“Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.” – Philippians 4:6-7
“Prayer changes things.” These are words I hear constantly in church and from “churched” people. It is a statement of fact because prayer does indeed change situations and circumstances. Elijah prayed to God that there would be no rain, God heard his prayer and there was no rain. Moses often offered prayers of intercession for the Israelites while they were traveling from Egypt to the Promised Land and God heard his prayers. Hannah prayed to God to bless her with a son and God answered her prayer by blessing her with Samuel. God hears our prayers and prayer does change things.
Prayer not only changes things but prayer at its best changes us. We usually find ourselves in prayer because of a worry or concern that is burdening our hearts. We go before God because we want God to relieve the pain or provide an answer for our request. The passage is reassuring because It first reminds us not to be anxious. We don’t have to worry or be anxious because we have a God with whom we are able to share our concerns. That’s reassuring to know that we don’t have to carry our burdens alone but we have somewhere to go to relieve it. The elders have a saying, “Take your burdens to God and leave them there.” This is what this passage is saying. We must take our burdens, worries, concerns, questions, apprehension, fears, and doubts to God and leave them there.
When we leave our burdens with God something amazing happens. The passage says that “the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus.” There is a transition from worry to peace when we not only take our burdens to God but leave them there with God. The problem with many of us is that we like to tell God our problems and situations and instead of leaving them with God we pick them back up and carry them with us. When we do this we defeat the purpose of prayer. We take worry to the altar and instead of walking away with peace, we leave with the worry we had from the start.
Today I want to encourage you to allow prayer to change you so you can experience the peace of God. Leave your worries at the altar with God and acquire God’s peace. God’s peace is a peace beyond our comprehension. It is a peace that allowed Jesus to sleep in the stern of a boat when him and his disciples were in a violent storm. God’s peace is so that the obstacles of life no matter how challenging cannot and will not shake you. It’s a peace that when all hell is breaking loose in your life you are able to walk as though everything is fine. You are able to do this because you recognize who and whose you are. You realize that you are in God’s hand and you don’t have to figure it out because God already has it under control.
Let go of the worry and live in God’s peace.
In the famous words of Bob Marley, “Don’t worry about a thing. Cause every little thing gonna be alright.”
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Consider This... 