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.