“The Prayer of Jabez”, which was the New York Times bestseller, is a book focusing on a simple prayer hidden in the Old Testament of the Bible. The prayer is only one sentence long spoken by a man named Jabez who desired a better life and asked God for his assistance and bless his efforts.
"And Jabez called on the God of Israel saying,
“Oh that you would bless me indeed,
and enlarge my territory,
that your hand would be with me,
and that you would keep me from evil
that I may not suffer pain!”
so God granted him what he requested."
1 Chronicles 4:10
The rest of the book studies each part of the prayer and why each word is necessary to receive God's blessing.
As much as this book has been popular it has also caused a lot of controversy. Why should a prayer with a mechanical formula be used to exploit God to receive our selfish desires? After all, Christianity is about a relationship with God through expressive, spontaneous prayer and not some mantra styled prayer.
Despite the negative opinions I believe this book is worth reading, as the issues discussed will certainly get you thinking.
