A wise person said to me: “Its amazing what people will do for you if you just ask”. I did think this was a very profound statement to live your life by, but it… is.

The truth is, people love receiving favors, and people love giving favors.

Yesterday, 3 Americans came into the store and ordered soft serves.
“Please make them big one’s“, they smiled. I did. I made them at least twice as big as a normal soft serve. “Awesome! wow!” they said everytime I presented them with a new jumbo-cone. They were very happy. And I was very happy - for the rest of the day.

When you ask for a favor, you are giving someone else an opportunity to do something kind for you. And that is a really cool gift.

I think this also applies to God. I think his plan for your life is one of overwhelming blessing’s. I was reading the Jabez prayer (1 Chronicles 4:9) which goes like this:

Oh that you would Bless me indeed,
and enlarge my territory,
that your hand would be with me,
and you would keep me from evil
That I may not cause pain

At the beginning I was resistant to this. It seemed like such a selfish prayer. And if there is one thing that really REALLY gets under my skin, it is Selfish Christians.

But this is what turned me: The prayer doesn’t say: “Give me a better job, get me a girl friend” etc. I think it is presumptuous to assume you know what you need more than God dose. He see’s the ultimate plan for your life, and maybe you need a crappy job and no girlfriend right now? (Although I can honestly say I do not want a girlfriend right now, I wouldn’t mind a new job). It doesn’t hurt to ask God for specific things in your life, but you always have to bring it back to his will being done in you.

Don’t forget, the apostles were all poor and homeless outcasts who were constantly mobbed, martyred and exiled. They were living in the center of Gods will. And if I could ask them now, I bet they would tell me they lived the most blessed life possible. This prayer (when spoken with pure intentions) gives God permission to pour out whatever blessings HE deems worthy on your life so that he can mold it as he wishes.

I have made my own adjustment to the prayer:

Lord, that you would bless me as you deem worthy,
That you would enlarge your kingdom through me,
That your hand would always be on me and in me,
And that you would keep me far from evil,
That I may not cause pain but bring life.

I plan on applying this prayer to my life. And I recommend that, if you worship my God, to read this book. Its rather good.