“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 Chronicles 4:10)
It was great to be away on vacation, away from the hustle and bustle of home. What did I want to do? I was enjoying just contemplating the question.
“Go outside”, I found myself answering to my own question. I had to laugh at that reply! It reminded me of when I was a kid, and all I ever wanted to do was go outside.
Outside. What a wonderful place. You never knew what might happen outside. Who you’d see, what you might do. It didn’t matter; just getting outside was the important thing. I knew it would be good. It would be fun.
In the 4th chapter of 1 Chronicles, in the Bible, there’s a story about a man named Jabez. The whole story is related in just two brief verses, but it says a lot. In the amplified version, the word “territory” is translated as “border”. Kind of like the lines around a box, the border.
John 10:10 talks about that ‘zoe’ abundant life that God wants to give us. Certainly God is bigger than any box I might have put Him in It’s good to think outside the box, to not limit the Lord. Opening up to more of God and to what He wants; outside the box, a good thing. “The thief does not come except to steal, and to kill, and to destroy. I have come that they may have life, and that they may have it more abundantly.” (John 10:10)
Inspirational messages by Sally I. Kennedy
Sally I. Kennedy, 2012