Philippians - Trust, Pray, and Be Thankful!
Philippians 4:6
“Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer
and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God.”
Do you trust
the Lord? Or do you trust in yourself? Is “trusting the Lord” a cliché statement that we have come to speak in
a well-meaning but utterly meaningless way? I find it very difficult sometimes
to trust the Lord in the midst of disheartening or uncertain circumstances in
my life. To a fault, I love control. I absolutely despise not knowing what is
going on. I am a planner, which means that when a season in my life arrives
with few answers and many unknowns, my initial response is to worry instead of
trust many times. You would think that after being alive for twenty-six years
that I would know myself well enough to know that I am not a trustworthy source
when it comes to planning my life in comparison with the sovereignty and wisdom
that the Lord provides for us!
My husband
and I were married in November after dating for eleven months and being
separated by 7,000 miles for six of those months! We found ourselves living in
a very humble apartment on our seminary campus that I was more than eager to
decorate with all of our many wedding gifts –
our first home! At the time, he was a full-time student and held a job on
campus, and I was a second-grade teacher. One month into our marriage, we
discovered much to our surprise that we were pregnant! We were surprised and
overjoyed. In the meantime, we felt that the Lord was calling us to move off of
our campus and closer to our church in order to serve more obediently there.
Before we knew that we were expecting a child, we had already felt a calling to
move. After only a few months of marriage, we were
not sure of where we would live in a few months, and we were not sure of how we
were going to be provided for since we were both going to have to find new jobs
in a new place. The only thing that we were sure of was that there was
absolutely no way that we were going to make it without the Lord’s provision.
This particular season has truly been one of the Lord’s miraculous work in my life because
He (so far!) has given me the faith and trust in Him to combat any worries that
may creep into my mind about the many unknowns of our current situation. In
this one situation alone (on top of the newness of learning how to be a godly
wife after a few short moths of marriage), we are facing the reality of
becoming parents, the reality of moving, the reality of finding new jobs, and
the reality of financial burdens, all of which could easily become a source of
worry and anxiety. Within the course of about three months, we have found a
place to move to, and the Lord has abundantly provided us with fellow believers
as well as financial blessings in order to journey down the path that He has
for us. (At the time that I’m posting this (about 12 months after it was first written), the Lord called us to move back to our seminary campus before we had any job prospects, housing, or daycare for our 11-month-old daughter Within the span of about four weeks, He has provided jobs, housing, and childcare! He is so faithful, even when we are not!)
I think I
can conclude with confidence that if you are reading this post, you
would not consider yourself to be an atheist. Yet even though we may not
classify ourselves in that way, atheistic tendencies may infiltrate much of our
thought patterns, especially when it comes to choosing to worry instead of
choosing to trust in the Lord. Bockmuehl penned the following statement about
worry that is rather convicting: “Worry can be a delayed symptom of a practical
atheism that grows from persistent neglect of prayer and an addictive belief in
self-sufficiency. Its remedy is prayer, thanksgiving, and gentleness towards
others (vv. 5-6).”[i]
When we neglect prayer and in turn attempt to “solve” and “reason” with our own
problems, we are really dismissing the truth that God is the only One who has
any control or wisdom over what we are going through. As believers, we should
take great comfort in leaning on Him instead of on our own understanding, which
is very limited (Prov. 3:5-6). For people who like to be in control, we
sometimes cannot see how relinquishing that control is a very freeing and
refreshing thing. Ultimately, even if we think we are in control, we aren’t;
God always is in control. We just cause ourselves more stress and heartache
when we fool ourselves into believing that we have to control and figure out
everything.
Martin makes
the following statement: “Do not be
anxious is a negative command based on the idea that anxiety (merimna)
betrays a lack of trust in God’s care and is a species of ‘unconscious
blasphemy’ against him.”[ii]
When stated clearly, he makes it obvious that if a person worries, that
directly shows that he or she does not trust the Lord to be who He says He is.
How quickly we can drift into focusing on ourselves, our own strength, our own
knowledge, and our circumstances and leave behind the beautiful truths that the
Lord is in control, He is sovereign, He is wise, He is loving, and He is the
ultimate source of peace! Even amidst the direst of circumstances, we have a
reason to rejoice because of who He is. I want to be identified as a woman who
trusts the Lord for who He is despite my circumstances. Our circumstances
should not be the determining factor for our joy and trust.
One author
gives an antidote for the anxiety that can plague our hearts and minds:
“rejoicing in the Lord always and in all circumstances, focusing on the needs
of others and being compassionate, and of course prayer of the various sorts,
always offered in gratitude.”[iii]
Is prayer, with supplication and thankfulness, a part of your daily life? Can
you rejoice in the Lord no matter what your circumstances hold? Do you call out
for the needs of those around you? Do you daily remember the faithfulness of
the Lord, which causes you to overflow with thankfulness?
TRUTH #1: Believers have a command to be
anxious for nothing.
TRUTH #2: All aspects of our life and
experience should be covered in prayer.
TRUTH #3: The prayer life of a believer
should include supplication and thanksgiving.
APPLICATION: Do you trust the Lord? That
seems like a simple question, but there is so much depth to it. If we really
trust the Lord, then we will not turn to worry, anxiety, and control, which are
all things that an atheist would do who does not believer that there even is a
personal God. As believers, we do believe that there is a God, and not just any
god, but the God of the universe who made us, loves us, called us, saved us,
and cares about every detail of our lives. Make a list of at least ten things
that the Lord has blessed you with or has done in your life over the course of this
year. If you are like me, once you start your list, you’ll quickly realize that
you could easily list way more than ten things! Our God is faithful and wise!
Thank Him for being a personal God in whom we can trust for our every need.
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