Digging Deeper: Blessed, Never Stressed
Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God.
Philippians 4:6 (NIV)
BLESSED, NEVER STRESSED
Sometimes life can be frustrating – can I get an Amen? And it sure seems like frustrations have been popping up like weeds in spring! And what are we supposed to do in the middle of all these worries?
Let’s look at the second part of Philippians 4:6 – “but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God.” In EVERY situation? I don’t know about you, but for me, it can be pretty hard to pray thankfully in EVERY situation – and yet, Paul does not leave a lot of room for interpretation.
Sometimes keeping an attitude of thankfulness is difficult for me. I think that lack of thankfulness really comes from a lack of proper perspective. I am not suggesting that you compare your situation with someone else’s; even if someone is always in a worse spot, saying “well, at least I am not going through (insert tragedy here)” isn’t really helpful.
Instead, I think it is important to ask the Lord to reveal to you an accurate perspective on your situation. That isn’t to say that what you are going through isn’t difficult; but ask Him how HE sees it. And ask Him to help remind you of how blessed you are – because no matter what is going on in your life, God the Father Almighty, Maker of Heaven and Earth, the Lord of Heaven’s Armies, loves you specifically, and He blesses those He loves in countless different ways. On top of that, ask The Lord to remind you of an eternal perspective – remembering that all things- ALL things – work to the good of those who love Him.
Josh Neal and his family have been members of NorthStar Church since 2016. He is married to his lovely wife, Mallory, and has three children: Ember, Clover, and Jack. He loves being a part of the prayer ministry at NorthStar, and enjoys everything from Georgia Tech Football, to hunting, to writing.