Philippians 4:1-9
With the way I'm wired (type A to the max) there are times when I get stressed, tense and even have bouts with anxiety. When I find myself in one of those times, I like to go to Philippians 4:6-7. "Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made know to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus." Every time I read them (which is quite often) I get this message: Hey, Tami, give it to Me. Relax because I've got you covered. And then my response is, Oh, yes, I knew that. Thank you, Lord, for your loving reminder and for giving me your peace. My situation may not change, but my perspective always does.
So I'm curious, have these two little verses impacted you? Or did some other verse in Philippians 4:1-9 speak to your heart today? Tami W.
Tami,
First let me just say WOW! God is so amazing. Last week I had the privilege to teach 3rd grade VBS at my church and today's bible passage was the study for day 5. I had one child who you could tell by his speech and actions he filled his time dwelling on things that do not fit this passage. As we were talking about how to apply Phil 4 to our lives I was reminded of how everything we take into ourselves through our eyes ends up in our hearts and shows in our actions. When we dwell on things that are holy, pure, honorable, true, and good they are expressed in our words and actions. The same can be said in when we dwell in the opposite. This child was saved on day 3. My challenge to him on day 5 was to stay away from games and things on the internet that were dark, evil, rude, and crude for three weeks to see how his actions and words would be different. Kids are so real at that age, and he confessed that would be hard for him. I reminded him that God promised in Phil 4:13 "that all things are possible through Jesus". All he had to do when he is tempted is just ask Jesus. What an amazing reminder for us as adults that we too should do the same thing, dwell on that which is holy, pure, true, and, righteous. We can't stay completely away from all the darkness that surrounds us, but we can stay focused on God's characteristics to see us through that darkness.
Wow! Throughout this study in Philippians, the Lord has reminded me to keep 'Paul's perspective.' And I've interpreted that as 'keep your mind on me & my word...and when you become anxious (which I sometimes do) pray! Also, verse 8 comes to mind where Paul challenges our thought life and encourages us to think on the 'higher' things instead of your circumstance. It is certainly a difficult thing to do, but with the help of the Lord...we can do ALL things through Christ who strengthens us!!
OK, I frequently have a difficult time with love. And the first verse where Paul is describing his affection for those he's writing to "he loves and longs for" and calls them "my joy and crown".....those feelings for me are kind of reserved for my immediate family...kids, grandkids, and even that's a stretch at times!!! A frequent prayer from me is for God to help me receive His love and pass it on to others more completely. Paul's deep affection for these people just really spoke to my heart this morning and reminded me to keep on trusting in God for healing my heart in this area.
For me, it's much like you said..."Oh yeah, I knew that." Sometimes when I'm stressing over my situation, if I just say the word 'Jesus' slowly and calmly, like I am calling on my Savior, I feel instant peace. Sometimes chocolate has that calming effect on me too. :)
Good morning Tami and all bloggers. The same two verses have always been an inspiration to me and that is why I take everything to God in prayer. I give Him thanks for everything. Sometimes I cannot even believe His bountifullness. He is just awesome. I really feel blessed that I have access to Him every second, every minute, every hour and everyday.
May He continue to bless Back to the Bible and all its ministries and staff and may many more persons visit Powered by 4 and see the joy in God's Word. Thank you Lord and thank you all.
There are up and busy days that keep me in high gear . I get worn out mentally, physically and emotionally and Spiritually. So type A, yes, I am, and I need to be reminded to be still and know that He is God. And confess the sins that I’ve committed, because of not having thought of things that are true, right, noble, pure, lovely, admirable ,excellent and praiseworthy;Philippians 4:8. But there are also desert dry, nothing to do days that leave me feeling useless. But as soon as I pick up and start reading or studying God's Word it is like an automatic engine that makes me feel alive again and get going. So as a type A I need to recognize God’s control and constant presence to help balance my life. Balance is the key. But God is the All POWERFUL ONE!
Thank-You for this little reminder of GOD's ability to heal us and comfort us. I wake up to read and some days I just feel blocked. I pray and don't feel the presence of the holy spirit. I felt that way this week and started this bible study on top of my usual study. Praise GOD! I opened Phillipians 4 and saw phillipians 4:6 and 4:13 and started weaping! Thanks for helping me remember GOD is our comfort and strenght!
Wow!! I really needed these verses today! Being overwhelmed by life comes so easy for me. Like Mary I need, no must be still and know that he is God and he is in control! Verse 8 has always been one of my favorite scriptures the word lovely I hardly read or hear the word lovely I do not think of God. Life has been extra hard this past week. Thanks Tami for helping me remember God is in control. Today I am going to try and rejoice and know that he is God!!
These are such wonderful scriptures to be reminded of. I have started to read scripture as these when I need encouragement in my life. Phil 4:1-9 is great encouragement always, reminding us that God is listening and WANTS to hear our needs and take our burdens so we can rest and rely on him. It also reminds me to be thankful in everything. God has given me everything in my life and I need to be thankful because He gave it to me for a reason, and I feel so blessed that He had a reason to give it to me. And if He had a reason to give it to me, the hard times are a part of that reason only to draw me closer to Christ. I am the child of God who is watching over me and holding me in his arms!
I have been reading the Celebration of Discipline by Richard Foster and have been trying to learn the practice of meditation. I went through my journal last week and came across Philippians 4: 4,5 Rejoice in the Lord always; again I will say, Rejoice. 5Let your reasonableness be known to everyone.(H) The Lord is at hand;
As a long distance commuter I have been a little anxious about the prospects of increased gasoline costs and I have been really trying to focus on the whole passage discussed with an emphasis on the two above verses. Knowing that the Lord is at hand (near) should give us all reasons to rejoice no matter what situation we are in or will be facing in the future.
Being anxious and stressed is common, and all to frequently overcomes us all! For me, the very first verse about "standing firm" spoke to my heart. All else follows (peace, quietness, rest) - as we remain firm upon our Rock!
we started a business in 1994 . the man that put the money up was an unbeliever and so was i. i got saved in march 1995 and told him . he tried to take everything away and made things as tough as he could . i was so on fire for the Lord i just kept praying and asking God for His will to be done . in 1997 after two years of it i was getting a little worn . it seemed like that entire year every time i read a devotion or picked up a Bible or listened to christian radio there it was " BE ANXIOUS FOR NOTHING "... i mean those versus were everywhere . so i had this peace (even tho my wife wasn't quite sharing it yet)i just praised the Lord and kept praying . now he had done some unethical things and i could have hired an attorney but i left it in the Lords hands. he went from wanting $150,000.00 to $100,000.00 to $75,000.00 to the day we closed with him we paid $45,000.00 which is what we owed on the note plus $5,000.00 for his half of the business . i am convinced that if i had went ahead of the Lord this would not have been the outcome . btw i began tithing as soon as i became a christian too . helps to have that Malichi promise on your side too . Praise His Name !!!
Robert Foster's book was mentioned in one of the comments. Transcendental meditation is not Biblical and is very dangerous for the Christian...Although this is a blog and is pre authorized, I do think people should be very careful and waring of listening to advise from anyone except the BIBLE. There are many heritical teachings out there and a Christian is to be a Berean. God protect us all from the evil one in mind soul body and Spirit.
Mary
I think that you are misinterpeting my comment. First, this is meditating on a passage of scripture and focusing on applying it to your life, this is not eastern religious meditation.
You are going to have a difficult time applying scripture to your heart by just casually reading or skimming through scripture. I know this from experience. As far as the Bible is concerned I have a lot more head knowledge than heart knowledge and through prayer, Bible reading, and focusing on scriptures thoroughly that apply to strongholds, such as fear and pride, I want that to strengthen my walk with Jesus as the Holy Spirit enables me.
If you read the Bible, you will find that people meditated on scripture as commanded by God (Josh 1:8) This book of the law shall not depart out of thy mouth; but thou shalt meditate therein day and night, that thou mayest observe to do according to all that is written therein: for then thou shalt make thy way prosperous, and then thou shalt have good success.
Second, sometimes you need to look at books written by Christian authors to learn how to apply the Bible to your life, what it says about the various disciplines such as prayer, fasting, meditation. Richard Foster is a respected Christian and this book focuses on the Christian disciplines. Read the book, you will find that it is very Biblical.
Thank you for your concern