We know that Jesus specifically encourages us to ’do not worry’ with regard to our lives, food, clothing etc Matthew 6 vs 25, and He encourages us not to take those anxious thoughts on board, because as He explains in vs 32 we have a heavenly Father who cares for us. This is also recognition from Jesus that there will be many potentially worrying things in life that we will want to talk to Him about.
I don’t know about you, but very often praying about worrying things and situations for me, has been effectively telling the Lord what He already knows about my situation, and then ‘worrying on my knees’ for a bit while trying to persuade Him to do what I want Him to do.
Finishing praying doesn’t help, leaving such questions as ‘Did I pray the right thing?’, ‘Did I pray fervently enough’. (James 5 vs 14-16 feeds that one). ‘Should I have fasted?’ ‘Did the Lord even hear me?’ And at worst, ‘I know He can, but does He want to help me’, or ‘have I done something wrong’ etc
The apostle Paul has some wonderful advice for us concerning this problem in his letter to the Philippians Chapter 4 vs 6and 7. He says ‘Do not fret or have anxiety about anything but in every circumstance and in everything, by prayer (and definite requests), with thanksgiving’ continue to make your wants known to God. AMP.
The result of praying, talking to God about these things and then thanking Him, Paul tells us, is that Gods’ peace will then ‘set a guard’ on, or ‘garrison’ our minds. This is good news indeed. Thanksgiving and Gods’ peace trump fear and anxiety.
The reason is simple. The anxiety battle is in our minds. Fear or anxiety is negative faith. It is ‘faith’ that the worst will probably happen, and no amount of reasoning can reassure us. Nor can our ‘mind’ reassure us that we have ‘prayed the right thing in the right way’. If however we go back to Jesus statement that we don’t need to worry because our heavenly Father cares for us, we can see why ‘thanksgiving’ is so powerful in guarding our minds.
If, when we have made our requests to God, we begin to thank Him that He cares, that He’s heard, that He sees and knows what is best, that His kind intention is to do us good, Romans Chapter 8 vs 28 then our mind is taken off of our problem, and our performance in prayer, and is put onto Him, our wonderful Heavenly Father, His power and His character.
Have a look at Isaiah 12 vs 3, an oft quoted verse. ‘You will keep him in perfect peace whose mind is ‘stayed’ on You’. I’m not familiar with the original language here, but I believe the word ‘mind’ has the same root as the word ’imagination’. So let us let the Holy Spirit fill our minds with those wonderful truths about God as we pray and then ‘give thanks’. Then no fearful imaginations form the enemy will rob us of our peace.
