Jesus is our Great Physician. If we allow Him, He will take the Word of God, which is sharper than any two-edged sword, and lay us open. Then He will wash us in the Word and cleanse those festering sores.
Finally, when He is sure that all infection is gone, He will wrap us in a bandage of Himself. He will ooze the oil of the Holy Spirit and the Balm of Gilead to heal our wounds.
A Prayer God Will Answer
Jabez was a man whose past was hurting him. I know that despite the fact that there are only two verses in the whole Bible about him:
And Jabez was more honourable than his brethren: and his mother called his name Jabez, saying, Because I bare him with sorrow.
And Jabez called on the God of Israel, saying, Oh that thou wouldest bless me indeed, and enlarge my coast, and that thine hand might be with me, and that thou wouldest keep me from evil, that it may not grieve me! And God granted him that which he requested.
(1 Chron. 4:9-10)
A Child Abandoned
Jabez was hurting because he didn’t have a father in his life. The clue is that his mother named him. In that culture, a male child was named by his father during the baby’s circumcision.
This child’s mother named him Jabez, which means “You Have Caused Me Great Pain.” We can only imagine what she suffered raising a son alone. How would you like to be raised in a household where your mother called you Jabez?
“Cause Of My Pain, come to supper!”
He grew up to be a man with a problem. His whole life was based on how he hurt other people. That’s why when he became an adult, Jabez cried out to God for help.
The Bible says that God granted his request.
Your Past Will Try To Name You
Your past will try to name you too, but you don’t have to let the name stick. Your past may have named you Abandoned, Abused or Rejected. No matter how you dress it up or how you sing praises in the congregation, it still hurts.
All of those things are affecting you, and they will continue to affect you until you cry out to God and allow Him to heal the wounds.
When you do, God will grant your request.
Then you can do what Isaiah prophesied, “Remember ye not the former things, neither consider the things of old” (Isa. 43:18). Don’t let the devil bring it to your memory anymore. When he tries to condemn you with your past, refuse to even think about it.
Mediate on where God is taking you now. Let yourself become a new creature in Christ Jesus.
You don’t have to hurt anymore.
God’s love will blast away the pain of your past.
Your fullness of time is now.
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Lamont D. McLean was the pastor of Living Faith Christian Center (LFCC), a church currently headquartered in Pennsauken, New Jersey with a congregation of approximately 7,000 members.
Pastor Lamont, as he was affectionately known, answered the call to ministry in 1985, when the Lord gave him direction on his purpose: "I am going to show you how to run My business by teaching you how to run your own business."
This word from God triggered a series of events that shaped Pastor Lamont's destiny and ultimately impacted the lives of thousands of people that have been touched by the ministry of Living Faith Christian Center.
In July of 1985 and with the same tenacity employed in business, Pastor Lamont would open doors to Living Faith Christian Center, a local church with a worldwide mission to reach the lost, strengthen families and raise up leaders that impact our communities and the world with the Word of God. Begun in the basement of his home while residing in Erial, New Jersey, the bible study of ten would grow to a congregation of more than 7,000 members and a myriad of ministries that have life-changing impact upon the region and the world.
A dynamic, compassionate and steadfast pastor and teacher, his inspiring and life-changing sermons have been circulated throughout the world through extensive repertoire of audio and visual teaching series, a Telly Award-winning television broadcast entitled “Faith Speaks” that aired on Fox 29 and numerous other local and national networks, and three books “ Shepherding God’s Way”, “Living With Certainty in an Uncertain World” and “Missing Links to Victorious Living” which was re-released by Whitaker House Publishing in September 2007 under the title “Opening the Door to Your Future” following the demand of his first edition which sold-out.
In addition to the expansive growth attributed to his leadership at Living Faith Christian Center, Pastor Lamont was also responsible for the birth of Living Faith Christian Academy, a private Christian school founded in 2002 to provide children in grades K-12 with a nurturing environment to develop the spirit, mind and bodies of tomorrow’s leaders.
Dr. Lamont was the recipient of numerous awards including the Small Business Administration (SBA) Award for Business Excellence and the 2007 NAACP Visionary Award. Vision International University in Ramona, CA conferred an honorary, post humus doctorate to Pastor Lamont D. McLean in June of 2007 for his life’s work and contributions to the body of Christ.