probably heard about the Prayer of Jabez.  Perhaps by now, you feel you've heard too much about it! 

There is one aspect of the prayer that you've not heard as much about.  It's often skipped over all together or barely even mentioned.  In our excitement over blessings, enlarged territory, God's work in our lives and protection from evil, we miss the last phrase, the one that the whole verse runs to as its goal - "so that I may be free from pain" (NIV) or "that I may not cause pain" (NKJV).  I like the latter translation as it seems more in keeping with the rest of the scripture.  We are not promised freedom from pain in this life.  As a matter of fact, the opposite appears to be true.  As our Lord promised his disciples, "In this world ye shall have tribulation…" (John 16:33).  Our Lord is referred to as "a man of sorrows" (Isaiah 53:3).  Should we expect to be protected from those sorrows as we follow in his footsteps?  Besides, the desire not to cause pain fits well with the circumstances of the prayer.  Jabez's mother had experienced pain in his birth - probably more than the ordinary pain of childbirth.  (Perhaps Jabez was a breech baby.)  I can imagine Jabez's heartfelt cry that he would never again cause pain to anyone he cared about.

This speaks to my heart.  I want so much to minister God's grace to people, to be a blessing, to expand God's territory in this world by winning others to Christ, to see God working in and through me, and to experience God's protection as I walk with him.  Underlying those desires is an equally heartfelt desire that I may not cause anyone else undue pain.  May I not run roughshod over the wounded spirits of others in this broken world.  May my own needs not collide hurtfully with those of others.  May no one else pay the price for my carelessness, irresponsibility, thoughtlessness, neglect or sinfulness.

In medicine, the first rule of practice is to do no harm.  As God's children, we need to minister God's love, healing and wholeness to a hurting world.  As we seek to do that, may God help us and work through us, that we may not cause pain but rather be instruments of grace, mercy and healing.

Pastor Mary