Be Anxious for Nothing
Author: Shannon McBrayer
May 30, 2024
Philippians 4:6-7 says “Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God; and the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds …”
There is a lot going on in this world right now and on top of our everyday stresses, it can be a bit too much for us at times. Some of us may be worried about what’s going to happen politically, some may be worried about military related issues, some may worry about what world their children or grandchildren will grow up in. For some it could be lack of employment, being a single parent, a sick loved one, the list could go on and on and it’s enough to make anyone feel anxious!
You may or may not be familiar with the above verse. I would challenge you to commit it to memory, as we discuss further, you will see why memorizing scripture is so important.
First, let’s break it down. “Be anxious for nothing.” Anxious is defined as; experiencing worry, unease, or nervousness, typically about an imminent event or something with an uncertain outcome.) That is a bit deeper than saying “don’t worry”, isn’t it? “..but in everything by prayer and supplication (supplication being the action of humbly asking or begging for something in earnest) with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God.”
So, we are to ask humbly but earnestly, while thanking Him in advance for taking over a situation that is causing us to feel anxious. Why? Because, what comes next is a promise! “and the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds.” You may already know this, but we are hard-wired to react emotionally first. God made us to always give us a choice.
If I may get a bit nerdy for a moment. Everything we see, hear, taste, touch, and smell travels through our bodies in the form of electrical signals. These senses travel from cell to cell until they reach your brain. They enter your brain at the base near the spinal cord, then to our frontal lobe, or the limbic system. Why does this matter? Well, the limbic system is where we produce emotions. Our information does eventually move on from here to the cerebral cortex where rational, logical thinking happens. However, the time it takes to get there, well
that is up to us.
Our choice is, do we stay in the emotion of our situations, or do we allow ourselves to let that process move on to rational thinking? It’s normal and more than okay to feel emotions. It’s what we choose once we are in the emotion that matters.
If you are like me and frequently ask “why”, you may have the same question I had about this. “Why were we made this way?” I think it’s because here, in the space of the limbic system, is where we must choose to have faith, choose to trust the Lord. Wouldn’t all of this be so much easier if we were wired the opposite? Wouldn’t it be great to just think rationally to begin with?
If we were though, where is our room to choose to be “anxious for nothing” and go to prayer, while offering Thanksgiving? Where and when would we choose faith over what we see, hear, taste, touch, and smell?
Here is what is interesting: the rational part of our brain can’t stop the emotion felt by the limbic system, but the 2 areas do influence one another while maintaining constant communication. In other words, give your rational side time to talk to your emotional side. Understanding the communication between these two places (emotional and
rational) is the physical source of Emotional Intelligence. What does this mean for us as believers? It means that God made us to be emotional, but with the understanding that we need to trust Him. To get to the place where we believe in Him to control the situation. Also, to help us rule our emotions instead of being ruled by our emotions.
Here is where I insert some good news!
When you find yourself in that place where what you are seeing or hearing is too much for you, that is your cue to start praying and thanking God for taking over your situation. Call on this scripture in prayer:
“Lord, this is too much for me, please take over and in return I will hold fast to your promise in Phil. 4 for peace when it doesn’t make sense to have peace, and that you will guard my mind and my heart, and I thank you for what you are doing on my behalf."
You may be thinking, “it’s not that simple”, but it really is. God works in ways that we often are not even aware of. I’ve seen the fruition of prayers that the answer got set in motion years before I even prayed for it. Isaiah 65 says that He will answer before we even call on Him, that while we are yet praying to him, he will go ahead and answer. This is an amazing thing to know! God is already in tomorrow and He knows our hearts, needs, and prayers before we do.
As we journey to feel less anxious and gain better control over our emotions, I hope everyone can hold on to these scriptures. For me, I used to struggle with the big emotion of anger. One day, I heard someone say to “get mad on purpose” and it really made me think. I can’t fly off the handle over every little thing, it’s just not productive. This has really stuck with me. I learned that anger and aggression are not synonymous. This really helped me know when I should be angry and then how to be angry correctly.
Whatever is making you anxious, it’s an emotion and you absolutely can conquer it. Next time you feel yourself getting anxious, immediately start praying and thanking the Lord. He says to remind Him of his promises. Why? Not because He forgot! It’s to remind US, to build OUR faith. Quote Phil 4:6-7 over your situation and stand on the promise in that scripture that comes with it and “be anxious for no-thing”!
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