A Big, Big House

A Big, Big House

Bible Blast: Read 1 Chronicles 4:9-10

Oh, that you would bless me and expand my territory! Please be with me in all that I do, and keep me from all trouble and pain!

1 Chronicles 4:10

Some girls dream of living in a huge palace with tons of rooms, indoor swimming pools, air-conditioned stables with hundreds of horses, and a team of maids and butlers to help them take care of it all. Other girls dream of living in a house that’s only as big as some walk-in closets. Dee Williams got tired of maintaining a big house with a big payment, so she built something a little smaller. Actually, it’s a lot smaller.

Dee’s home is what they call a “tiny house.” It’s a cute, cozy, wooden cottage with a little front porch, kitchen area, living room, bedroom, and restroom. The little home is built on a trailer so Dee can pull it anywhere with her truck. Oh, and did I mention it’s only eighty-four square feet? That’s about the size of one average parking space, ladies. Dee said she built her tiny house because it’s really all she needs, and now she doesn’t have a big house payment every month. It only cost her about $10,000 to build, and a lot of the materials she used were things other people were getting rid of.

In 1 Chronicles 4, you read about Jabez, who wasn’t asking for a smaller house. In fact, he prayed, “God! Make my territory bigger!” Jabez may have been asking for more land, but we can look at that in a different way too.

What if we began asking God to increase the number of people we bless? Or the number of people we tell about Jesus? Or the number of people we pray for?

That’s a different kind of “territory,” but God can enlarge it. He can make our influence in the world and with our friends even bigger so that more people come to know and follow him.

Whether you live in a huge palace or a tiny house, you can ask God to expand or enlarge your “territory.” Then watch how he answers that prayer. He knows your heart, and he knows what is best for you.

Girl Gab: You will be amazed if you go online with your mom and do a search for tiny houses. There are tall houses, skinny houses, short houses, fat houses, square ones, and even round ones. Have fun imagining what it would be like to live in a tiny house. Pray Jabez’s prayer today, and see what God does.