Anxious? Don't be.

What wakes you up at night? What worries you and snaps you out of your thoughts and focus? Do you worry about your loved ones, your finances, your job, your health, your friends? Most of us do... it's pretty normal to worry, I'm sure you would agree.

However, if you really think hard about it, how much control do you really have over this stuff? There are so many factors and variables involved that it's amazing how well things go most of the time. In any event, even when things are going well, we still worry! We are anxious for tomorrow, not sure what it will bring. We are anxious to be successful, healthy, and happy... anxious to have things "go our way". If we aren't careful, we could "lose our mind" with worry!

I've been thinking pretty hard about this one lately, and I've been praying... Why? Because I found a promise of peace, which I am very thankful and grateful about and which I'm very happy to share with you.:

"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 minds in Christ Jesus." Philippians 4:6-7

Wow... can it get much better than this? God promises that if we present our requests to him, by prayer and petition (asking), that His peace will guard our heart and mind. He goes further to tell us that this peace will transcend our understanding. In other words, we wont be able to figure out why we have this sense of peace. To know why would probably blow our mind. Did you know that the guy who wrote this (the apostle Paul) was in prison when he wrote it? Would you have enough "peace" to write this from prison?... So, there's your example of how this peace transcends our understanding.

Don't overlook the last part of the verse... "will guard your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus." If you desire to keep your heart and mind focused on what's important and to keep it guarded by peace from God, then give this a try: pray for everything, be thankful for what you have, and present your requests to God on a regular basis... and may God bless you for it with his peace.

-Andy G.