The Antidote for Worry

In America today worry and anxiety are national pastimes. Americans worry about everything from money and health to our children and the future. Sadly, many Christians worry about the same things. As a result, peace is often forfeited and replaced with all kinds of mental stress and physical ailments.

For the Christian worry not only robs us of peace and joy but it disappoints God because in reality worry is a sin. Usually worry indicates either a lack of faith in God or living with the wrong focus; meaning our main concern is with ourselves rather than living for Christ and His kingdom.

Not only does worry disappoint God because of our lack of faith in Him or our having the wrong focus in life, but it, as I mentioned above, harms us emotionally and physically. But in addition, it compromises our Christian witness to the unsaved because if a non-Christian sees you, as a believer, weighed down with anxiety and worry, you can be certain He won’t be asking you how he can obtain what you have. My friends our testimony for Christ can be severely compromised unless we can experience the peace of God; especially in the midst of trials. For remember the only Bible many people will read is watching the life you live. 

But the great news is that the Bible gives us the secret to banish worry from our lives and it can be found in the following amazing Scripture verses – (Philippians 4:6-7): “Be anxious for nothing, 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 minds through Christ Jesus.”

Before I share some thoughts on these two powerful verses it is so important that we realize that one, our focus in life should always be on the kingdom of God and not the things of this world, and two, we must live our lives with a desire to bring glory to God, in all situations, ahead of seeking our own happiness. In addition, we must confess our sin of worry and anxiety to God and know that once we do this that we can rest assured He will forgive us, for we read in (1 John 1:9): “If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness.”

Once we sincerely confess the sin of worry to God we can come to Him and exercise the key to banishing worry – prayer with thanksgiving! To summarize (Philippians 4:6-7) we could say: Don’t worry, pray with thanksgiving – and get peace! In other words, the bridge between worry and peace is prayer with thanksgiving. In this case we take our requests to the Lord through prayer by following the prescription found in (1 Peter 5:7): “Cast all your anxiety on him because he cares for you.” In other words, we need to take our burdens to the Lord and leave them with Him. We have a choice, we can either worry or take our cares to the Lord in prayer.

Thus, prayer is the replacement for worry. But according to (Philippians 4:6-7) to supercharge our prayers we need to take them to the Lord “with thanksgiving.” We all know that believing prayer can be powerful but when we add thanksgiving, I believe, it shows God how must we trust and love Him. This is because thanksgiving, in times of trial, tells God three things. One, it tells God you are thankful for His supplying your needs in the past. Two, it tells God you trust in His sovereignty in the present. In other words, even though you don’t understand why this situation is happening, you trust God to work it for good. And three, a thankful heart trusts God to supply all of our needs in the future.

Sometimes we as Christians have difficulty praying with thanksgiving. When this occurs, it becomes essential that we get to know God better. This happens when we get into His Word more, and just spend time in His presence through personal devotions. I guarantee you that the closer you get to Jesus, and see just how wonderful He is, the more your heart will be filled with praise and thanksgiving.

Prayer with thanksgiving is a wonderful cure for worry. One, it shows God how serious you are that He is going to see you through the storms of life. And two, when you turn your focus to God and His goodness it takes the focus off of you and your problems. It allows us to rest confidently knowing that Jesus is working everything in our lives for our good.

And praise God when we pray with thanksgiving the results are incomparable peace. I like what one person said that this type of peace is not some psychological peace gained through coping techniques. This peace comes from God and is not of human origin. This peace “surpasses all understanding.” And nothing can protect us from worry and anxiety like God’s peace. When the storms of life are raging all around us only God’s peace can give us the inner calm, we need to pull us through for peace is not the absence of trouble, but the presence of God!