Labels and Limitations

In 1940 a little girl was born to a poor black family in Tennessee. The 20^th of 22 children, she was born prematurely weighing a little over four pounds. She was a sickly child that many believed would not live to see her first birthday.

At the age of five, she got polio and had to wear a leg brace on her left leg. She was told by doctors that she would never walk much less run again. Her mom told her that she would. Her mom and siblings worked with her and massaged her legs daily.

At the age six, she could hop around on one leg. At eight, she began moving around with the leg brace. At eleven, her mom discovered her playing basketball outside with the other kids. She amazed the doctors when she took the leg brace off and started walking without it.

Wilma Rudolph turned to sports becoming a natural athlete. In 1960 she became the first woman to win three Gold medals in track and field in a single Olympic.

She had labels given to and spoken over her – poor, black, premature, sick, and crippled. And with these labels limitations were also spoken over her. She overcame all the labels and limitations that came with them.

We have all kinds of labels we bring on ourselves or others put on us – worthless, ugly, stupid, nerd, not good enough, hopeless, failure, slow, pathetic, useless, loser, unlucky, crazy, retard, weird, selfish, criminal, addict, fat, skinny, tall, short, gross – all kinds of social labels today and the list goes on and on. You can come up with your own list.

I want to look at a scripture about a man who had a label given to and spoken over him (I Chronicles 4:9 & 10). His name was Jabez. In the Hebrew culture names were a big deal. They believed that the child would become what the name implied. The child would identify with and symbolize what the name meant. His life would be characterized by the meaning of his name.

Normally in this culture the father would name the children. We are not told what all has happened where the father is or what is going on. It does seem that the father is missing in this boy’s life because we are told that the mother named him.

“His mother names him Jabez” (9b). The name Jabez means pain, misery, sorrow. He makes sorrowful. He causes pain. Somehow she saw him as a miserable pain. How would you like to have the name Pain? Hey, Pain, come in here: it’s time to eat. Pain, get ready for bed. Pain, put your toys up.

We’ve heard the phrase by parents stating that their kids are a pain in the rear. One lady told me recently a story about when she was pregnant with her son. The way that he was positioned in the womb did something to her sciatic nerve and she has had a pain in the rear ever since. He is now in his twenties and she will still say to him that he was and is literally a pain in the rear.

Jabez was a man with a pitiful start, a pitiful past, and no hope for the future; a man who no doubt would often struggle to find meaning and significance in is life. He realized he was in need of God’s intervention. Unwilling to settle for or stay stuck there, unwilling to follow his birth name’s prediction, unwilling to follow the negative pronouncement over his life, unwilling to allow his name (the label) and what it implied (the limitations) to define him, he called out to the God of Israel.

He didn’t allow his pain to define his view of God. It is so easy when we experience pain to view

God in a different light. He didn’t have a pity party. He didn’t walk away from God. He believed that God alone could change his destiny. He understood that he could not change anything on his own. But, he believed that God is the One who can open doors. He is the One who gives favor. He is the One who gives blessing. He is the One who provides. He is the One who empowers and the One who gives protection. So he asked God to change his future. He cried out with boldness, urgency, and sincerity. “God, bless me, enlarge my borders, let your hand be with me, and keep me from harm and evil.”

He wanted his life to be marked by blessing; for his influence to be enlarged; and for the Lord’s hand to be upon is life. He wanted a name change. This name change would include a transfusion of God’s plan into his very nature, a sovereign replacement of his mothers’ choice in naming him. The Bible says Jabez was more honorable than his brethren. Instead of pain, you will be called blessed. Instead of limitations, your borders will expand – greater influence, greater opportunities.

Too many people are being deceived that their future is hopeless and that nothing good can come out of it. They believe the lie of Satan that change is not possible and their lives can never be better. In Jeremiah 29:11 God says, “I know the plans I have for you, plans of peace, and not evil, plans to give you an expected end, a future and a hope.”

God did not create any of us with a destiny that is useless, nor is the present state of our lives our destiny. For any life that is on the wrong course for any reason there are unlimited possibilities when you cry out to God.

“Jabez called out to the God of Israel.” He said, “Bless me indeed.” One translation says, “If only you would bless me.” The wording in the Hebrew is bless me, bless me. There is a great emphasis here. It is like putting five exclamation marks at the end of the request. Bless me a lot. Bless me a great deal. Bless me in a big way.

O God, bless me in my marriage. Bless me in my relationships with my children. Bless me in my ministry. Bless me in my prayer time. Bless me in my studying of your Word. Bless me so I can be a blessing to others.

He wasn’t praying a selfish prayer but he wanted God’s best for his life. The Hebrew word for bless indicates divine favor. Jabez was asking God for supernatural favor. He was asking God to pour out His favor and power on him and to do something supernatural in his life. He asked God to expand his borders. He wasn’t simply asking for more land. He wanted his influence to reach further, he wanted greater opportunities. We also should want God to use us in greater ways; to take us further; to get in deeper; to get out of our comfort zones and reach new horizon; to reach people outside of our current territory; to increase our ability to do greater things for God’s glory.

Jabez asked for God’s hand to be with him. O, how we need the very presence and power of God with us. He asked that God would be active in his life – a living Jesus at our side from day to day, hour to hour, being our very strength. There’s nothing quite as awesome as having and knowing that the hand of God is upon your life.

Then Jabez prays that God would keep him from evil. His name meant “He who causes pain.” He didn’t want to cause pain anymore. He wanted God to protect him and keep him from anything that would bring pain upon himself of others. As his territory began to expand, as he experienced the hand of God upon his life, as he began to reach and influence more people for Jesus, as he experienced the supernatural favor of God upon his life, as he moved deeper into the enemies territory, Jabez cried out for God to keep him – keep him from sin, keep him from distractions, keep him from anything and everything that would hinder him or bring more pain to his life or those around him.

What a prayer!! Not only was it Jabez’ prayer, it is our prayer today. God granted Jabez his request. May He grant it for us as well.

Wilma Rudolph refused to allow her real life situations, the labels and limitations she was experiencing, define the rest of her future. Jabez was unwilling to remain stuck in the place, in the pain, that the labels and limitations had him experiencing. He believed that God had something more for him, something greater, so he cried out to God for change.

I believe he would sing along with the song I Won’t Go Back. It says,

“I’ve been changed, healed, freed, delivered. I’ve found joy, peace, grace and favor. In the presence of the Lord, I’ve been changed, healed, freed, delivered. In the presence of the Lord, I’ve found joy, peace, grace and favor.

And right now is the moment, today is the day, I’ve been changed, I’ve been changed. I have waited for this moment to come and I won’t let it pass me by. I won’t go back, I can’t go back to the way it used to be before your presence came and changed me.

All my shame, guilt, sins, forgiven. No more chains, fears, my past is over and right now is the moment, today is the day. I won’t let it pass me by. I won’t go back. I can’t go back to the way it used to be before your presence came and changed me.

Dear friend, right now is the moment. Today is the day. Call out to God for a change in your life. He did it for Jabez. He did it for me. He’ll do it for you. Don’t let this moment pass by.