Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.

Philippians 4:6-7

Every time I read Philippians 4:6-7 something new stands out to me. I turn there often because I fight feelings of anxiousness often and I need God’s truth to remind me not to be anxious for anything. Recently, as I read the familiar verses again, my eyes caught the end rather than the beginning of the verse and I read it four or five times, over and over:

“the peace of God which passes all understanding will guard your hearts and minds”.

Guard your heart and mind.

Sweet friends, I’m fairly certain I’m not the only one who falls prey to negative thoughts or wrong-headedness when anxiety sets in. I guarantee negativity and wrong-headedness hit us all when we’re anxious.

Why?

Let’s go back to Philippians 4:6-7.

What guards our hearts and minds? The peace of God.

What’s are we missing when we’re focused on feelings of anxiety?

That’s right, the peace of God.

Dear heart, I’m a slow learner in this area, but I’ve learned this much to know it’s true: the longer we stay in an anxious state, the bigger the hole becomes in the armor that guards our hearts and minds. The bigger the hole gets, the more of the enemy’s whispers of negativity and ungodly advice make it into our thoughts and feelings.

As a beloved Sister pointed out to me once, there’s a reason God tells us to take every thought captive and make it obedient to Christ (2 Corinthians 10:5). When we’re feeling anxious, lonely, afraid, or even angry, we’re not focused on experiencing the peace of God. When we aren’t in His peace, we’re open to all sorts of mental and emotional attacks and the enemy knows it. That old snake in the grass watches for it, stirs up trouble to try take our focus off of the peace of God.

Knowing this to be true, what can we do about it?

First, as I have learned to do, we can confess our negative and wrong-headed thoughts to a trusted Sister or Brother. Getting those thoughts out in the light takes them from a place of shame and guilt and puts them into a place where they can be dealt with by the mighty sword of God’s Word (James 5:16).

Second, we can hold onto James 5:16 and circle back to the middle of Philippians 4:6-7, “in every situation by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving present your requests to God”. After we apply God’s truth to our thoughts and feelings, we can seek healing and peace through prayer. We can repent of any wrong-headedness we let take hold, we can turn all of our concerns over to God, and we can thank Him not only for what He has done but what we know He will do in our present situations and our futures too. We can ask for His direction and advice and know that He will steer us correctly for God cannot lie and every good thing comes from Him.

Beloved, our God is the God who saves! Repent of any misthought. Lay all your troubles, all your cares at His feet. Rescue from anxiousness is only one prayer away. Peace that guards your heart and mind is so much nearer than you think. Don’t delay. Get that armor patched back up with the peace that passes understanding and tell the enemy to take his pack of lies and hit the road!

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