“Be careful for nothing; but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known unto God. 7 And the peace of God, which passeth all understanding, shall keep your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.” (Philippians 4:6-7 KJV)

In other words “Stop your worrying! (Fear Not) Charlie Brown”

Now my peeps will tell you I am preaching to self! This is my Achilles heel. This is where the enemy breaks me down. This is where my control freak tendencies kick in. Here is where the LORD is waiting for me to throw up the white flag of surrender so He can be who He is: GOD.

He cannot give me peace because I will not give Him all that concerns me and mine.

Be careful (don’t fear, don’t worry, don’t fret, stew, wring your hands, etc) for NOTHING! That means not. one. thing. But……………

It says NOT ONE THING! But……………but………..

In EVERY thing talk to God. No ifs, ands or buts.

Look at the last phrase. It appears IF I will do what I am lovingly instructed to do, the Father will give me something…………..SANITY! He will guard my heart and mind. This means no anxiety, no depression, no psychosis, no thoughts of murder, no attempts of suicide, no fear of what might happen in life, less trips to the doctor for heart palpitations, shortness of breath, stomach upset, and brain freeze.

Yes, life is unfair. Yes, life is hard. Yes, life brings heartbreak. Yes, life is filled with grief. Yes, their are prodigals. Yes, spouses cheat. Yes, those we love get very sick. Yes, death is part of our experience. This verse does not promise we will be freed from planet earth and its curse. It does tell us how to deal with the curse in a way that is both protecting and brings peace. Jesus experienced betrayal, death of loved ones, rejection by his family, hunger, thirst, poverty, fatigue. For Hebrews 4:15 says, “For we have not an high priest which cannot be touched with the feeling of our infirmities; but was in all points tempted like as we are, yet without sin.”

Jesus Himself handled His everything with prayer and thanksgiving and the most vivid picture of this is in the Garden of Gethsemane as He faced His journey to the cross. (Matthew 26:36-56)

Many today struggle with multiple mental illnesses. I am in no way minimizing their suffering which is very real, very painful, and incredibly debilitating for entire families. I am not saying medications are not needed to replace neurotransmitters missing from a brain needed to function at an optimal level. What I am saying is this, God wants to take the weight of our mental turmoil and emotional pain. He said, give me your worries. EVERY. SINGLE. ONE. Then, He says, He will give us PEACE that we did not know could exist. I believe His word. He cannot lie. Do as He asks and He will do ALL He promises.

As a nurse, as a mom, as a woman I have known worry! I have tried carrying all my troubles all by myself. I have thought I could handle it. Boy oh boy was I wrong!! I accomplished nothing except sleepless nights, exhausted days, making everyone around me miserable with my moaning, groaning, griping, and complaining, and made the situations worse not better. EVERY single time, I have given up and given the issue to the LORD, I was immediately able to rest, relax, and things changed! I was finally out of God’s way. His love for me gave me freedom to choose doing it His way or my way. His love for me, gave me free will. His love said, I am here when you are ready for Me to help you. His love took everything I gave Him and He took care of everything!

It is our fear (worry) that wraps our hearts and minds in barbed wire and locks us in a prison without bars which may be more confining, solitary, and life threatening. Jesus holds the key to this prison too. Give him the burden and He will unlock the steel door of your solitary confinement cell.

Our Father is asking for a gift from you. He is asking for our problems.

(I Peter 5:7) Can you visualize a gift box. Place all that your heart and mind is obsessed with in the box. Seal it up. Wrap it up in the prettiest way possible. Pick it up. Walk into the throne room of the Father. Place this gift at His feet. Thank Him for taking and accepting the gift. Ask Him to do what is best with this gift. Tell Him you love Him and appreciated Him loving you enough to take this reluctantly offered gift. Turn and walk away and do not look back at the gift! Do not go and ask for it back! Do not take it back if offered by one disguised as an angel of light. LEAVE IT THERE!

Notice how your heart and mind feel now! Bask in the freedom and the release. Lay down and sleep in peace.

This was the gift He wanted all along! Praise you Jesus!

The Prayer by Jackie Evancho and Susan Boyle

Wrapping it up,

Yvonne