Be anxious for nothing, 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 comprehension, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus. Philippians 4:6-7
Some of us worry about everything. Others are wired to take things in stride. Lucky people! For the former, it’s pretty much high anxiety all the time. Worse, in the case of a trial that would normally produce a little stress in anyone, the fretters go off the charts! And if these hand-wringers are analytical, the worst case is always plausible. I am one of these people.
When I read “be anxious for NOTHING,” I mumble to myself, “You don’t know me!” I hope God hears this and patiently replies, “Excuse me?”
This frazzled condition in which I often find myself can only be addressed with the blunt force of scripture. It needs to be beaten with a stick. I use Philippians 4:6-7.
Now I don’t recite these verses meditatively, but over and over in an emphatic cadence, until I realize that as much anxiety as I’ve chosen to wallow in, the surpassing peace of God is greater. It’s far more than could ever be imagined, and it’s instantly acquisitioned through worshipful, thankful, and specific prayer to God.
And the line of communication is not long. In the preceding verse (V.5), Paul says, “The Lord is near.” He’s walking alongside in fact.
What the Lord promises is what I desperately need, someone strong enough to stand guard at the door of my mind and heart, to beat back all those crazy imaginations, and to dissolve the paralyzing fear.
There’s another verse that fits the bill, Isaiah 26:3. “The steadfast of mind You will keep in perfect peace, because he trusts in You.”
I feel like the disciples sometimes, who said to the Lord, “Increase our faith.” Luke 17:5
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