Giving Thanks
Be careful for nothing; but in every thing by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known unto God.
And the peace of God, which passeth all understanding, shall keep your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.
Philippians 4:6-7
Don’t feel alone. Life is full of requests. Regardless of how you feel, you are not alone. You are not the only one who needs help, aid, and support to clear the hurdle in front of you. No matter what rung on the ladder of life you may be, from pastor to business owner, homemaker to home wrecker everyone has one thing in common, how to get through, over, or away from something in front of us in peace. Three things are mentioned to have peace in overcoming our obstacles.
“Be careful” or “full of care” for nothing. Anxious and anxiety should not be common words in our vocabularies. From the church world to the corporate world, house to the schoolhouse, we seem to be overran with something Paul said not to entertain: anxiousness, anxiety, being full of care about things we cannot change.
There are two constants you should position your requests in, “prayer and thanksgiving”. Not just prayer, but with thanksgiving to God and then laterally to people. Why did I say people? God uses PEOPLE, plain old ordinary people. The Joe you walked by at work and paid no mind too might be the person God uses to bring harvest to the church, success to your business, and strength to your home.
Thankfulness is the kryptonite of anxiety. It paralyzes the negative and stimulates the positive. Thanksgiving changes the spirit of the church, mood of the break room, and brings a renewed sense of energy to your family, friends, and world. When we learn to express our request in prayer with thankfulness to God, it brings peace. Even in our home life and work life, prayer and thanksgiving bring about a change and response of peace.
Our prayer for you this week: May you come to realize the power thanksgiving has on your prayer and request.