Secret Place

Prayer of Jabez

Below are the lyrics¹ for this lovely song (I have added chords for those who want to play them on a musical instrument; hope they are right…he, he, he!):

D D D
Oh that You would bless me indeed!
D D A
Oh that You would bless me indeed!
G A
And enlarge my border
G A
That Your hand would be with me
G Bm
That You'd keep me from evil
A F#m
That I might not cause pain
Em G D
Oh when I call on Your name
Em G D
Oh that You would bless me
Em G D
That Your hand would be with me


The above's a great prayer to pray DAILY...



Oh, if only we do that in faith!
How much more will the LORD be able
To enlarge our tents and strengthen our pegs

Oh, if only we'd do just that!
How much more will He change us and use us
So that His Name be more glorified

For without prayer,
How can we ever hope to achieve anything?
Apart from prayer,
How can we conquer the highest peak for the King?


To sing along, switch on your speakers, prepare your heart, and (Note: you can listen if you are using Internet Explorer) <--click the PLAY button to the left, and wait for a few moments to enter into your "secret place." This is where it's promised: Your Father, who sees you in secret, will reward you (Matt 6:4). Our heavenly Father sees things in the secret places. It is not just what we do that He sees; it is what we think (unknown to other people), and the words that we utter under our breath that He "sees." It is not so much the evil things that we think, say or do that is meant here, though it's important that we confess them before we can enter into the intimacy of His Presence (Ps 66:18, 1 John 1:7-9). Rather, what God's more interested in are the kind thoughts we entertain, the gracious words that we mumble, and the righteous acts that we do in the secrecy of our heart and room.

It is paramount for us to invoke the protection of God in our daily walk. That’s not a problem at all for most people; they don’t mind praying that for themselves. Some people, including Christians, however, tend to think that it's selfish to pray for blessings for themselves. "Bless me, bless me, bless me, Lord" kind of sounds selfish. But no! It is our Father's good pleasure to bless us with every good thing. In fact, He already has!

Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who hath blessed us with all spiritual blessings in heavenly places in Christ: (Eph 1:3)

Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, and cometh down from the Father of lights, … (James 1:17)

God wants to bless us so that we can be a blessing to others.

And God is able to make all grace (every favor and earthly blessing) come to you in abundance, so that you may always and under all circumstances and whatever the need be self-sufficient [possessing enough to require no aid or support and furnished in abundance for every good work and charitable donation]. Thus you will be enriched in all things and in every way, so that you can be generous, and [your generosity as it is] administered by us will bring forth thanksgiving to God. (2 Cor 9:8, 11, AMP)

But why is it that some of us do not receive His favor and earthly blessings? James makes it very clearly:

…ye have not, because ye ask not. Ye ask, and receive not, because ye ask amiss, that ye may consume it upon your lusts. (4:2b,3)

In our prayer closets, we should reach out in faith to God our Heavenly Father to appropriate (receive) that which He has already promised or given to us. But having received God's blessings, we must not stop there! We want to enlarge our border so we can accommodate more people, so we can extend His kingdom. Outsiders are excluded from certain benefits. That’s why because of His grace, He has extended His invitation to all peoples—regardless of race, class, creed, color, size, shape, persuasion, philosophy or religion! “Come to Me, and I shall certainly not cast you out. I shall never leave you nor forsake you,” He says (John 6:37, Deut 31). Inside His kingdom, our gracious God indeed wants all of us to accept for ourselves all His goodness and mercy, all the days of our lives, for it’s only in His glorious kingdom that we can enjoy His manifold benefits as rightful subjects of His. It’s also in His everlasting kingdom that we can relish the highest and everlasting health, among other things!



¹ Based on 1 Chronicles 4:10. Copyright © 2005 Ray Watson - The Secret Place



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Addendum to Secret Place

Here’s an another invitation to enter into the Secret Place, for a refreshing experience:

If you would like to accept the invitation, turn on your speakers, and press