Philippians Chapter 4
Thanks For Exhorting Us.
Paul gives a final exhortation to the people in Philippi.
1. Twice Paul exhorts us to rejoice in the Lord always. It’s a way of showing our faith, trust, and confidence in the Lord for all life circumstances, whether they be positive or negative circumstances.
He warns us against being anxious about anything. Think about it. Why would we be anxious? We become anxious when we replace faith and trust with fear and worry. We give the devil a foothold to take our attention, our faith and trust, off from the Lord. When we do that we end up not just worrying about everything, but we also find ourselves trying to take control of our circumstances.
Therefore, take heed to Paul’s exhortation to pray about everything and to do it with Thanksgiving. Why with Thanksgiving? To be able to pray with Thanksgiving in advance, before even having God’s response, is yet another way of showing our trust that God is in control and he will take care of us.
If we could change our attitude and approach and make Joy, Prayer, and Trust a huge part of our lives, then verse 7 will become real to us: we would experience the peace of God in our lives even when life circumstances look hopeless and bleak.
What are you worrying about today? Take it to the Lord in prayer. Tell him thank you that he’s in control and that you trust him to take care of you. In fact rejoice in this fact so you can experience peace rather than be filled with worry and anxiety.
It’s a choice we get to make. Choose peace.
