Freedom from Anxiety

Anxiety robs us of our peace and joy, spawns other negative emotions and adversely affects our physical health. It is a "killer". God has a tip for us to use to receive freedom from anxiety.

He advises us not to allow anxiety to enter our soul on any level (Philippians 4:6). He shows us the futility of worry by pointing out that anxiety cannot change anything anyway (Matthew 6:27). Then He tells us a secret.

We can avoid these debilitating, negative emotions. The first step is to continually rejoice in the love of the Lord and to realize that He has His best in store for us regardless of our circumstances (Philippians 4:4).

When we realize that the Lord is near to us, even dwelling in our spirit within, we walk in gentleness and peace (Philippians 4:5). We lift up every concern to God in prayer.

In faith, we thank God for dealing with the issue before we ever see the first sign of evidence that He cares about our immediate problem. We lay out our burdens and leave them in His capable hands (1 Peter 5:7).

He gives us the wisdom to know how to deal with the issues of our self, or the courage to leave them for Him to resolve in His way and time. He may just give us grace instead of resolution, the way He did Saul's thorn in the flesh (2 Corinthian 12:9).

When we compare our distress with the weightier matters of life, or the reality of eternity, we may see our anxiety evaporate before our eyes. The magnitude of eternity's reality erases most concerns from our troubled soul (2 Corinthians 4:17-18).

God provides for the birds and flowers of the field; and He cares about us so much more, because we are made in His image. As we make His Kingdom our priority, He works out everything else for our good (Matthew 6:25-34; Romans 8:28).

Prayer:

Father God, draw us close to You and never let us go. Remind us of Your saving grace throughout our lifetime and build up our faith with this continual evidence of Your goodness and provision for us. Flood our soul with a waterfall of Your love and allow it to vanquish our fears (1 John 4:18).

The fruit of Your Spirit replaces our carnal nature and we find it easier to walk in Your Spirit and to trust in Your goodness rather than to fear the future. Remind us to ignore Satan's lies and our negative self-talk, which pull us away from faith in Your faithfulness. Thank You for giving us Your freedom from anxiety concerning the temporal issues of this life.

Thought for the Day:

Consumed with worry, we cannot enter and remain in God's rest; yet, if we walk in the center of God's will, we abide in the happiest place on earth. - Hebrews 4:10-11

Fellowship with God's Trinity

 

Prayer is the most important spiritual discipline we can accomplish. Prayer is speaking to God from our heart. Rote prayers and formulas for prayer are unnecessary. God already knows our heart and delights in hearing our own words (Luke 16:15).

As we mature in Christ, God places His burdens upon our heart for the lost people groups in our world, for those laden by illness and natural disasters, for people devastated by the loss of a loved one through death or divorce, and those suffering from other distresses caused by this sin-cursed life.

God gives us His heart and lays His burdens on us a bit heavier as time progresses. When we faithfully pray, the intense weight is terrible at times, but the fact that God trusts us with His heart is joyful and spurs us on to persevere in prayer.

As we acknowledge our dependence on Christ in all things, especially in prayer, we pray in the Spirit as well as with our human understanding (1 Corinthians 14:14-15). We see mighty answers to our prayers from a God who delights in bringing us joy (Psalm 149:4).

We stop limiting God by our doubts and carnal thoughts. We follow our Lord Jesus' example and pray the prayer, which never fails, "Lord, Your will be done on earth as it is in heaven." (Luke 22:42)

God already knows our needs, but He delights in our dependence on Him. Our Father savors the words of praise and adoration, which we pour out in our prayers.

He delights in our companionable silence when there is no immediate need to lift up in supplication. We bask in the warming rays of His continual presence.

We yearn for intimacy with Him, and He snuggles us under the shelter of His wings as He showers us with His love (Psalm 17:8). We even experience the fullness of His glory from time to time.

We pray without ceasing all through the day, regardless of the circumstances in which we find our self. We look for His seed for a miracle in the negative aspects and rejoice in His provision and blessings in the positive experiences.

Prayer:

Father God, as we take time in Your presence more and more with each passing day, Your love shines in us and through us as a beacon to the lost and dying world around us. Your Word shows us that the Saints of old persevered in their anointing by abiding in Your presence. Help us to fully surrender to Your Spirit each moment of our day.

Remind us in the midst of our infirmities that the ministry of prayer and intercession is the most powerful task You share with Your Body. When we allow You to remove our need to stay busy, You use our whole being in this vital ministry. We do not need to be bed-ridden to be effective in prayer; it is simply a matter of priorities. Prompt us to cry out day and night for Your Kingdom to reign over all the earth.

Thought for the Day:
When we pray without ceasing, we abide in fellowship with the Trinity and access their power in every circumstance in our life.

Greater Value

Speaking or thinking negative thoughts about our self has no place in the Christian mind. God created the lily and clothed her in all of her glory; so too He created His children to bloom with our unique colors and shape.

As we cast our burdens on God, we bloom vibrantly where He plants us (1 Peter 5:7). Satan will plant weeds in our lives. They are particular people, activities and materialism, which thwart our progress toward our heavenly goals.

When the heat of trials bear down on us, God gives us a core of strength through His Holy Spirit. We will not droop, under our load of cares, into depression and defeat, because God gives us shade under His wings (Psalm 17:8).

As my fiance, my husband reacted with surprise to discover that I do not like to shop. I find no fulfillment in material possessions. I love to have pretty belongings around me, but I prefer to treasure hunt for them in a thrift store.

I find greater value in belonging to God’s Kingdom, than in participating in mundane, worldly activities. I treasure God’s presence much more than any presents the world has to offer.

Prayer:

Father God, thank You for sanctifying our soul and giving us Your spiritual mind. You help us to care more for Your Kingdom than for building our own little kingdom on this earth. As we cast our burdens on You, we bloom vibrantly where You plant us!

Thank You for Your deep peace and joy, which exceeds all human comprehension (Philippians 4:7).  As we dwell in You and You abide in us, we live in tranquility (John 15:4-5). Those whom You lead to come to walk in life by our side will enjoy Your fragrance from within us.

Thought for the Day:

What we sow into life will determine what we reap from life.