"Lord, keep me from making the mistakes I'm most prone to when temptation comes. I confess that what I think is necessary, smart, or personally beneficial is so often the beautiful wrapping on sin. So please, keep evil far from me." -- Bruce Wilkinson THE PRAYER OF JABEZ
Bruce took quite a hit when he wrote this powerful book based on the prayer found in the middle of the genealogies in 1 Chronicles 4. Despite the criticism, Bruce's book his the New York Best-seller's list for months and the book impacted hundreds of thousands of people.
In a society where the average person spends less than 5 minutes in daily prayer, I appreciated Bruce's passion to get people praying daily and journaling what the Lord would teach them. I frequently pray the prayer of Jabez and continue to see God work in my life as I apply the
principles of this prayer.
One of the principles of the prayer in 1 Chronicles 4:10 is praying that "God would keep me from evil (temptation) so that I will not cause pain." Temptation comes in many forms. I'm not telling you anything new. You could write your own story to validate this principle. We need to be
aware that there are seasons of our lives when temptation is stronger than others.
Bruce Wilkinson reminds us in his new book, BEYOND JABEZ that "praying from protection is most critical when we are serving God! Keep in mind that God never promised to keep all temptation away from you. In particular, watch carefully for temptation at two specific times: (1) just before a significant effort in God's service and (2) just after such an effort, when you're physically and spiritually exhausted. During these times, keep your heart especially close to God and frequently ask for protection from temptation.
A wise course of action is to preempt temptation before it has a chance to strike, by implementing practical safeguards against the sins you have the hardest times resisting. Set up an accountability phone call. Travel a route that avoids moral snares. Remove from your life any temptations that you know are likely to lead you into stronger temptation."
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