"Be careful for nothing; but in every thing by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known unto God."
Philippians 4:6
The first footnote on this verse says "Don't be unduly concerned about anything." I like it. God is telling us to chill. :) And that is an *excellent* point. We get really concerned about things that don't matter... or that do matter, but not quite as much as we make it into. Learning to relax and talk to God about things that we can't control is an excellent coping strategy. God can affect outcomes even when we can't... and, in the end, sometimes it shouldn't turn out the way we want it to. Some of the biggest and most powerful lessons in my life have been from things that didn't exactly go according to plan. :) In any case, stressing about it isn't going to make things better. It is just going to make us more stressed. I like that he doesn't only say chill though... he gives us a better way to direct that same energy that we were wasting being overly concerned. We can take that emotion and that concern and we can pour out our hearts in prayer and supplication, and thanksgiving. We can ask God to take care of whoever we are concerned about. We can ask him to soften hearts and to smooth out rough situations. We can tell him what we want and why... and give him a chance to tell us what HE wants, and why... and sometimes it is easier to learn his will when we're on our knees, listening, then it is when we're just worrying, and hoping for one outcome. ... Definitely not saying it is easy, but maybe we can try that today. Whenever we start to feel stressed about something, let's talk it over with God. I think, if we try, we'll feel less stressed and more peaceful about any outcome, whether it is what we wanted or not.
Philippians 4:6
The first footnote on this verse says "Don't be unduly concerned about anything." I like it. God is telling us to chill. :) And that is an *excellent* point. We get really concerned about things that don't matter... or that do matter, but not quite as much as we make it into. Learning to relax and talk to God about things that we can't control is an excellent coping strategy. God can affect outcomes even when we can't... and, in the end, sometimes it shouldn't turn out the way we want it to. Some of the biggest and most powerful lessons in my life have been from things that didn't exactly go according to plan. :) In any case, stressing about it isn't going to make things better. It is just going to make us more stressed. I like that he doesn't only say chill though... he gives us a better way to direct that same energy that we were wasting being overly concerned. We can take that emotion and that concern and we can pour out our hearts in prayer and supplication, and thanksgiving. We can ask God to take care of whoever we are concerned about. We can ask him to soften hearts and to smooth out rough situations. We can tell him what we want and why... and give him a chance to tell us what HE wants, and why... and sometimes it is easier to learn his will when we're on our knees, listening, then it is when we're just worrying, and hoping for one outcome. ... Definitely not saying it is easy, but maybe we can try that today. Whenever we start to feel stressed about something, let's talk it over with God. I think, if we try, we'll feel less stressed and more peaceful about any outcome, whether it is what we wanted or not.
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