why worry?

“Don’t fret or worry. Instead of worrying, pray. Let petitions and praises shape your worries into prayers, letting God know your concerns. Before you know it, a sense of God’s wholeness, everything coming together for good, will come and settle you down. It’s wonderful what happens when Christ displaces worry at the centre of your life.”
Philippians 4:6-7. (TMB)

We all know this verse, but don’t we need it daily? I will never forget the day I had no choice but to get two (yes just two) wisdom teeth pulled out - a big deal to me considering I spent most of my childhood haunted by a fear of dentists and needles. My husband Rick couldn’t even get me out of the car when we pulled up. I felt like in one millisecond I had morphed into little girl Jenny and he was my dad.

Finally after much gentle persuasion followed by Rick finally grabbing my hand and praying for peace (it was obvious I had none) and that I would survive (well of course we both knew I would but it was nice to hear him ask God to spare my life), I finally got out and had no choice but to face my fears. There was no pulling out (well actually there was...) as Rick had already driven off, and if I had run home it would have been obvious I was a complete chicken….so I definitely could have used Philippians 4:6-7 last week!

I love verse 7 in the Amplified:

“And God’s peace (shall be yours, that tranquil state of a soul assured of its salvation through Christ, and so fearing nothing from God and being content with its earthly lot of whatever sort that is, that peace) which transcends all understanding shall garrison and mount guard over your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus.”

The meaning of garrison is a ‘military post which is permanently stationed’. Using the verb it means to assign troops to a post. So when you look at that verse again, when you pray, God’s peace will be stationed permanently and be assigned to guard your heart and mind. That is powerful! You have an army at your beck and call, night and day!

Worry and anxiety can be crippling emotionally and spiritually. As a mum I find it hard sometimes to squash those daily cares and situations which arise at any given time before they become imbedded in my head as a source of worry. How hard, yet how vital, is it to then displace those thoughts and replace them with peace?

Its fine when life is coasting along at a leisurely pace, the sun is shining and the chickens are laying…no worries! But when you get that phone call that turns your world upside down, the bills start arriving daily, you unsuspectingly visit the dentist and find out he’s going to rip your teeth out one by one…you can almost see the dark clouds rising on the horizon drifting closer and closer.

When you’re going through the dark valley you realise why all those verse in the Bible are there. Those verses you skimmed over last time you read Psalms soothe the soul this time around. For every season in our life there is a verse written just for you, for this moment, ‘living and active, sharper than any double-edged sword, penetrating even to dividing soul and spirit….’ (Heb 12:4)

So with so much going on in each of our worlds, every day, try to remember this humble verse on peace versus worry. I promise I will too!

“I'd say you'll do best by filling your minds and meditating on things true, noble, reputable, authentic, compelling, gracious—the best, not the worst; the beautiful, not the ugly; things to praise, not things to curse. Put into practice what you learned from me, what you heard and saw and realized. Do that, and God, who makes everything work together, will work you into his most excellent harmonies.” Philippians 4:8 (TMB)

For the record, I bravely survived the trauma of what seemed like the 'needle from hell' being inserted into half my mouth tissue, but still to this day do not understand why the receptionist allowed me to wander unassisted into the chemist shop (and beyond) after being administered half the surgery's allocation of happy gas. I don't recall talking to the chemist. Slurring, drooling & groaning are the first words that come to mind. Not that I would have given up happy gas for anything that day!