Recently I have found myself anxious about future plans and decisions. I will lie awake in bed at night trying to sort out life's worries but there are still so many questions left unanswered. On top of that, about the time I get one thing figured out, something else always comes up - it's an endless cycle. Paul, in Philippians 4:6-7, has some great advice about what to do when one grows anxious or worried.
"Do not be anxious about anything, but it everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your request to God, then the peace of God, which passes all understanding will guard your heart and your mind in Christ Jesus."
Our response to anxious times should be focused on two things, prayer and thankfulness. Prayer is a way of remembering who is ultimately in control and that you don't have to carry the weight of the world on your shoulders alone. Being thankful is so important because it counters worried thinking by forcing a person to totally change their perspective. Satan loves worry because in making us concerned about one thing we can't control he can immediately blind us the countless other blessings of the Lord that abundantly surround us. When we forget about the Lord's blessings we stop praising him and start praising ourselves. We must force ourselves to be thankful when worried else we will begin a downward spiral into fear and bondage living that is hard to raise out of.
In the book, Between Sundays by Karen Kingsbury, a fictional San Francisco 49ers head coach says these words when questioned about his prediction of how his team would do in the Super Bowl:
"We'll do great. The way I see it, we're not even suppose to be here."
When we look at our life and circumstances with an icing on the cake, I wasn't even supposed to be here mentality, we realize there is nothing to fear and nothing we have to hold on to. Everything in life won't go your way, that much can be expected, but when you can live at peace with that idea, you will begin to enjoy the freedom of living that God intends.
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