One would think that Christians, would be exempt from worry and anxiety. But we are not…
In fact, sometimes we are taught that the Christian life should be full of peace so when we don’t have peace, we assume WE are the problem. Then not only do we feel anxious, but we also feel guilty that we feel anxious. Then we go into this downward spiral of worry, guilt, worry, guilt.
For some of us, God’s healing will include help or therapy or medication. If that is the case, do not think for a moment that you are a second-class Christian. Ask God to lead you to a qualified counselor or physician who can provide the treatment you need.
God’s will is NOT that you lead a life of perpetual anxiety. It is not His will that you face days with dread. He made you for more than a life of angst and worry. He has a new chapter for you, I believe He is ready to write it.
Philippians 4:4-74 Rejoice in the Lord always. I will say it again: Rejoice! 5 Let your gentleness be evident to all. The Lord is near. 6 Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. 7 And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.
This passage has several life lines that can help us through this storm of anxiety. Paul is writing this passage, he is about 60 years old. For the last 30 years he had been traveling the Mediterranean spreading the gospel. It had been far from a luxurious beach vacation.
– He was beaten with rods and received 39 lashes on 5 different occasions.
– He was once left for dead.
– He was imprisoned, deserted by friends and coworkers.
– He endured shipwrecks and storms.
– Nero, the Roman Emperor at the time, was killing Christians to gain favor with roman citizens. Paul was the most well-known follower of Christ. It was only a matter of time before his head would be on the chopping block- literally.
Here Paul sits, in a Roman Prison, with every possible reason to be anxious and he writes: Rejoice in the Lord always. I will say it again: Rejoice!
I don’t think Paul is saying this from an ignorant or naïve place. As if he is denying the reality of his circumstances. Like when it’s a Monday, and your car transmission dies, your checking account bounces, and your favorite pair of jeans rips, and you miss a deadline at work – and you just keep telling yourself – It’s a good day. It’s a good day. When like really no, it’s not. It’s a train wreck of a day. It’s a dumpster fire of a day. Quit trying to psyche yourself out. It’s a bad day and it’s ok that it’s bad.
Paul isn’t implying he is glad he gets beaten every time he shows up in a new city or he is enjoying prison. He is saying this truth of God in a steady, firm, experienced voice. Paul is saying, listen- I have been around the block with hard days, and unfair circumstances, and disappointments. The thing I have heard Jesus Christ say to me every time and the thing He wants you to know is this life line: Rejoice always.
This lifeline is a call to a decision, not just a feeling. A deeply rooted confident decision.
Before you can make that decision to rejoice always, you have to settle within yourself this question: Who’s in charge? Who’s in control?
Sovereignty is the term the Bible uses to describe God’s perfect control and management of the universe. (Sovereignty = God’s perfect control) You have to decide – do you really believe and trust in the sovereignty of God?
Anxiety is often the consequence of perceived chaos. If we feel like we are just out here, on our own, fending for ourselves on this planet –that breeds some significant fear. If we feel like it’s 100% up to us to make our lives work out successfully and if we make one wrong decision that will be a domino effect into certain doom, we can feel a little bit of pressure (and rightly so!).
Here is an example, one major phobia people struggle with is fear of flying in a plane. I personally have a bit of this. I need to pack my comfort food, my Swedish fish and my gingerale. I’m that person who actually listens to the flight crew make the announcements because I legitimately want to know where my life preserver is in case of an emergency water landing. I almost always ask the passenger next to me if that sound the engine is making seems normal to them.
Fear of flying is fairly common but I never have that same fear driving home from work or across town or to Walmart. If you look at the statistics, the odds of an airplane crashing are 1 in 10,000 and the odds of a car crashing are 1 in 114.
Anxiety increases as perceived control diminishes. I feel more in control when I am driving my car, then when I am trusting a pilot, who I’ve never met, to fly me in big steel tube in the air, that I’ve never been in. Perceived control diminishes anxiety, but the truth is, in this scenario, I’m no safer because I’m in charge.
We can’t control everything, and even if we could, we aren’t necessarily any safer when WE are in charge. We have a false perception of how much we can control around us.
The most anxious and stressed out people are usually those who are working the hardest to gain control. The more they try to control the world, the more they realize they cannot. Life becomes a cycle of anxiety, failure, anxiety, failure.
I heard it said this way: Anxiety controls you by making you feel like you’re out of control.
Paul is giving us another option here, he is throwing us a life line in Philippians. He’s saying, when things feel like they’re spinning out of control, when you are worried, confused, hurt, frustrated- rejoice always. The only way to be able to rejoice always, is to realize who’s actually in charge!
Rather than seeking total control, surrender it. You can’t control your life, or anyone else’s choices, or run the world, but you can entrust it to God.
