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| Trim Castle, Ireland |
“Our anxiety
does not empty tomorrow of its sorrows, but only empties today of its strengths.”
– Charles H. Spurgeon (qtd. in Harves)
“Worry drives
the dagger of slander under the fifth rib of God’s character.”
-John Edmund
Haggai (qtd. in Harves)
“Worry is sheer
hypocrisy, for it professes faith in God while at the same time it assails the
reality of His truthfulness.”
-John Edmund
Haggai (qtd. in Harves)
“Worry is faith
in the negative, trust in the unpleasant, assurance of disaster, and belief in
defeat.”
-William A. Ward
(qtd. in MacArthur)
Confessions of a Stressaholic
Dealing with anxiety has always been a
struggle for me. My mom often tells
stories about how I used to get frequent stomachaches in elementary
school. She and my dad eventually
figured out that one of the causes of my stomachaches was that I was stressing
myself out over lunchtime. I was a picky
eater, but the cooks would always make us take some of everything that was
offered, and then the lunch monitor would come down on us if we didn’t eat it
all. My parents came up with the
solution of sending a lunch with me to school every day (weird fact: during
this phase, all I really liked and wanted for lunch was the plastic-y American
square cheese on a hot dog bun along with Sun Chips and pudding). When the stomachaches continued, they
discovered that the children with “cold” lunches weren’t allowed to go through
the lunch line with their class, so I would end up having to sit with the older
kids whom I didn’t know and who terrified my painfully shy little self. After ironing out several other lunchtime
hiccups, the stomachaches gradually went away.
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| Europe Backpack |
The stresses of middle school, high
school, and college only got worse.
Between the unrealistic standards I put on myself, a ridiculously busy
schedule, and the difficulties that come along with simply growing up, I often
worked myself up so much that I felt physically sick, I couldn’t sleep well,
and I couldn’t hold back my tears of frustration. I cried over a single question on my biology
homework that had kept me awake long
past my bedtime even though my mom tried to convince me that getting one
question wrong wouldn’t really hurt my grade and that it wasn’t worth
everything I was putting myself through.
I was pushed over the edge and all the stresses of my busy schedule were
brought to a head when the two boys who teased me relentlessly on nearly a daily basis
stole my books AGAIN the moment I opened my locker (my very literal and
gullible self didn’t totally pick up on the fact that this is how middle school
boys flirt). Many years later, I nearly
gave up in the same exhausted despair trying to figure out how to stuff five
weeks worth of belongings into an oversized backpack for a mission trip to
Europe after already having just spent two weeks in Canada (this was the first
time that Jon became my hero by taking over and packing my stuff for me – I
will be forever grateful for his ROTC training and Tetris skills).
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| Bought in 2014, Sold in 2016 |
Since then, of course, the sources
of stress have become much more significant.
Dating, planning a wedding, moving twice across state lines, buying and
selling a house, changing jobs multiple times because of circumstances beyond
my control, fighting for a wounded marriage, and undergoing fertility testing
have all made the stresses of the past look comical. However, the older I have gotten and the more
I have had to face the serious issues, the more I have also learned that even though there are times when life is
completely chaotic and out of control, I don’t have to be. Even when a million circumstances are pulling
at my heart, a billion tedious tasks are demanding my attention, and a trillion
voices are telling me what to do and how to do it all, I can have peace. I just have to choose it.
Don’t get me wrong, I am definitely
not perfect in this area. There are
times when I still choose worry over peace.
However, I now know that I have a choice. I don’t have to be helplessly tossed around
by circumstances, to-do lists, or the expectations of others. God has given me a way out, and He offers it
to you too. He shows it to us in
Philippians 4:4-9, so take a moment to check it out, and then we can dive in
together to see the four check-ups that He has given us in this passage for
self-evaluation so that we can make adjustments and prevent or dispel anxiety.
“Rejoice in the
Lord always; again I will say, rejoice!
Let your gentle spirit be known to all men. The Lord is near. 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 comprehension, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ
Jesus. Finally, brethren, whatever is
true, whatever is honorable, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is
lovely, whatever is of good repute, if there is any excellence and if anything
worthy of praise, dwell on these things.
The things you have learned and received and heard and seen in me,
practice these things, and the God of peace will be with you.”
-Philippians
4:4-9
Check Your Attitude (vv. 4, 5)
Rejoicing
Verses 4 and 5 reveal our first
check-up, which is to check our attitudes.
Paul’s initial instruction in
regard to our attitude is to rejoice. How
many Christians do you know who walk around with sour faces all of the
time? I must admit, my thinking face
often looks super grumpy. As believers,
we are supposed to be characterized by joy, not crankiness! Paul tells us to rejoice in the form of a
command, and he emphasizes the importance of that command with repetition. My heart wants to argue, “What if I don’t
feel like rejoicing? How can you command
me to manufacture something that is not there?” This thinking is flawed. Pastor Tom Harves, one of my professors, used
to say that rejoicing is a thermostat, not a thermometer. Instead of serving as a reading of my
ever-changing feelings and circumstances, rejoicing sets the right attitude
within me. This is possible because we
are not commanded to rejoice in our circumstances, but in the Lord. Good circumstances are fleeting, and bad
circumstances in and of themselves are not much of a reason to rejoice. However, we have every reason to rejoice in
the Lord at all times regardless of our circumstances, not only because of the
immeasurable work He has done for us, but also because of who He is. Such an attitude of rejoicing in the Lord
repels an attitude of anxiety.
Gentleness
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| Photo by Kyle Sheppard |
Concerning our attitudes, Paul continues,
“Let your gentle spirit be known to all men.”
Our demeanor should be that of kind and considerate yieldedness as
opposed to stubborn and unyielding willfulness (Harves). Paul is not saying that we should all be
doormats. Neither is he saying that we
should never stand up for Biblical truth or for our Biblical convictions
(Harves). Rather, we should have an
attitude that is willing to sacrifice personal preference if necessary and that
is willing to treat others with kindness, friendliness, and love regardless of
whether or not they agree with us. We
will not have peace if we always have to have our own way. Conflict and anxiety are bound to follow a
stubborn and willful spirit.
Spirituality
The last part of this attitude check-up
is to cultivate a spiritual perspective instead of a worldly perspective. At the end of verse 5, Paul reminds us, “The
Lord is near.” This statement can be
interpreted in a couple of ways (Harves).
First, it could refer to Christ’s present nearness to us. In Hebrews 13:5, He promises us, “I will
never desert you, nor will I ever forsake you.”
Between His resurrection and ascension, Jesus assured us, “I am with you
always, even to the end of the age” (Mt. 28:20b). John 16 makes it clear that though Jesus is
now physically absent from this world, we still have the Helper (the Holy
Spirit) to “convict the world” (v. 8), to “guide [us] into all the truth” (v.
13), and to “disclose to [us] what is to come” (v.13). The second interpretation of Philippians 4:5
is that Paul is referring to the imminence of the second coming of Christ. We know from the rest of Scripture that
either interpretation could be justified.
Jesus is near to us now – so our attitudes and conduct should reflect
that belief. Jesus is coming back soon –
likewise, our attitudes and conduct should reflect that belief. For those who want to dive into this point a
little deeper, Colossians 3 provides more detailed and practical explanations
and applications as to what this type of life looks like. Living in light of these truths with a
spiritual perspective brings us comfort and peace in the midst of our chaotic
lives.
Check Your Communication (vv. 6, 7)
The Diagnosis
When we are worried about something,
how often do we talk about it with everyone else except God? Yet, verses 6 and 7 of Philippians 4 are
abundantly clear that the way to peace is by talking to God. Before we examine the specifics of what that
looks like, let’s take a closer look at the problem of anxiety. Paul gives us the direct command not to worry
about anything. Literally, the word
“anxious” in verse 6 carries the idea of being pulled in different directions
(Bagley). I’m sure most of you are very
familiar with the sense of being torn apart inside and distracted by
worries. Our English definition for
anxiety is “a feeling of worry, nervousness, or unease, typically about an
imminent event or something with an uncertain outcome” (Google Search). Essentially, it is a form of fear that stems
from the unknown or the uncontrollable. Warren
W. Wiersbe defines it as “wrong thinking (the mind) and wrong feeling (the
heart) about circumstances, people, and things” (131-2). If we are worrying, we are missing some
aspect of truth in our thoughts or feelings.
For
example, if I am overcome with worry that my husband will die in a car crash
when he leaves to go out of town for work, I am forgetting the truth that God
will always take care of me. Even if
that were to happen, worrying would not prevent it, and God would be there to
provide for me and to give me the strength to heal over time and to keep
living. If God is really all I need (as
we so often sing in so many worship songs), then I should have no reason to
fear any loss. This is not to say that
He won’t allow us to experience loss and the suffering that goes with it, but
that loss is bearable because we will always have Him. Another more lighthearted example would be
that of my worry over that one Biology question that I mentioned earlier. At the time, I didn’t see the truth that in
the long run, my ability to get that one question right would not matter years later, or even weeks later. Now, I don’t even remember what the question
was. I am glad that I strove to do my
best in school, but I would have been saved a lot of emotional turmoil if I had
kept everything in perspective of what really mattered.
Worrying
often seems like such a small issue in our eyes in comparison with other
temptations that we face, but we have to realize that it is a sin, and all sin
is serious. There is a reason that God,
through Paul, gives us such a direct and firm command. Anxiety is both unprofitable and ungodly
(Harves). It is unprofitable in that it
is physically unhealthy. Worry affects
every system of the body (Bagley). Have
you ever noticed how excessive worrying can cause your eyes to twitch, your
digestive system to revolt, your muscles to tense up, your head to hurt, your
hands to turn cold and clammy, or you name it?
Over time, constant worry, anxiety, and stress can wreak havoc on your
body. Not only that, but worrying is
ungodly because it “dishonors God and His Word” (Harves). Worrying calls both God’s character and His
Word into question because it causes us to doubt His goodness and whether or
not His promises are true. Worry is
closely tied with fear and disbelief, neither of which should characterize a
believer.
The Antidote
Thankfully,
God didn’t just command us to put away worry without giving us a replacement
for it. Instead of worrying, He invites
us to come to Him in “everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving”
(v. 6). Prayer refers specifically to
our response to God out of devotion and worship, and supplication s are requests
or urgent pleas for a particular need (Strauss 223). 1 Thessalonians 5:16-18 is very similar to
the passage under consideration: “Rejoice always; pray without ceasing; in
everything give thanks; for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus.” This concept of praying “without ceasing” is
so challenging to me. God doesn’t want
to just hear from me occasionally at mealtimes and before I go to bed. He wants me to talk to Him all day long! This truth makes me think about dating. When you date someone, you talk to them constantly.
Even when they are not physically present, texting has made it so that
you can have ongoing conversations that never really end. God wants us to do that with Him, not only
when we need something, but also when something made us smile, when we are surprised,
when we are bored, and so on! This is
what Paul means when he says that we are to talk to God about everything. We let ourselves worry about everything, so
why wouldn’t we pray about everything? We
also need to be thankful as prayer draws us closer to our Father and helps us
recognize everything He has done and is doing in our lives. We need to be thankful for the very opportunity
to be able to come to God in prayer on the basis of Christ’s blood (Heb.
4:14-16). As we focus on being thankful
and constantly taking our every thought and concern to God throughout the day, the
promise in verse 7 of Philippians 4 will become true of us: “And the peace
of God, which surpasses all comprehension,
will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.”
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| John 12:46 |
One
particular experience comes to mind as I contemplate the peace that prayer
brings. In a land and culture very
different from my own, I have a vivid memory of sitting with a young girl as my
brother-in-law (though he wasn’t my brother-in-law at the time) shared the
Gospel. The week before, I had shared
the Gospel with her, and she had said that she hadn’t believed in Jesus, but it
was obvious that the story was new to her and that her mind was busy mulling it
over. She was normally very attentive,
calm, and easy-going, but during this particular lesson given by my
brother-in-law, I could tell that something was bothering her. She couldn’t sit still, she wouldn’t listen
to me, and she seemed incredibly distracted.
When I took her aside to ask her if she was okay, she started crying and
told me that she was hearing voices.
Immediately, I grabbed my (now) father-in-law, and told him what was
going on because I knew he had handled similar situations in other spiritually
sensitive cultures before.
As
my father-in-law calmly and gently spoke to her, I held her close and prayed
fervently for this little girl who, as it became very evident, was hearing and
seeing demons. Normally, I would have
been freaked out, and I’d be remiss if I didn’t say that I felt an acute alertness
and an intensity that cannot help but accompany spiritual warfare. Yet, as I prayed and listened to the truth
coming from the mouth of my father-in-law, the peace of God settled like a secure
and cozy blanket around my heart. He
made me steady and strong so that I could help her to be steady and
strong. She trusted in Jesus that day,
and for the remainder of our time there, she was no longer oppressed by the voices
and terrifying visions that had haunted her and tried to keep her from the
truth. I was able to sleep throughout
the rest of the week even though we kept having instances of spiritual
warfare. Now, the only way I have peace
after leaving that little girl in an unstable home and a dark culture is by
praying for her and knowing that God loves her infinitely more than I do. I sincerely hope that in times of struggle
and worry you will remember to pray and experience the same peace that I did at
that time.
Check Your Thoughts (v. 8)
The Power of Our Thought Life
At
first glance, it appears as though Paul is changing topics in verse 8. On the contrary, our thought life has
everything to do with the subject of worry.
Our thoughts are where our worries originate and reside, but they are
also the place of transformation (Rom. 12:2).
Warren W. Wiersbe uses the following commonly used saying to illustrate
the power of a single thought: “Sow a thought, reap an action. Sow an action, reap a habit. Sow a habit, reap a character. Sow a character, reap a destiny” (135). Therefore, it makes sense that our next
check-up should examine our thought life.
One study conducted by Dr. Walter
Calvert revealed that “only 8 percent of the things people worried about were
legitimate matters of concern! The other
92 percent were either imaginary, never happened, or involved matters over
which the people had no control anyway” (Wiersbe, 135). Why do we waste so much time and emotional
energy dwelling on concerns that may never happen or that we cannot control or
change? I’ve been guilty of using the
excuse, “I just can’t stop thinking about it!
I can’t help it!” Another one of
my Bible school professors, Dr. Richard A. Seymour, addressed that excuse by
telling us that you can’t help it if a bird flies over your head, but you can
keep it from making a nest there. We can’t
help it if worrisome or tempting thoughts pop into our head, but we don’t have
to set up camp with those thoughts.
The Positive Thought Life
Alternatively,
God tells where our minds should rest in verse 8 of Philippians 4: “Finally,
brethren, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is right, whatever
is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is of good repute, if there is any
excellence and if anything worthy of praise, dwell on these things.” This verse gives us a pretty extensive list
of ideas as to where we can let our mind sit for long periods of time. We just have to choose to change our
perspective and our focus by refusing to let our worries take over our mind and
instead filling our mind with those thoughts that fit the description that God
gives us. For example, instead of
constantly dwelling on the issues of homosexuality, abortion, government
corruption, and so on, we can dwell on the Gospel’s transforming power, the gift
of life, and the fact that God is the ultimate authority. This isn’t to say that we shouldn’t be aware
of the things that are going on in our country, but we shouldn’t dwell on them
to the point that we become fearful, worried, and depressed. Essentially, if we want to combat worry, we
need to discipline ourselves filter, restrict, and control our thoughts as
opposed allowing ourselves to be carried away in every tidal wave of
pessimism.
Check Your Obedience (v. 9)
The Route of Obedience
Our fourth and
final check-up is to check our obedience.
Here in Philippians 4:9, Paul echoes a common theme of Scripture. We can study and gain knowledge until we feel
like our brains will explode, but it won’t do us any good if we don’t do
anything about it. James 1:22 says, “But
prove yourselves doers of the word, and not merely hearers who delude
themselves.” We are fooling ourselves if
we think that our lives are on track simply because we have heard and know
truth. Hebrews 5:14 describes the
characteristics of the spiritually mature: “But solid food is for the mature,
who because of practice [emphasis
added] have their senses trained to discern good and evil.” We cannot expect to win the battle against
worry if we keep choosing to live joyless, self-willed, worldly-focused,
prayerless, and negativity-saturated lives.
We have to choose to change to align ourselves with what God teaches,
even if it doesn’t feel natural at first.
Back in Philippians, in addition to exhorting his readers to live out
what they are learning, Paul also encourages them to do what they have heard
and seen in him. Not only has God given
us His Spirit to change us from the inside out, but He has also given us other
people we can look to so that we don’t have to try to figure out how to live
godly and obedient lives on our own. We
need to look to more spiritually mature (not necessarily in age, though
maturity often accompanies age) believers and mimic their Biblical behavior. If we know someone has followed Christ
through the jungle before, why would we not seek to learn from and follow them?
The Result of Obedience
When we do
choose to obey and live our lives according to what God has revealed, we can
claim the promise at the end of Philippians 4:9: “the God of peace will be with
you.” God doesn’t try to withhold
Himself or keep us from experiencing peace.
He offers Himself and His peace to us with open hands, and He tells us
exactly what we need to do to claim it.
On the other hand, if we choose to live how we want apart from His
instruction, we will not experience His peace.
For a while, we may enjoy a counterfeit and temporary peace, but
ultimately true, deep, and lasting peace only comes from living in obedience to
the God of peace.
In a Nutshell
It has always been amazing to me how
much truth is packed into a single passage, or even a single verse, of
Scripture. There is so much more that
could be said about Philippians 4:4-9 and about anxiety, but seeing as how my
word count is already through the roof, I better wrap up this post. We looked at four check-ups that we can use
to get ourselves back on track when we find the chaos on the outside taking
over our hearts and tempting us to worry.
Those check-ups included: checking your attitude, checking your
communication, checking your thoughts, and checking your obedience. For those over-achieving study-lovers out there,
I have provided a short list (which is by no means exhaustive) of verses that
relate to the subject of worry. God has
given us all we need in His Word. We
just have to be willing to change and to do what He says.
Additional Verses for Further Study
Psalm
38:18 – Anxiety Due to Sin
Proverbs
12:25 – Weight of Anxiety
Matthew
6:25-34 – God’s Promise of Provision
John
14:25-29 – The Peace Jesus Offers
John
16:33 – Peace Because Jesus Has Overcome
Galatians
1:10 – People Pleasing
Colossians
3:12-17 – Letting Peace Rule Your Heart
1
Peter 5:7 – Casting Your Anxiety on Him
Works Cited
Bagley, Bill,
Jr. “Joy in Hard Times.” Living with Contagious Joy. Cedar Mountain Retreat. Chapel, Cedar City, UT. 4 July 2013.
Lecture.
Google Search. Google. Web. 24
February 2017.
Harves, Thomas. “Philippians: A Lesson in Joy.” Philippians.
Frontier School of the Bible.
Student Center, La Grange, WY. 2011.
Lecture.
MacArthur,
John. Overcoming Materialism. Word
of Grace Communications, 1986.
Seymour, Richard. “Your Mind – The Real Battle Field.”
Victorious Christian Living. Frontier
School of the Bible. Administration Building,
La Grange, WY. 2011. Lecture.
Strauss,
Lehman. Philippians. Loizeaux
Brothers, Inc, 1959.
Wiersbe,
Warren. Be Joyful (Philippians): Even When Things Go Wrong, You Can Have Joy.
David C. Cook, 2008.