Every once and a while, I wake up to a day when my insecurities and worries threaten to get the best of me. It can start subtly enough, with a little stirring of anxiousness, but then it quickly spirals into a full-on questioning of the meaning of life! Thoughts will rattle around in my brain like, “Who am I? What if I’m not doing things right? How will I ever get everything done? Am I enough?”
Have you ever had that kind of day, when the little every day stressors start to stack up and weigh heavily on your heart, making you question everything? It is so easy to allow these worries to get the best of us. Even though they might start small, left unchecked, they can continue to grow until all we can see are those worries and fears. As we begin to feel overwhelmed, our worries and fears begin to threaten how we see ourselves and undermine our sense of purpose. Even more so, allowing them to consume us keeps us from the joy and peace that God intends for us. God wants so much more for you! He knows that the worries of this life will threaten your joy so He has given you a way to be set free.
In Philippians 4:4-7 (NLT) it says,
“Always be full of joy in the Lord. I say it again—rejoice! Let everyone see that you are considerate in all you do. Remember, the Lord is coming soon.
Don’t worry about anything; instead, pray about everything. Tell God what you need, and thank him for all he has done. Then you will experience God’s peace, which exceeds anything we can understand. His peace will guard your hearts and minds as you live in Christ Jesus.”
In this Scripture, Apostle Paul is calling us to be full of joy and rejoice because the Lord is near. But sometimes rejoicing doesn’t come easy, especially when we are stressed out, full of anxiety, and reeling with uncertainty. But because Paul knew that worry and joy are opposite in nature, he followed the call to be full of joy with “don’t be anxious about anything”.
Worry can creep in and diminish our joy. The enemy uses our fears of the future, fear of failure, fear of the unknown, to try and destroy our peace. In every situation, we must give our worries and fears to God through prayer. And as we surrender them into God’s capable hands, we are set free from the hold they have over us. Dear one, you can trust in our all-powerful God, our Heavenly Father, who knows you and loves you. He knows exactly what you need and will take care of all your concerns, replacing your worry with peace.
God’s peace is unlike any other. It will stand guard over your heart and mind in Christ. It is through our prayers of surrender and gratitude that we can experience His peace that is beyond comprehension, and more easily remember who God is, what He has done for us in the past, and know that He is working now. Then we can truly rejoice, knowing our loving Father is carrying our burdens, working on our behalf and holding us up. We are held by Him.
In the safety of God’s loving presence, when I turn my worries over to Him in prayer, I often begin to realize how my thinking hasn’t been grounded in the truth. God gently reminds me what is true about myself, my situation, and about who He is. Satan wants nothing more than for us to remain tangled up by the lies that tell us that we are not capable, not good enough, not called, or that we are unlovely or unloved. He wants us to feel alone and paralyzed by worry, fear and insecurity. But God’s message is different. He is gently calling us to hear the truth of how much He loves us and how He sees us.
Because Paul knew we would struggle with keeping our thoughts focused on the truth, he shares what we should focus on instead.
“And now, dear brothers and sisters, one final thing. Fix your thoughts on what is true, and honorable, and right, and pure, and lovely, and admirable. Think about things that are excellent and worthy of praise. Keep putting into practice all you learned and received from me—everything you heard from me and saw me doing. Then the God of peace will be with you.”
Philippians 4:8-9 (NLT)
As we turn our thoughts toward truth, keeping our focus on what is pure and right and lovely, the lies in our mind melt away and the peace of God begins to flourish in our hearts and minds.
Dear friend, if the worries, fears and insecurities of this life are threatening to overwhelm you today, please know that God is there ready to remind you of truth and bring you joy and peace. Tell him your worries and burdens and His peace will calm your anxious mind. Maybe there is a tender part of your heart that you need God to guard. He will show himself faithful in protecting your inmost heart and mind with the truth of His Word. As you bring your heart to Him, may your week be filled with a peace that transcends understanding and a joy that is unshakeable!
