Effectual Prayer – The Prayer of Jabez – free printable

For What Did Jabez Pray? What was his effectual prayer?

God’s Blessing
God’s Enlargement of his coast
God;s leading – that His hand would be with him
God’s keeping power – to keep him from evil
God’s grace – granting him that which he requested

What is the example for my own prayer life?

When praying for God’s blessing, do not pray frivolously. Call out to God from the depths of your heart. Ask God to put on your heart the things you ought to pray about. This is what Jabez did: “OH that thou wouldest bless me indeed“! He wanted to make sure this was emphasized. Do I call on God to bless me? And to bless me according to His will, not what I think His blessings should be. This was no just a frivolous prayer, flippantly asking God for things, but a prayer from the depths of his heart.
Cry out for God’s Blessing, but don’t get too caught up in your own little corner of the world with it’s trials and sorrows that you cannot see beyond this. Instead ask God to enlarge your coast. He will fill your cup and run it over. (Ps. 23:5) He will give you blessings over and above all that you could ask or think. (Eph 3:20) He will show you who to reach out to and minister to.
Ask God to lead on a daily basis. (Ps. 25:4) Pray regularly for the Lord to show you his way teach you His paths. And remember He does lead beside still waters and always in the paths of righteousness. (Ps 23:2-3) In these paths you will find rest and quietness and joy and peace. Jabez wanted God’s help and presence and the security of knowing He was always with Him. Take His hand and let Him lead you.
Ask God to keep you from evil. Why? In order not to be grieved. Oh yes, evil will bring much grief. If sinners entice, do not consent for their ways are always the ways of death. It is all through the Proverbs. Praying this may ensure that we never have to face certain things in this wicked world. We need not fear evil for God is with us. (Ps. 23:4) God will ultimately deliver us from all the evils of this world when He receives us to glory. (Gal. 1:4)
Praise God for your answered requests – What grace is this that He would even consider answering our requests! But He does! May our prayers be only for the glory of God and not to consume it upon our own lusts.
James 4:3 Ye ask, and receive not, because ye ask amiss, that ye may consume it upon your lusts.
1. The Israelites complained, wanted meat and God granted their request. They asked not for God’s glory, but to consume it upon their own lusts. (Nu. 11:4-6; 18-20)
2. God granted their request, but sent leanness unto their souls. I do not want a lean soul, but instead a “fat soul” , a soul that is flourishing for the Lord. May my requests be for His glory! See also: Ps 92:14, Pr.11:25; 13;4; 28;25, and Is. 58:11.

Make sure you are right with God so you can pray effectually.
Psalms 34:15 The eyes of the LORD are upon the righteous, and his ears are open unto their cry.
So who are the righteous? Psalms 34:11-14 Come, ye children, hearken unto me: I will teach you the fear of the LORD. What man is he that desireth life, and loveth many days, that he may see good? Keep thy tongue from evil, and thy lips from speaking guile. Depart from evil, and do good; seek peace, and pursue it.

those that fear the Lord and come to Him to learn in order to learn that fear
those that keep their tongues from speaking evil and lies and deceit
those that depart from evil, do good, seek and pursue peace

God hears the effectual prayers of these people, the righteous, those that know Him and keep His commandments. Jabez must have been a righteous man. Compare these verses: 1 Peter 3:8-12 Finally, be ye all of one mind, having compassion one of another, love as brethren, be pitiful, be courteous: Not rendering evil for evil, or railing for railing: but contrariwise blessing; knowing that ye are thereunto called, that ye should inherit a blessing. For he that will love life, and see good days, let him refrain his tongue from evil, and his lips that they speak no guile: Let him eschew evil, and do good; let him seek peace, and ensue it. For the eyes of the Lord are over the righteous, and his ears are open unto their prayers: but the face of the Lord is against them that do evil.

God will grant the requests of our effectual prayer.
Pray as Jabez prayed, to the point. He believed and God answered his prayer of faith.

Effectual Prayer – The Prayer of Jabez – free printable

What is the example for my own prayer life?

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