Joy in Being Free from Anxiety

 

"Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus." (Philippians 4:6-7, English Standard Version)

 

Anxiety.  The dictionary defines anxiety as:  "A state of uneasiness and apprehension, as about future uncertainties."  That's just normal anxiety.  Everybody at various times in their lives feel normal anxiety.  In the field of psychiatry, anxiety is defined a little differently:  "A state of apprehension, uncertainty, and fear resulting from the anticipation of a realistic or fantasized threatening event or situation, often impairing physical and psychological functioning."  Notice from this definition, anxiety can be real or fantasized, and that in both cases it often impairs physical and psychological functioning.  People suffer from this form of anxiety everyday.  They spend hundreds of dollars each year in therapy bills for treatment.

 

Now I don't want to trivialize anxiety, nor do I want to look down upon people who suffer from it.  I also don't want to knock counseling or therapy that attempts to treat anxiety and its symptoms.  What I want to do is say is this:  No man-made method of dealing with anxiety that leaves God out of the equation will ever produce lasting freedom from anxiety.  I believe anxiety is real and I believe therapy can help, but true, lasting freedom from anxiety can only come from God.  This passage from Philippians chapter 4 is one of the classic passages from Scripture that deals with anxiety.  In it we see the command, the solution, and the result of dealing with anxiety God's way.

 

1. The Command ("Do not be anxious about anything").  OK, anybody need help understanding this command?  Pretty straightforward, right?  Paul, speaking under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, gives God's short answer to the problem of anxiety:  Don't be anxious!  Now if God gives a command about anything, what is it called when we don't adhere to the command?  S-I-N.  If God commands us to not be anxious, then feeling anxious is a sin.  This is not my opinion, but God's.  How is feeling anxious sinful?  Go back to the definition of anxiety given above.  Anxiety is uneasiness or apprehension about future uncertainties.  In other words, when we are anxious about anything, we are not sure how it will turn out for us, and we worry.  Worry, at its root, is a feeling that God won't take care of us--that's sin because God has promised to take care of us ("But seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be added to you" Matthew 6:33).  So the command:  Don't be anxious!

 

2. The Solution ("But in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God").  OK, we got the command, but how do we carry it out?  Glad you asked!  The next verse outlines the solution to the command.  In a word, the answer is:  Prayer.  Notice some things about prayer.  First, the extent of prayer.  What are we to take to God in prayer?  Everything!  God wants us to bring everything to Him in prayer (just like the old hymn says).  Don't think there is any request that God is going to say, "Why are you bringing that to Me?"  Think of young children.  What is the one thing young children do very well?  Ask questions!  My youngest son (who is 8) can ask an endless stream of questions; and there is no question that is too silly for him to ask.  There is nothing you cannot bring to God in prayer!

 

Secondly, notice what our attitude in prayer should be.  We are to offer our prayers to God with thanksgiving.  This is the hard part.  It's easy to be thankful to God when things are going great, but can we be thankful to God when things aren't going so well?  If you are a child of God, then God gives us an incredible promise.  In Romans, Paul writes:  "And we know that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to his purpose" (Romans 8:28).  If you are a child of God, then everything that is happening in your life God is working out for your ultimate good and for His ultimate glory.  Notice the "all things" in this verse.  This includes blessings as well as hardships.  We can (and ought to) be thankful for everything that is happening in our lives.  A thankful attitude goes a long way to curing anxiety.

 

3. The Result ("And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus").  When we follow God's command to not be anxious and we begin to thankfully offer all of our concerns to God in prayer, the result is peace!  I believe this is both a subjective feeling of peace and an objective assurance of peace.  What I mean by this is when we begin to offer everything to the Lord in prayer, there is a sense in which we are no longer carrying the burden of our worries any more.  We are trusting in God to shoulder our burdens.  That is the subjective feeling of peace.  There is also an objective assurance of peace.  God promises to take care of our needs (cf. Matthew 6:25-33).  God promises to work all things to our ultimate good (cf. Romans 8:28 quoted above).  These are promises from almighty God, and God cannot lie (cf. Titus 1:2).  I can tell you honestly, I worry a lot less than I used to.  I wasn't ever a real big worrier, but I did worry about things.  Even now, there are times I catch myself worrying, but I don't do it for long because I know God is watching out for me.

 

There's more to this peace of God.  Paul says this peace "surpasses all understanding."  What does this mean?  It doesn't mean that this peace is incomprehensible; otherwise there is no sense in mentioning anything about it.  What this means is that the peace of God is supernatural.  No amount of counseling or therapy can give you this peace.  You can read a thousand self-help books, and you will never get this peace.  The peace of God is a gift!  Given only to those who place their trust in His Son, Jesus Christ.  Finally, look at what God's peace is able to do.  It will "guard your hearts and your minds."  This peace God gives to us will act as a guard against doubt and anxiety.

 

So, if you're battling with anxiety--whether normal anxiety or psychological anxiety--God provides a way out.  As Jesus said in John's gospel, "you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free" (John 8:32).  Know the truth about anxiety:  It is sin because it fails to trust God to provide for us, and God commands us to not be anxious.  Know the cure for anxiety:  Place all of your cares and concerns at the feet of God with an attitude of thankfulness.  Know the result:  God's peace will flow over you as you rest assured in the promises of God to take care of all your needs.

 

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