Nestled in the Woods

I Chronicles 4: 10…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.

This prayer, particularly the part about enlarging territory, was popular some years back, prompting marketers to make bracelets, coffee cups, tee shirts and the like to promote the idea that all we need to do is pray and God will give us material blessings. 

What happened to this notion?  I see neither confirmation that Christians are more affluent than their counterpart in the non-Christian world, nor do I see evidence of the once-trendy marketing tools these days.  It seems odd that Christian believers who may have diligently prayed that prayer seem to be suffering through this economic crisis at the same rate of non-believers.  Perhaps the prayer was not prayed in faith; perhaps that prayer was only meant for Old Testament times; perhaps it’s all a myth.  I do wonder if perhaps the prayer we pray in our day should be, not for personal material gain, but for a deeper spiritual relationship with God.

I pray my own paraphrase of this prayer:

Oh, God of Israel, I pray that You would bless me indeed; help me to reach beyond my self-imposed borders to others with the gospel and for Your Kingdom; may I walk in Your presence each moment today; keep me from the evils of this world; may I never cause harm or pain to those whose lives touch mine.

Another odd tidbit: the name Jabez means “sorrow”.  We must be sorrowful for our sins before we can expect the joy of Christ to reach out beyond those self-imposed borders.

It is not about what we have…the things that feed our greed; it is about the advancement of God’s Kingdom.  It’s not about me; it’s about Him. Pray to be more and more like Christ and God will, indeed, grant you what you request.

Today, while everyone else is talking about freedom, liberty, and independence, I am thinking about the freedom in “critter land”…that of the wild animals and birds.  Living in the remote back country of North Carolina, I have the privilege to eavesdrop on their world, and I see what it means to be free.  Freedom doesn’t mean we can do as we please, but we do as nature mandates for us.  It isn’t all about how we can get, but how we can receive what God has provided for us.  At Calvary, God provided the ultimate gift of freedom…freedom from His wrath in the sacrifice of His Son, Jesus. 

EARLY MORNING EAVESDROP

The sun has barely kissed the mountain tops,
And colors yet remain a muted hint
 of summer’s splash.
It’s then I see the wary eye and lively hops
Of Mother Rabbit; speckled thrush; a glint
 of chipmunk’s dash
  beneath the leaves to nether habitat;
A gentle whirr of wings…he hardly stops
To sip the nectar from a bud of mint
 and in a flash
He’s gone to find a sweeter draught of sops…
The humming bird in acrobatic sprint
 back to his cache
  beyond the reach of Prince, the family cat.

This brief encounter in the early morn…
An eavesdrop on an alien critter land
 of diligence…
Reminds me not my duties ever scorn,
And to be grateful for those things at hand…
 a world immense
  and filled with bounty far beyond my dreams.
It is not commerce, but creation’s norm
Gives satisfaction to my soul’s demand…
 No false pretense
Or roads to riches or some task perform…
These are but castles to be built on sand…
 No consequence.
But rather count my blessing, not my schemes.