“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 4:6-7, NIV)

Observations:
I asked myself what commands does Paul give for the good of the Philippians as he is shackled in chains?
1. Do not be anxious about anything!
2. In everything by prayer present your requests to God.
3. In everything by petition present your requests to God.
4. In everything by thanksgiving present your requests to God.

Interpretations:
I asked myself why are Paul's actions so significant?
Paul's actions are so significant because it is just amazing to me that he is able to write the words of God down as he is in prison, especially, about anxiety! Being in prison can give people worries about what is happening in the outside world and what is going to happen to them. Not so with Paul, he tells the Philippians to rejoice in the Lord, let their gentleness be evident to all, and not be anxious about anything.

I asked myself what does it mean not to be anxious about anything?
For me it means not worrying about anything from small things to big things that people are faced in their life.

I asked myself how does Paul want the Philippians to combat anxiety?
 ‘In everything:
1. By prayer,
2. By petition,
3. By thanksgiving,
present your requests to God.

I decided to look at each one separately.

Point 1: I asked myself, what does Paul mean by prayer?
What came to my mind is talking to the Lord whatever they are faced with rather than subjecting each other to an anxiety attack. Whether it is a small thing or a big thing, the Lord is there to listen and that’s why they are told to turn to prayer foremost when they are about to worry. It is profound for me that they are told not to be anxious about anything but turning to the Lord in prayer one-one between themselves and the Lord. It turns into a PERSONAL PRAYER. Paul does not end it there but goes a step further which is evidenced by point 2.

Point 2: I asked myself what does Paul mean by petition?
What came to my mind is people having others sign petitions for a cause of theirs. Rather than focusing on the problem and be paralyzed in anxiety, they are moved to action to get others involved to help them resolve the problem. The same principles apply here indirectly. 

When the Philippians are faced with anxiety, they can petition others too for help. But for me this is a different type of help. They should pray on their own but also now they should go a step further and share their request with other people for prayer. I believe the more prayer that is petitioned, the awesome it is. Now this turns into an INTERCESSORY PRAYER. There is nothing wrong asking others to intercede on your behalf before the God of Heaven rather than focusing on the worry. This is exciting that we are told to petition! 

The other thing that came to my mind as I thought about petitioning is that making the requests as specific as possible giving the reasons behind why they want the Lord to answer that particular request. Paul does not end it there but goes a step further which is evidenced by point 3. 

Point 3: I asked myself what does Paul mean by thanksgiving?
What came to my mind is thanking the Lord personally and corporately for the request to be taken care of even before the answer is seen. It is believing in the Lord to handle it and leaving the results in His Hands. It is an acknowledgement that the Lord is watching over us and knows everything that concerns us as He cares for us. This is awesome to know!

I asked what three promises from the Lord does Paul promise if 3 things are done?

 1. Peace of God will be there which transcends all understanding!
2.  Peace of God will guard your hearts in Christ Jesus!
3. Peace of God will guard your minds in Christ Jesus!

Interpretation:
I asked myself what does the promise of ‘Peace of God which transcends all understanding’ mean?
What came to my mind is whatever people’s understanding of the circumstances they are faced with cannot be compared to the peace they receive from God. It is not like the peace the world gives but an inner peace. For Jesus promises His disciples in John 14 that the peace He gives will not be like the peace the world gives, so they should not be troubled or afraid! That is awesome to know that they can experience that kind of peace in their lives.

I asked myself what does the ‘guarding of their heart’ mean?
What came to my mind is that the Lord will protect our heart from the deceit and lies of Satan. He will guard our heart from being spiritually down, physically down, emotionally down, relationally down, and mentally down, etc. Thank you Jesus! It can be easy to complain when we are anxious but the Lord wants us to turn that into prayer guarding our heart. Thank you Jesus!

I asked myself what does the ‘guarding of their mind’ mean?
What came to my mind is that the Lord will protect our mind from Satan's deceptive ways that trap us into anxiety disorders such as panic-attacks, etc. Instead of allowing Satan to affect our brain signals causing anxiety problems, the Good News is that Jesus Christ will be the guard of our mind. Now that is exciting! He uses His precious Word applied to guard us because it becomes the Sword of the Spirit.

IMPLICATIONS:

Recently, anxious thoughts keep coming into my mind but I deliberately fight those thoughts with the Word of God. When I wonder about our family situation, financial situation, housing situation, ministry situation, job situation, etc, anxious thoughts flood my mind with 'What if's' Yet, I have to deliberately fix my eyes on Jesus, the Author and finisher of our faith. I turn my worries into prayers and am comforted.

I am reminded of God's Word that says, "My protection and success come from God alone. He is my Rock and my Fortress in whom I trust."

"My God will supply all my needs according to His riches and glory in Christ Jesus." (Philippians 4:19)

"I want you to trust in me in your times of trouble so I can rescue you and you can give me the glory!" (Psalm 50:15, TLB)

Psalm 34 is so much comfort to me. Also, today being the 112th day, I read Psalm 112. Lord spoke to me exactly what I needed to hear: "He does not fear bad news nor dread of what may happen to him. For he is settled in his mind that Jehovah will take care of him. So, he can calmly face his foes!"

Thank you Jesus! Our family situations are nothing compared to what the Apostle Paul was facing in jail so I am utterly amazed at his exhortations to the Philippians.

“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 4:6-7, NIV)

I ask you now dear friend, how do you handle A.N.X.I.E.T.Y in life?
Dear friend, anxiety can be handled in different ways but not all ways lead to peace. Some handle anxiety with the bottle, others with sleeping through it, others with pills, but all these are temporary solutions which will eventually hurt the heart and mind. I do not know how you handle anxiety but I have good news for you. There is the best medicine offered for free from the Great Physician Himself.

I am talking about Jesus Christ, my friend. Jesus loves you so much that He paid the ultimate price with His blood to redeem you and set you free, free from the bondage of sin, free from anxiety, etc and find your freedom in Christ from the peace, He alone gives. Yes, friend Jesus loves you as you are and He tells you:

"Let not your heart be troubled, you are trusting God, now trust in me!" (John 14:1)

"Peace, I leave to you! The peace I give you is not like the peace the world gives so don't be troubled or afraid!" (John 14:27)

"Let Him have all your worries and cares for He is always thinking about you and watching everything that concerns you!" (1 Peter 5:7)

I don’t know friend what you are facing right now that is causing anxiety. But what I do know is we are living in a time where the COVID-19 virus is causing so many people anxiety due to sickness, job loss, reduced hours, and even death. It is into this situation, the Lord Jesus wants us to trust Him and depend upon Him. When everything is going well in our lives, there is no need to be anxious but when things don't go well, that is when anxiety creeps up.

What can we do about it?

We can choose to obey the Lord, yielding to Him with prayers, petitions, requests, and thanksgiving to the Lord and expect His peace to cover us. Remember, the Lord did not say don't be anxious and that's it. But in our anxiety to turn it into personal prayers, intercessory prayer, and prayer of praise. Thank you Jesus.

This COVID-19 virus should not let our anxiety take away our gentleness towards other people. If we are not careful, we can become so selfish oriented that others will not see our gentleness but self-centeredness. Taking care of ourselves is important but not at the expense of letting others suffer. We need to find ways to do both. Help us Lord Jesus! I have struggled with this because of fear what if my young children and wife get infected, but Pastor Hugo's sermon through the criss really challenged me. Help me Jesus!

Your anxiety may have nothing to do with COVID-19. It could be that you just wrote an exam and feel like you did not do well and it may affect your Q.P.A, it could be that you just had a relational issue with someone close that has gotten out of hand, it could be that you are about to graduate and the job search is becoming a pain and a hassle, it could be other things that you are faced with that is eating at your heart, it could be your concern for your loved ones, etc. What happens now is anxiety waits to creep into your life and control you but the Lord Jesus does not want you to be controlled by the anxiety. No, he does not friend!

It is a bold command to say not to be anxious about anything but the Word of God says it for a reason. Jesus Christ wants to be there to intervene in your life. No matter what you are going through even when you sense things are just going to crumble, His peace will flow in your lives as you turn to Him. Yes, it will friend! His peace will surpass all understanding including all the ‘what ifs’ that come to our mind when we look at the circumstances. But that can change as we look to Jesus who has a handle on everything we face!

I know it is not easy for me not to worry but what comforts me is when I focus on another promise of the Lord to "Let Him have all your worries and cares, for He is always thinking about you and watching everything that concerns you", that helps me a lot! That is awesome to know. He is there to help you too friend! I know He is! Thank you Jesus!

Not worrying in life can be like not breathing. It is automatic but you can turn it  into manual drive as you turn to prayer when worry comes. Rather than dwelling in the anxiety, turn that anxiety into PERSONAL, INTERCESSORY, and THANKSGIVING prayer. We will be amazed with the results! Yes, we will friend for the Lord’s promises are for us to claim and rejoice in.

May you know no matter what you are faced with, the Lord Jesus is looking after you and you can turn to Him. He loves you so much and wants to reign in your life. Oh, yes He does so much more than we can imagine. He is the Lord of all that we face! Amen!

Peace for Worry (Read Matthew 6:25-34)
By Ramesh C. Reddy

Please leave to the Lord your worry (1 Peter 5:7)
He is never busy nor in a hurry. (Psalm 34:4)
Your worry Jesus will bury. (Psalm 55:22)
Don't have to for yourself feel Sorry. (Matt 14:27)
Trust in Him (Prov 3:5-6)
Even when your chances are slim (Matt 19:26)
And the future looks dim (Psalm 43:5)
Cause Christ has the cure. (Isaiah 40:29)
That you can be very sure. (Psalm 34:4)
He loves you very much I can tell (Isaiah 43:1-3)
Cause he died to save you from Hell (Isaiah 53:4-5)
Hear Him ringing your Hearts bell (Rev 3:20)
To give Salvation freely not to sell (Ephesians 2:8)

"Anxious Now, Xpect Immanuel's Emancipation Touching You!" (A.N.X.I.E.T.Y)/"How do you handle A.N.X.I.E.T.Y in life?"

PRAYER:
Jesus, I thank you for wanting to have all my worries and cares for you are always thinking about me and watching everything that concerns me. Thank you that you do not want me to be anxious about anything but by prayer and petition with thanksgiving to let all my requests be known to you Lord and your peace which surpasses all understanding will guard my heart and mind in Christ Jesus! Lord that means a lot to me. Oh Lord, you know the worries we have and what it does to us. Please help us please to turn to thee with them always. Thank you for being there for us. I pray for the one that is faced with so much in their life that worry has become like breathing to them. Please Lord Jesus, intervene in their lives healing them in a mighty powerful way. May your peace rest in their lives whatever they are faced with. Each of us needs you Lord and the power of your love. Draw us close to you and never let us go but focus on you. Let us know that as we live our life here on earth letting you guide us and lead us, you will take care of us. We give our lives to you and ask you for your help in all that we need to do. I thank you Jesus for forgiving us, answering us, as we confess our sins and turn to you for a change in our lives. In Your Name I Pray Jesus! Amen!

Express Your View