Skip to main content

Daily Devotion: Philippians 4:6-7

By

Philippians 4:6-7    "Be careful for nothing; but in every thing by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known unto God.  (7)  And the peace of God, which passeth all understanding, shall keep your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus."

These verses are often quoted and they are truly efficient when applied in our lives. There are many things which cause our minds to become a flurry of activity which in turn brings a sense of anxiety into our lives. Things happen which are out of our control and that can bring a sense of anxiety which brings unrest. In all honesty, I think I can usually turn the big things over to God and not feel such a sense of anxiety. It's the little things that I feel I should be able to handle that cause my mind to get in such a quandry. How can we avoid this when it happens?  How can we deal with it? Today's two verses show us.

There are several elements that are involved in these verses. First, there is the reality that anxiety does exist. The King James Version uses the word, careful. "Be careful (anxious) for nothing."  In the perfect realm of God's kingdom, there is no worry. That happens because at that very moment, our hearts and minds are focused on the very KING of kings. Isaiah speaks to us in this manner, "Thou wilt keep him in perfect peace, whose mind is stayed on thee: because he trusteth in thee." (Isaiah 24:3)  There is perfect peace in our lives when our mind is leaning heavily upon the grace and mercy of God. We can experience that peace when our dependence is placed in His wisdom and power connected with His perfect will for our lives, coupled with our willingness to be obedient to His design for us.

So, how do we come to the place of being able to experience all this wonderful peace in our lives?  Paul tells us in today's verses that it begins with prayer. We must humble ourselves to the place of confession that we are struggling and then submit to His guidance in our lives. He tells us "in EVERY thing by prayer and supplication WITH thanksgiving, let your requests be made known unto God." If you're like me, this thought comes to your mind, "God already knows everything."  That is true, but there is something about confessing to God that activates that peace that is already residing within us. How is it residing already, when we are in such inner turmoil? Jesus Christ is our peace and He lives within us by way of the Holy Spirit. So the peace is already there.  It is through praying and making our requests known, coupled with thanksgiving, that our minds are taken from the situation to the answer. It is at that moment that the peace of Jesus Christ comes to the surface and shines brighter than any struggle we may have. It is at that point that we relinquish trying to control life and submit it to our Lord.  It works. 

Labels:

Popular posts from this blog

Daily Devotion: Psalm 88:1-4

By
Psalm 88:1-4  A Song or Psalm for the sons of Korah, to the chief Musician upon Mahalath Leannoth, Maschil of Heman the Ezrahite. "O LORD God of my salvation, I have cried day and night before thee:  (2)  Let my prayer come before thee: incline thine ear unto my cry;  (3)  For my soul is full of troubles: and my life draweth nigh unto the grave.  (4)  I am counted with them that go down into the pit: I am as a man that hath no strength" I've said this before and I will say it again (and probably more times before we get to the end of the Psalms) - I love the Psalms because I can surely identify with them. Most Psalms start in a low place and as the writer expresses his thoughts, the Lord begins to lift him up out of that dry place.  Though this entire Psalm is a fervent cry unto the Lord, the Psalmist tells us specifically in three verses that he cried daily unto the Lord. Just a few Psalms ago, we were reminded that God always hears our prayers. ...
Read more

Daily Devotion: Knowing God By Bearing Fruit

By
Some will notice the title is not “Bearing fruit because we know God,” so to avoid getting sidetracked with that, we can start with the fact that we won’t bear any godly fruit unless our heart has been changed and the Holy Spirit dwells within us. Also, to avoid confusion, I’ll be using the terms “bearing fruit,” “good works” and “service” interchangeably.  I took this article’s title from Part 7, of John Piper’s “Look at the Book” session on Colossians 1:9-12. I greatly encourage you to view that short video to get his excellent exposition on this subject.  When I saw the title of the video earlier this year, I got kind of excited because that’s the direction my thinking has gone in the past several years. My thinking was founded Biblically with verses on good works like Matthew 5:16 – “In the same way, let your light shine before others, so that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father, who is in heaven.” But I couldn’t expand it to expla...
Read more

Daily Devotion (Video): I Will Fear No Evil - Psalm 23:4

By
Read more