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“Do not be anxious about anything, but in
everything,
by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present
your requests to God.
And the peace of God which transcends all
understanding,
will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ
Jesus.”
Philippians
4:6 (NIV)
I like the way Paul writes this message. He starts out
where most of his readers, then and now, are. At some point in our lives, most
of us are worriers. Paul tells us NOT to
be anxious.
He then tells us how to achieve this state of
non-anxiety. We have times when worries might seem to be in order. Paul tells
us not to worry about ANYTHING. That
can sound like a tall order, especially if we have not had a relationship with
Jesus.
He then tells us to give it all to Jesus, IN EVERYTHING. We should not hold back
anything from God because He already knows it. The reason we are to confess our
sins is God wants us to know what we did and that it was wrong.
Then, He tells us, his readers, how to relieve ourselves
of the tension of our being anxious. We are to PRESENT OUR REQUESTS TO GOD. We do this by prayer and seeking His
guidance for those issues that beset us.
Paul tells us of the outcome when we follow this
practice, THE PEACE OF GOD WILL GUARD
{OUR} HEARTS AND MINDS. This peace
is a special gift. It is from God and goes beyond what we can imagine
Are you aware of anyone who needs to find His peace
because of a trial they face?
What can you do to help
them through their turmoil?
Hi Cecelia! I love your challenging questions at the end of your post. We can have lots of 'book smarts' but are we using what we learn?
ReplyDeleteI remember an Amy Grant song where she actually speaks the words of this bible passage. So reassuring!
Hope you are doing well,
Ceil
Thank you, Ceil. A friend of mine paid me a compliment. She said I made people think. At the time I was having a difficult time teaching a teen Sunday school class. She pointed out that the kids didn't want to think. I eventually gave up that class.
DeleteAh, I need to reread this passage - I appreciate you bringing it up and discussing it here. Learning much about peace and faith lately. Thanks for sharing! :)
ReplyDeleteKaren: Thank you for your thought. We all need to focus on faith and peace of God in these troubling times. You're welcome.
DeleteThis is a very timely post. Yes, I know several who could benefit from this reminder from God's Word. Thank you for these words of inspiration and encouragement to not be anxious about anything. And to give thanks for everything...and to have peace in our hearts that only God can give. I love this passage. Just need to remember it when I am feeling anxious!
ReplyDeletePam: Thank you for your kind comments. God has been good to us. We can see his handiwork all around us. Whatever hardships we endure, when we see Jesus in heaven, those hardships will not compare to what we will experience there. Blessing for you and yours.
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