When We Are Anxious

 

Philippians 4:6,7

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.

 

This verse, besides John 3:16, is probably the most memorized verse of Scripture that today’s Christian knows.

Why is it so hard to follow though? 

Let’s be honest, when it says, “Be anxious for nothing”, how many of us say, “Come on!”  I mean we have bills to pay, kids, homes, cars, jobs, relationships, and so many more things that can bring anxiety into our lives.

We are anxious because to some of us, some things are simply out of our control.  Some of us are anxious because we feel like we can control some things, but they are spiraling out of control. 

So then, how do we do this?  Do we just dismiss this verse and go on?  No, absolutely not!

Let’s look at the rest of the verse.

When we are anxious or not anxious what should we do?  According to Scripture, “in everything” and that means absolutely everything, we need to be in prayer and supplication with a heart of thanksgiving, and letting our wants, our desires, our needs, our everything to be made known to the Holy God.   Supplication to many Christians is just stated but is not really known what it means.  To supplicate is to humble oneself before the Almighty.  To humble yourself, and beg, or in fancier terms, entreat, the Lord your God.  When we go to prayer over the things we are anxious for, we need to humble ourselves, understanding that we are not in control.  We need to humble ourselves to understand that even the little things in our life can crumble, but we serve an awesome and Almighty God who loves, takes care of us, and supplies all that we need to have an abundant life.  When we do these things, we will experience the peace of God that is found in Jesus Christ.

Simple huh?  No, not’s it not.  It’s not an easy thing.  We live in a sinful world.  We live in a world of stress.  We have employers, employees, family, friends, and other folks around us.  We have expectations of ourselves and expectations from others.  It’s those things that will cloud our mind.  While we live day to day, another verse of Scripture comes to mind. 

2 Corinthians 10:4-6

4 For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal but mighty in God for pulling down strongholds, 5 casting down arguments and every high thing that exalts itself against the knowledge of God, bringing every thought into captivity to the obedience of Christ, 6 and being ready to punish all disobedience when your obedience is fulfilled.

How do we fight these thoughts of anxiety and turn to the Lord in prayer and supplication?  We must take those anxious thoughts captive.  When they happen, we need to not wait and stew on the situation, but immediately take the thought captive and go to the Lord. 

We can pray anywhere and at any time. 

So, the next time the stresses of your day hit you, don’t run to destructive practices or develop those attitudes in ourselves in which we all detest.  Instead, take that thought captive and remember the God who thought of you, loved you, and cared for you so much that He willingly gave His Son, and placed His wrath upon His own Son, so that He may take our place and allow us to be reconciled unto Him.  Remember the Savior that was willing to accomplish the Father’s will.  Remember the Savior that walked out of the tomb, that ascended into glory, who sent the Holy Spirit to comfort and guide us, and who will be coming back again in glory. 

 

Take every thought captive to the obedience of Christ.




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