How To Fight Anxiety
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How to fight anxiety. That’s the topic I wanted to discuss tonight.
And the passage I wanted us to focus on is
4 Rejoice in the Lord always. Again I will say, rejoice!
5 Let your gentleness be known to all men. The Lord is at hand.
6 Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God; 7 and the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.
8 Finally, brethren, whatever things are true, whatever things are noble, whatever things are just, whatever things are pure, whatever things are lovely, whatever things are of good report, if there is any virtue and if there is anything praiseworthy—meditate on these things. 9 The things which you learned and received and heard and saw in me, these do, and the God of peace will be with you.
Rejoice in the Lord always; again I will say, rejoice. Let your reasonableness be known to everyone. The Lord is at hand; do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.
Rejoice in the Lord always; again I will say, rejoice. Let your reasonableness be known to everyone. The Lord is at hand; do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.
Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is commendable, if there is any excellence, if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things. What you have learned and received and heard and seen in me—practice these things, and the God of peace will be with you.
Rejoice in the Lord always; again I will say, rejoice. Let your reasonableness be known to everyone. The Lord is at hand; do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.
Billy Graham said,
“Anxiety is the natural result when our hopes are centered in anything short of God and His will for us.”
- Billy Graham
“Anxiety does not empty tomorrow of its sorrows, but only empties today of its strength.”
- Charles Spurgeon
“Worry is a cycle of inefficient thoughts whirling around a center of fear."
- Corrie Ten Boom
What Is Anxiety?
What Is Anxiety?
Websters “characterized by extreme uneasiness of mind or a brooding fear about some contingency.
The greek word translated anxious in means “to be pulled in different directions”, our fears pulling us in different directions.
The Old English root from which we get our word “worry” means to strangle.
We know worry has some very real physical consequences. It causes headaches and neck aches, stomach ulcers, high blood pressure. If affects our sleep, our concentration.
We have so many things to be anxious about today. In fact here in the United States we have the dubious honor of being the most anxious nation in the world.
Anxiety disorders in the US are the number one mental health problem among women and second most common in men after alcohol and drug abuse.
Anxiety affects our kids. A recent study reveals that “the average child today exhibits the same level of anxiety as the average psychiatric patient in the 1950’s"
As a pediatrician I definitely see so much more anxiety in children today than when I first started in practice 17 yrs ago.
But We don’t really need to define anxiety or describe it’s symptoms.
I think all of us know exactly what those words mean to each of us.
It’s the way you feel when you’re in your mid 40’s with a wife and family to provide for and you’ve just found out that you lost your job.
It’s sitting down with your doctor after weeks of medical test after test and hearing them say “I’m so sorry but you have cancer”.
It’s a teenage girl lying in her bed unable to sleep trying to understand why her parents no longer love each other and are getting divorced.
If anyone had an excuse for being anxious or worrying , it was the Apostle Paul.
So lets go back 2000 yrs in our minds and try to imagine Paul, He’s sitting in a Roman prison cell. By now he’s a very weathered 60 yrs old, he’s been a christian for about 30 yrs.
He’s traveled so many miles over his life and endured so many hardships. He’s been imprisoned before, he’s lived through storms and shipwrecks, nearly starved, He’s been beaten and left for dead, and he has the scars to prove it. There are the ones on his back from the five times he received 39 lashes and don’t forget the three times he was beaten by rods.
He’s probably half blind and he’s awaiting trial before a Roman emperor by the name of Nero who has made a name for himself by killing Christians to gain favor in the eyes of the Roman citizens.
His heart is also weighed down with concerns for his brothers and sisters in these new churches. He hears of bickering and disagreements, people preaching out of pride and envy.
It’s starting to cause division in the body and he can't be there to help them.
So can you see him? Plenty to complain about to be worried about, to be anxious about.
But instead of cowering in fear, or filled with despair, or even shaking an angry fist at God, he lifts his hands in praise and thanksgiving, he lift his eyes to where his help comes from.
And he writes these precious words:
But this I call to mind,
and therefore I have hope:
The steadfast love of the Lord never ceases;
his mercies never come to an end;
they are new every morning;
great is your faithfulness.
“The Lord is my portion,” says my soul,
“therefore I will hope in him.”
The Lord is good to those who wait for him,
to the soul who seeks him.
It is good that one should wait quietly
for the salvation of the Lord.
1. Rejoice in the Lord always, again I will say, rejoice. Let your gentleness be known to all men.
In the greek the verb tense of rejoice here means to rejoice continually, habitually. And to give it more emphasis he adds do this always. And then just in case we didn’t catch it
The first time he repeats it, “again I will say, rejoice”.
Rejoice in the Lord sometimes? Rejoice in the Lord only in the good times? No, in
Count it all joy, my brothers, when you meet trials of various kinds,
But this I call to mind,
and therefore I have hope:
The steadfast love of the Lord never ceases;
his mercies never come to an end;
they are new every morning;
great is your faithfulness.
“The Lord is my portion,” says my soul,
“therefore I will hope in him.”
The Lord is good to those who wait for him,
to the soul who seeks him.
It is good that one should wait quietly
for the salvation of the Lord.
Count it all joy, my brothers, when you meet trials of various kinds,
we are reminded that even in the bad times we are to :“Count it all joy, my brothers, when you meet trials of various kinds”.
Worry is perhaps the greatest thief of joy. Christians need to be a people known by our joy.
But joy is not found in the right circumstances or in having a positive attitude about life.
It only comes when our joy is in the Lord.
We can rejoice because He is on his throne.
We can rejoice because He is in control,
We can rejoice in His sovereignty.
We can rejoice in His mercy.
We can rejoice when we remember who He is and what He’s done.
And as our understanding of our Father increases, our anxiety decreases.
Here’s what the prophet Jeremiah says in:
This I recall to my mind,
Therefore I have hope.
22 The Lord’s lovingkindnesses indeed never cease,
For His compassions never fail.
23 They are new every morning;
Great is Your faithfulness.
24 “The Lord is my portion,” says my soul,
“Therefore I have hope in Him.”
25 The Lord is good to those who wait for Him,
To the person who seeks Him.
26 It is good that he waits silently
For the salvation of the Lord.
New American Standard Bible: 1995 update. (1995). (). La Habra, CA: The Lockman Foundation.
As we rejoice in the Lord our joy grows and becomes more and more evident in our lives and we become people who are gentle and gracious with others.
As our hearts become more full of joy they naturally become less full of worry and anxiety.
2. The Lord is at hand. Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God
The Lord is at hand, the Lord is near. We are not alone. Since the Lord is near we have nothing to be anxious about!
The Lord is with me; I will not be afraid.
What can mere mortals do to me?
But this I call to mind,
and therefore I have hope:
The steadfast love of the Lord never ceases;
his mercies never come to an end;
they are new every morning;
great is your faithfulness.
“The Lord is my portion,” says my soul,
“therefore I will hope in him.”
The Lord is good to those who wait for him,
to the soul who seeks him.
It is good that one should wait quietly
for the salvation of the Lord.
But this I call to mind,
and therefore I have hope:
The steadfast love of the Lord never ceases;
his mercies never come to an end;
they are new every morning;
great is your faithfulness.
“The Lord is my portion,” says my soul,
“therefore I will hope in him.”
The Lord is good to those who wait for him,
to the soul who seeks him.
It is good that one should wait quietly
for the salvation of the Lord.
The Lord is on my side; I will not fear.
What can man do to me?
“The Lord is with me: I will not be afraid. What can mere mortals do to me?”
After Moses’ death God told Joshua,
Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be frightened, and do not be dismayed, for the Lord your God is with you wherever you go.”
“Do not be afraid, do not be discouraged, for the Lord your God will be with you wherever you go”
In Matthew we see how Jesus fed the 5000, At first the disciples saw a valley full of hungry people and not enough food or money to buy food. They worried that these people might start being upset, they worried that they might even have a riot on their hands. So they tell Jesus their solution. Just send the multitudes away so they can go back to their villages and buy food for themselves. By this point they had seen Jesus perform amazing miracles, healing lepers, raising a girl from the dead, calming the sea. Why didn’t any of them stop and think, hmmm, I wonder if Jesus might be able to solve this problem
Jesus was near to them, he was right there but… When we are faced with a problem and anxiety starts to rear it’s face we should remind ourselves that: The Lord is near
The Lord is near, have no worries. Instead of starting with what we have, we can start with Jesus, we can start with his endless strength, wealth and resources.
We can calmly take our concerns to the Father because He is near to us.
It’s interesting that Paul doesn’t just say “be anxious for nothing but in everything pray to God”.
Instead he uses three different words to describe the way we bring our requests to God.
Prayer, supplication and thanksgiving.
The first word prayer is the general word for making our requests known to the Lord. It carries the idea of adoration, devotion and worship. When we pray we need to first come before His throne with humbleness and adoration. We need to kneel before His greatness and His majesty.
The second word is supplication which is an earnest sharing of our needs and problems. Coming to Him with specific requests and concerns. When we bring our worries to God in prayer, we will never meet a deaf ear or a reluctant glance. We will instead find a Father who gladly bends His shoulder to bear our burdens.
(ESV)
“Ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you. For everyone who asks receives, and the one who seeks finds, and to the one who knocks it will be opened. Or which one of you, if his son asks him for bread, will give him a stone? Or if he asks for a fish, will give him a serpent? If you then, who are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father who is in heaven give good things to those who ask him!
7 “Ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you. 8 For everyone who asks receives, and the one who seeks finds, and to the one who knocks it will be opened. 9 Or which one of you, if his son asks him for bread, will give him a stone? 10 Or if he asks for a fish, will give him a serpent? 11 If you then, who are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father who is in heaven give good things to those who ask him!
George Muller, a christian evangelist from the 1800’s who devoted his life to taking care of orphans says that: “The children of God are permitted, not only permitted but invited, not only invited but commanded, to bring all their cares, sorrows, trials and wants to their Heavenly Father. They are to roll all their burdens upon God”
He goes on to say that: “It is not simply great matters we are to bring before God, not simply small things but everything, therefore all our affairs, temporal or spiritual, let us bring them before God. And this for the simple reason that life is made up of little things”
7 “Ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you. 8 For everyone who asks receives, and the one who seeks finds, and to the one who knocks it will be opened. 9 Or which one of you, if his son asks him for bread, will give him a stone? 10 Or if he asks for a fish, will give him a serpent? 11 If you then, who are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father who is in heaven give good things to those who ask him!
George Muller, a famous preacher from the 1800’s who devoted his life to taking care of orphans says that: “The children of God are permitted, not only permitted but invited, not only invited but commanded, to bring all their cares, sorrows, trials and wants to their Heavenly Father. They are to roll all their burdens upon God”
He goes on to say that: “It is not simply great matters we are to bring before God, not simply small things but everything, therefore all our affairs, temporal or spiritual, let us bring them before God. And this for the simple reason that life is made up of little things”
So we are to bring all of our requests before the Lord with Prayer, Supplication and Thanksgiving.
As we pray to our Father, saying “help me, please provide for me, show me, we also need to say Thank You.
Thank you for who You are, what you have done for me, how You have provided for me.
An anxious heart says Lord if only I had this, that or the other, I’d be ok, but a grateful heart says, Thank you Lord, you have already given me this, that and the other.
It’s so much harder to be anxious when we we are thankful.
A grateful heart counts it’s blessings, A grateful heart focuses more on what it does have and less on what it doesn’t
Elisabeth Elliot said:
“God has promised to supply all our needs, What we don’t have now, we don’t need now"
Just a few verses further down from our passage Paul goes on to say:
I have learned to be content whatever the circumstances. 12 I know what it is to be in need, and I know what it is to have plenty. I have learned the secret of being content in any and every situation, whether well fed or hungry, whether living in plenty or in want. 13 I can do all this through him who gives me strength.
The New International Version. (2011). (). Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan.
The path to peace is paved with prayer.
and the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.
Paul tells us in that when we become Christians we experience “peace with God”
(ESV)
5 Therefore, since we have been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ.
But here in , Paul is talking about the actual Peace of God, which is only ours after we have been reconciled with God.
In , In Jesus’ last hours of life he says:
27 Peace I leave with you; my peace I give you. I do not give to you as the world gives. Do not let your hearts be troubled and do not be afraid.
The New International Version. (2011). (). Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan.
It is a divine peace.
A peace that surpasses our understanding
It’s a peace that will guard our hearts and our minds through Christ Jesus,
The phrase for guard is actually a military term, as in “will keep guard over you”
They are guarding over the two areas in us that create worry and anxiety:
The Heart (wrong feeling) and the mind (wrong thinking).
It is a peace that is completely independent of our circumstances.
In the book of Daniel we have a wonderful illustration of peace through prayer.
When the king announced that none of his subjects was to pray to anyone except the king,
Daniel went to his room, opened his windows, and prayed as before ().
Look at how Daniel prayed. He “prayed, and gave thanks before his God” () and he made supplication ().
Prayer—supplication—thanksgiving!
And the result was perfect peace in the midst of difficulty!
Daniel was able to spend the night with the lions in perfect peace, while the king in his palace could not sleep ().
A peace not as the world gives.
“Not as the world gives.”
How does the world give us peace?
The world gives peace with retirement accounts. The world gives peace with health insurance. The world give us peace by living in nice house in a safe neighborhood.
The world gives peace of mind in a hundred different ways.
But Jesus says, “I’m not giving you that kind of peace.
Jesus tells us in
"These things I have spoken to you, that in Me you may have peace. In the world you will have tribulation; but be of good cheer, I have overcome the world.”
The New King James Version. (1982). (). Nashville: Thomas Nelson.
Jesus gives us His perfect peace that so that when the stock market crashes, or we lose our job and lose our health insurance or our house is destroyed in a hurricane we still have peace.
The peace that Jesus gives us is independent of our circumstances.
In these few precious verses Paul through the Holy Spirit gives us the secret to living a life free from the prison of worry and anxiety.
A life full of joy and peace no matter our circumstances
We can sing with Horatio Spafford
When peace like a river, attendeth my way,
When sorrows like sea billows roll
Whatever my lot, thou hast taught me to say
It is well, it is well, with my soul
Rejoice in the Lord always. Again I will say, rejoice!
5 Let your gentleness be known to all men. The Lord is at hand.
6 Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God;
7 and the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.
So we are to bring all of our requests before the Lord with Prayer, Supplication and Thanksgiving.
As we pray to our Father, saying “help me, please provide for me, show me, we also need to say Thank You.
Thank you for who You are, what you have done for me, how You have provided for me.
An anxious heart says Lord if only I had this, that or the other, I’d be ok, but a grateful heart says, Thank you Lord, you have already given me this.
It’s so much harder to be anxious when we we are thankful.
A grateful heart counts it’s blessings, A grateful heart focuses more on what it does have and less on what it doesn’t
Elisabeth Elliot said:
“God has promised to supply all our needs, What we don’t have now, we don’t need now"
Just a few verses further down from our passage Paul goes on to say:
I am not saying this because I am in need, for I have learned to be content whatever the circumstances. I know what it is to be in need, and I know what it is to have plenty. I have learned the secret of being content in any and every situation, whether well fed or hungry, whether living in plenty or in want. I can do all this through him who gives me strength.
Philippians 4:
I have learned to be content whatever the circumstances. 12 I know what it is to be in need, and I know what it is to have plenty. I have learned the secret of being content in any and every situation, whether well fed or hungry, whether living in plenty or in want. 13 I can do all this through him who gives me strength.
The New International Version. (2011). (). Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan.
The path to peace is paved with prayer.
and the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.
Paul tells us in that when we become Christians we experience “peace with God”
(ESV)
5 Therefore, since we have been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ.
But here in , Paul is talking about the actual Peace of God, which is only ours after we have been reconciled with God.
In , In Jesus’ last hours of life he says:
27 Peace I leave with you; my peace I give you. I do not give to you as the world gives. Do not let your hearts be troubled and do not be afraid.
The New International Version. (2011). (). Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan.
It is a divine peace.
A peace that surpasses our understanding
It’s a peace that will guard our hearts and our minds through Christ Jesus,
The phrase for guard is actually a military term, as in “will keep guard over you”
They are guarding over the two areas in us that create worry and anxiety:
The Heart (wrong feeling) and the mind (wrong thinking).
It is a peace that is completely independent of our circumstances.
In the book of Daniel we have a wonderful illustration of peace through prayer.
When the king announced that none of his subjects was to pray to anyone except the king,
Daniel went to his room, opened his windows, and prayed as before ().
Look at how Daniel prayed. He “prayed, and gave thanks before his God” () and he made supplication ().
Prayer—supplication—thanksgiving!
And the result was perfect peace in the midst of difficulty!
Daniel was able to spend the night with the lions in perfect peace, while the king in his palace could not sleep ().
A peace not as the world gives.
“Not as the world gives.”
How does the world give us peace?
The world gives peace with retirement accounts. The world gives peace with health insurance. The world give us peace by living in nice house in a safe neighborhood.
The world gives peace of mind in a hundred different ways.
But Jesus says, “I’m not giving you that kind of peace.
Jesus tells us in
"These things I have spoken to you, that in Me you may have peace. In the world you will have tribulation; but be of good cheer, I have overcome the world.”
The New King James Version. (1982). (). Nashville: Thomas Nelson.
Jesus gives us His perfect peace that so that when the stock market crashes, or we lose our job and lose our health insurance or our house is destroyed in a hurricane we still have peace.
The peace that Jesus gives us is independent of our circumstances.
In these few precious verses Paul through the Holy Spirit gives us the secret to living a life free from the prison of worry and anxiety.
A life full of joy and peace no matter our circumstances
We can sing with Horatio Spafford
When peace like a river, attendeth my way,
When sorrows like sea billows roll
Whatever my lot, thou hast taught me to say
It is well, it is well, with my soul
Rejoice in the Lord always. Again I will say, rejoice!
5 Let your gentleness be known to all men. The Lord is at hand.
6 Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God;
7 and the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.
I have learned to be content whatever the circumstances. 12 I know what it is to be in need, and I know what it is to have plenty. I have learned the secret of being content in any and every situation, whether well fed or hungry, whether living in plenty or in want. 13 I can do all this through him who gives me strength.
The New International Version. (2011). (). Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan.
The path to peace is paved with prayer.
3. and the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.
Paul tells us in that when we become Christians we experience “peace with God”
(ESV)
Therefore, since we have been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ.
5 Therefore, since we have been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ.
But here in , Paul is talking about the actual Peace of God, which is only ours after we have been reconciled with God.
In , In Jesus’ last hours of life he says:
Peace I leave with you; my peace I give to you. Not as the world gives do I give to you. Let not your hearts be troubled, neither let them be afraid.
It is a divine peace.
A peace that surpasses our understanding
It’s a peace that will guard our hearts and our minds through Christ Jesus,
The phrase for guard is actually a military term, as in “will keep guard over you”
They are guarding over the two areas in us that create worry and anxiety:
The Heart (wrong feeling) and the mind (wrong thinking).
It is a peace that is completely independent of our circumstances.
In the book of Daniel we have a wonderful illustration of peace through prayer.
When the king announced that none of his subjects was to pray to anyone except the king,
Daniel went to his room, opened his windows, and prayed as before ().
Peace I leave with you; my peace I give you. I do not give to you as the world gives. Do not let your hearts be troubled and do not be afraid.
Therefore, since we have been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ.
It is a divine peace.
A peace that surpasses our understanding
It’s a peace that will guard our hearts and our minds through Christ Jesus,
The phrase for guard is actually a military term, as in “will keep guard over you”
They are guarding over the two areas in us that create worry and anxiety:
The Heart (wrong feeling) and the mind (wrong thinking).
It is a peace that is completely independent of our circumstances.
In the book of Daniel we have a wonderful illustration of peace through prayer.
When the king announced that none of his subjects was to pray to anyone except the king,
Daniel went to his room, opened his windows, and prayed as before ().
It pleased Darius to set over the kingdom 120 satraps, to be throughout the whole kingdom; and over them three high officials, of whom Daniel was one, to whom these satraps should give account, so that the king might suffer no loss. Then this Daniel became distinguished above all the other high officials and satraps, because an excellent spirit was in him. And the king planned to set him over the whole kingdom. Then the high officials and the satraps sought to find a ground for complaint against Daniel with regard to the kingdom, but they could find no ground for complaint or any fault, because he was faithful, and no error or fault was found in him. Then these men said, “We shall not find any ground for complaint against this Daniel unless we find it in connection with the law of his God.”
Then these high officials and satraps came by agreement to the king and said to him, “O King Darius, live forever! All the high officials of the kingdom, the prefects and the satraps, the counselors and the governors are agreed that the king should establish an ordinance and enforce an injunction, that whoever makes petition to any god or man for thirty days, except to you, O king, shall be cast into the den of lions. Now, O king, establish the injunction and sign the document, so that it cannot be changed, according to the law of the Medes and the Persians, which cannot be revoked.” Therefore King Darius signed the document and injunction.
When Daniel knew that the document had been signed, he went to his house where he had windows in his upper chamber open toward Jerusalem. He got down on his knees three times a day and prayed and gave thanks before his God, as he had done previously.
It is a divine peace.
A peace that surpasses our understanding
It’s a peace that will guard our hearts and our minds through Christ Jesus,
The phrase for guard is actually a military term, as in “will keep guard over you”
They are guarding over the two areas in us that create worry and anxiety:
The Heart (wrong feeling) and the mind (wrong thinking).
It is a peace that is completely independent of our circumstances.
In the book of Daniel we have a wonderful illustration of peace through prayer.
When the king announced that none of his subjects was to pray to anyone except the king,
Daniel went to his room, opened his windows, and prayed as before ().
Look at how Daniel prayed. He “prayed, and gave thanks before his God” () and he made supplication ().
Prayer—supplication—thanksgiving!
And the result was perfect peace in the midst of difficulty!
Daniel was able to spend the night with the lions in perfect peace, while the king in his palace could not sleep ().
A peace not as the world gives.
“Not as the world gives.”
How does the world give us peace?
The world gives peace with retirement accounts. The world gives peace with health insurance. The world give us peace by living in nice house in a safe neighborhood.
The world gives peace of mind in a hundred different ways.
But Jesus says, “I’m not giving you that kind of peace.
Jesus tells us in
"These things I have spoken to you, that in Me you may have peace. In the world you will have tribulation; but be of good cheer, I have overcome the world.”
The New King James Version. (1982). (). Nashville: Thomas Nelson.
Jesus gives us His perfect peace that so that when the stock market crashes, or we lose our job and lose our health insurance or our house is destroyed in a hurricane we still have peace.
The peace that Jesus gives us is independent of our circumstances.
In these few precious verses Paul through the Holy Spirit gives us the secret to living a life free from the prison of worry and anxiety.
A life full of joy and peace no matter our circumstances
We can sing with Horatio Spafford
When peace like a river, attendeth my way,
When sorrows like sea billows roll
Whatever my lot, thou hast taught me to say
It is well, it is well, with my soul
Rejoice in the Lord always. Again I will say, rejoice!
5 Let your gentleness be known to all men. The Lord is at hand.
6 Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God;
7 and the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.
Peace I leave with you; my peace I give to you. Not as the world gives do I give to you. Let not your hearts be troubled, neither let them be afraid.
Look at how Daniel prayed. He “prayed, and gave thanks before his God” () and he made supplication ().
When Daniel knew that the document had been signed, he went to his house where he had windows in his upper chamber open toward Jerusalem. He got down on his knees three times a day and prayed and gave thanks before his God, as he had done previously. Then these men came by agreement and found Daniel making petition and plea before his God.
Prayer—supplication—thanksgiving!
And the result was perfect peace in the midst of difficulty!
Daniel was able to spend the night with the lions in perfect peace, while the king in his palace could not sleep ().
A peace not as the world gives.
“Not as the world gives.”
How does the world give us peace?
The world gives peace with retirement accounts. The world gives peace with health insurance. The world give us peace by living in nice house in a safe neighborhood.
The world gives peace of mind in a hundred different ways.
But Jesus says, “I’m not giving you that kind of peace.
Jesus tells us in
These things I have spoken to you, that in Me you may have peace. In the world you will have tribulation; but be of good cheer, I have overcome the world.”
Rejoice in the Lord always; again I will say, rejoice. Let your reasonableness be known to everyone. The Lord is at hand; do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.
Jesus gives us His perfect peace that so that when the stock market crashes, or we lose our job and lose our health insurance or our house is destroyed in a hurricane we still have peace.
The peace that Jesus gives us is independent of our circumstances.
In these few precious verses Paul through the Holy Spirit gives us the secret to living a life free from the prison of worry and anxiety.
A life full of joy and peace no matter our circumstances
We can sing with Horatio Spafford
When peace like a river, attendeth my way,
When sorrows like sea billows roll
Whatever my lot, thou hast taught me to say
It is well, it is well, with my soul
I have said these things to you, that in me you may have peace. In the world you will have tribulation. But take heart; I have overcome the world.”
Rejoice in the Lord always; again I will say, rejoice. Let your reasonableness be known to everyone. The Lord is at hand; do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.
Rejoice in the Lord always. Again I will say, rejoice!
5 Let your gentleness be known to all men. The Lord is at hand.
6 Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God;
7 and the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.