By Tori Ruckman
“Be careful for nothing; but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known unto God. And the God of peace, which passeth all understanding, shall keep your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.”Philippians 4:6-7
The word careful simply means “anxious.” In the day in which we live, many people have anxiety in some form or another. Let me start by saying- even real Christians have real anxiety. Being saved, truly trying to live for the Lord, and even enjoying our Christian service does not make us immune to the daily “cares” we experience. Yet, in these verses, we find a powerful weapon! As Christians, we do not have to give in to a life filled with anxiety.
As verse six continues, we see that the key to being “careful for nothing” is prayer and supplication — simply taking the things we are anxious about to the Lord (making them known unto Him).
Aren’t you glad we can take everything to Him, no matter how big or small?
However, it does not end with just praying about our problems. We are told to do this “with thanksgiving.” How many times do we bring our worries to the Lord in prayer because we know it is the right thing to do, then get up and find ourselves right back in the same place of carefulness?
The key to gaining victory and experiencing the promise of peace “that passes all understanding” in verse seven is not only to bring these anxieties to God but to do so with thankfulness. Why? Because being thankful amid anxiety places the focus back on God and off of our problems.
It is hard to be full of care when you remember all God has done for you and Who He is!
Peace and security come when we take our worries and cares to Him with a heart of gratitude. You may be faced with a battle of anxiety like you have never faced before. The enemy loves an anxious Christian. He can use our anxiety to steer our thought life (and eventually our actions) away from the Truth. Yet, as much as the world, the flesh, and the devil love an anxious Christian, they hate even more a prayerful and thankful one. Sisters, we have every reason to choose the victory Christ has provided for us — after all, we have already won the war!
So why not try it, have you taken your cares to Him today?
Still feel the anxiety gripping your heart? Maybe try again using your weapon of thankfulness! No matter what we face He has been so good to us! In the “everythings” of life, we can give thanks (I Thessalonians 5:18).