Bruce H. Wilkinson

I got as far as page 20 in this "Christian" best seller, then I read the following

What counts is knowing who you want to be and asking for it

I totally disagree with this statement, since when has the Christian life been about what we want rather than what God wants and has in mind for us? The author suggests that we can access God's blessings by ritually praying certain words connected to Jabez, a little known Bible character. He even tells a story about someone seemingly on a tour of show more heaven who finds a box of blessings that they didn't ask for and therefore didn't receive. If we follow this thread to its logical conclusion, we would spend every waking minute listing all of the possible blessings we can think of in case God has one of them in store for us that might be missed if we don't speak it into existence.....

This book is another method approach to spirituality yet in reality there are no short-cuts (http://christianmissionaryuk.blogspot.co.uk/2016/08/what-is-best-shortcut-to-spirituality.html)

The author claims to have lived a blessed life since beginning to pray this prayer but how can he possibly know whether his blessings can be attributed to this prayer or not? The Bible makes it clear that good things/blessings will fall on the righteous and wicked alike....

Don't waste your time with this. It is little different to casting spells or speaking positive words over someone or saying abracadabra. Unbelievable once again that Christians buy into this stuff.....Please just read your Bible and pray every day, it is a discipline, one that cannot be mastered in just under an hour or in less than 100 pages of incantations.... show less

I don't read many non-Catholic devotionals. But I am more familiar with this one since it was greatly popular among Protestants in the years before I became Catholic. I didn't read it until recently. My parents, who are Baptist, have it at their house for decoration, so I decided to read it.

Books like this are popular among adherents to the so-called Prosperity Gospel, which seems to be more popular during strong economic times. The idea is this: God is waiting to give us all sorts of show more material blessings (health, wealth, land, etc.) if we would only ask him. If we don't ask him, we won't get these things.

As a Catholic, I believe that while Jabez's faith is to be commended, and that while there is nothing wrong with asking God for material blessings, it remains that "the love of money is the root of all evil" (1 Tim. 6:10) and that Jesus says "Blessed are you poor, for yours is the kingdom of God" (Lk. 6:20) and "woe to you who are rich, for you have received your consolation" (v. 24). So we need to exercise prudence in praying such prayers, and seek the reason why we need material goods. (Wilkinson never reflected on why, from an historical perspective, Jabez might ask for what he did.)

The implication of Wilkinson's beliefs expressed in this book are that if you do have X, Y, Z, you lack faith or you are not praying properly. Conventional Christian wisdom says, "God will give you what you ask for if and only if it is in conformity with the will of God" but Wilkinson's message says, "God will give you what you ask for if and only if you ask for it."

Wilkinson tells a story at the end of the book where he prays that his flight is late so he won't miss it. He believes that the flight is made late by God so he can speak to a woman in the terminal. But I have a hard time believing that this MUST be the case. First, God could have arranged a meeting another way (by, for instance, helping Wilkinson be early to the terminal). Second, I have a hunch (and this is only a hunch) that at least one person prayed that the plane wouldn't be late.

I have met Christians who subscribe to this reading of the Bible and refuse to help the poor and the needy because they should help themselves. It is true that God helps those who help themselves, but he does this through the hands of other people. That common saying (which is not found in the Bible) does not preclude us from helping others.

Whenever we read the Bible, it must be read in context of the whole of Scripture. Unfortunately, Mr. Wilkinson seems to neglect the Beatitudes and much of the teachings of Jesus, especially as recorded in the Gospel of Luke. show less

I have just read as much of The Prayer of Jabez as I could stand. Reflecting, I realised that it wasn't my first encounter with this author. I read The Dream Giver whilst serving on-board a missionary ship. A friend highly recommended it so I found it in the ship library. I remember being disappointed and thinking it reminded me of the Christian hedonism principle espoused by John Piper which I don't have much time for.

This book is an allegory in the style of Pilgrim's Progress or Hinds Feet show more on High Places but it falls short in every area by comparison. The main reason it falls short is because the underlying principle is erroneous--it is all about living our dreams in the here and now or as Joel Osteen would say "Your best life now..." It might be a "nice story" but encouraging people to focus on their earthly dreams, ambitions and successes even with God in the picture is a recipe for disaster.

This book was not as offensive or dangerous as the Jabez one, I just think its focus is in the wrong place and it may distract people from taking up their cross and following Jesus. Also, what happens when the inevitable suffering and trials come or dreams fail?......let's set our minds on things above instead, then we won't be shaken. show less

The premise of this book is sound, and underscores two things I strongly believe: God still does miracles through unexpected and everyday occurrences, and believers who are open and available to His leading can be the source of those miracles for others. No problems there.

What I didn't enjoy about the book was the writing style itself--it reads like a sales pitch. Words like dream, opportunity, five keys to this and six easy steps to that are slung around so liberally it overshadows the show more Scriptural principles.

I guess I'm a little old-fashioned. If I need a book to overhaul my lifestyle and revolutionize my attitudes, I believe I'll just pick up my Bible, thank you. show less