Book excerpt: One of the lessons gained from the staggering success of The Prayer of Jabez is that even the most obscure biblical characters and stories have profound lessons to teach God's people. The Bible is filled with many fascinating individuals who lived their lives in the shadowlands of insignificance. Tucked away here and there in the pages of sacred Scripture, we may have passed over them as irrelevant nobodies, yet many of them lived their lives in faith and obedience to God despite facing overwhelming odds. God included their stories in the Scriptures for a reason, and though we might consider them Bible nobodies, they truly were somebodies. We discover that God used people from all walks of life, not just the familiar superstars. The moments of destiny in the lives of these ordinary people will rekindle a spark of hope for that same destiny for our lives today. Fifty engaging biblical characters are set forth in Reader's Digest-length readings, and each chapter is filled with insight, inspiration, and practical application. Compiled and significantly adapted or rewritten for today's reader from the classic writings of numerous legendary Christian expositors, such as Charles Spurgeon and others, these readings provide timeless truth that is as relevant today as the day they were penned.