My fellow brethren in Christ Jesus our Lord and Saviour greetings to you all. Many of us want the blessing but we don’t realise that it comes at a cost. We pray and ask the Father to bless us without realising that before the blessing there has to be sorrow just like in Jabez’s case. Listen without the pit and prison Joseph would not have been made Prime Minister. Without being sidelined, Goliath and King Saul’s pursuits David wouldn’t be made King. If you read the book of Samuel clearly you will realise that king David was tested before he was qualified to be King of Israel. He could have killed king Saul but passed the test by not touching the Lord’s anointed. What you and I do not realise is that the blessing of the Lord doesn’t come cheap, and if you want it easy then you are surely undeserving.
Watch this Christ Jesus had to endure arrest, humiliation, being beaten up, spat on, and the cross in order to become the King of Kings. The bible puts it this way,Hebrews 4:15
[15]For we do not have a High Priest Who is unable to understand and sympathize and have a shared feeling with our weaknesses and infirmities and liability to the assaults of temptation, but One Who has been tempted in every respect as we are, yet without sinning.

That word tempted means Christ Jesus our Lord and Saviour was tested and did not fail.
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Philippians 2:
[9]Therefore [because He stooped so low] God has highly exalted Him and has freely bestowed on Him the name that is above every name,
Do you see this, Christ Jesus knowing who He is, was tested by being reduced to become a man and yet obeyed in humility, and because of this He was given a name that is above every name!
And yet here you are, you want that title, you want that pay check,and you want that marriage but things like maintaining a single relationship, a simple job and enduring that boss or colleague or environment you quit along the way and think God will open another door; forget it.
Even Abraham was tested in order for him to be known as the father of faith. My brothers and sisters the blessing comes at a price. If you don’t work for it then you won’t earn it and if you do earn it proves you deserve it. Nothing is given for free. Only faith is a free gift, but with it you must put effort (work) for that faith to be alive. It is very important that you realise this truth, what you do with little determines if you deserve plenty. Some of us earn little and God watches to see if with the little you will do due diligence. You treat others badly and expect your boss to be kind to you, my friend you’re joking!
The parable of the talents was written so that we know and understand that one is given little so that they can work hard to be blessed. I remember growing up I saw a school motto that read, hardwork breeds success. All these people we read in the Bible with great achievements did not just pray and believe God for the blessing but they worked for it and earned it.
Hear me well today, the Lord Jesus Christ said anyone who quits is not deserving. So if you are one that is always complaining, always quitting, then realise that you are the problem not the environment/boss/friends.
Luke 9:62
[62]Jesus said to him, No one who puts his hand to the plow and looks back [to the things behind] is fit for the kingdom of God.
If you are seeking comfortable conditions then you are dreaming and not living in reality. Without working towards righteousness you surely cannot get favour. Even so favour from God does not come cheap, otherwise if it did everyone who prayed for the blessing would’ve been billionaires by now. What we don’t understand and realise is that we have to sacrifice something in order to earn it. One way of sacrifice that we normally do is fasting thinking it moves the hand of God, no fasting is for our benefit to keep our bodies aligned to the will of God. If fasting moves the hand of God,yet the Muslims fast more than the Christians. Somebody hear me, Jacob worked hard for his wife (the one whom he truly loved) and even for his wealth and believe me his boss was unfair, yet he was faithful till he accumulated his own wealth; what about you?!
Oftentimes, we ask for God to bless us and He does it through the most unusual way and we don’t see it. That wife is the blessing regardless that she doesn’t meet 1-2-3 of your standards, that job is the blessing regardless that it doesn’t have favourable money or working conditions. Some marriages stand strong today but started off rocky, because some couples decided to put in the work. Some people are businessmen or women, managers and directors today because they worked hard during difficult times and unfavorable working conditions.
Ask yourself this, are you deserving of that life you want and if so what are you doing with what you currently have ?
There is no growth without effort, no blessing without a corresponding act of faith. In conclusion, Only faith is free, you can’t earn if you don’t work, and to earn salvation you have to work for it. To obtain grace you have to approach the throne of God through prayer and worship and this takes effort which is work on its own. If you don’t believe me even the Apostle Paul said in Philippians 2:12
[12]Therefore, my dear ones, as you have always obeyed, so now, not only in my presence but much more because I am absent, work out your own salvation with reverence and awe and trembling.
God our Father never blessed and never blessed anyone who is folding hands and up to nothing.
So faith-work-effort-perseverance-righteousness = The Blessing which then produces riches and wealth, and all other material things.

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