Philippians 4:6,7 - Do not be anxious

4:6

Anxiety and worry are problems that most people encounter. There are one or two individuals who seem to be happy-go-lucky worrying about nothing, but most of us, at least from time to time, worry about things, and some people are utterly debilitated by worry. Worry can come at any time, but especially when under pressure. Jesus spoke a lot about worry. In Matthew 6 He tells us that worrying is futile (as He also does in Luke 12:22-34), in the parable of the sower the worries of this life are one of the things that strangles growth.

So what are we to do about worry? One approach is to remember that there are usually others suffering much more that we are. This is particularly relevant for a lot of our irrational worry. A very practical thing to do is to see how you can bless or help someone else. Instead of praying about your worries all the time, pray for someone else. Give some money to a good cause. Seek to help someone in a practical way. All these things are good. However, if we look at Jesus’ teaching we see that this is not the focus. Instead there are two key elements to Jesus’ teaching on the subject. The first is that our Father in Heaven cares for and provides for us. The second is that we were called to a much greater purpose than just living for our daily needs.

Here Paul commands us not to worry, but instead to present our requests to God with thanksgiving.

4:7

So how do we get rid of anxiety? We don’t, God does! What do we so often do if we are troubled with anxiety? We try and control our feelings, we try and stop worrying, we try and change our state of mind and usually fail. The Bible gives us a different answer, it tells us that God is the one who guards our hearts and minds in Christ. So if we try and get rid of anxiety ourselves we will fail, if we let God do it we will succeed. So what are we to do? Do we do nothing? No, we look at 4:6 where it tells us to present our requests to God with thanksgiving. We get on with the work that God has given us to do and let Him take care of guarding our hearts and minds. You see, anxiety is one of the many disastrous fruits that came when we sold our souls to devil (which is what we did when we first sinned). Peace is one of the many good fruits that comes from being part of God’s family, living in His kingdom.