THURSDAY, OCTOBER 10
“Don’t worry about anything; instead, pray about everything. Tell God what you need, and thank Him for all He has done. Then you will experience God’s peace, which exceeds anything we can understand. His peace will guard your hearts and minds as you live in Christ Jesus.”
Philippians 4:6-7 (NLT2)
THE PRAYER BATTLE FOR MY MIND
Upon entering a little country store, a stranger noticed a sign saying “DANGER! BEWARE OF DOG!” posted on the glass door. Inside, he noticed a harmless old hound dog asleep on the floor near the cash register. He asked the store’s owner, “Is that the dog folks are supposed to beware of?” “Yep,” the proprietor answered, “That’s him.” The stranger couldn’t help being amused. “That certainly doesn’t look like a dangerous dog to me,” he chuckled. “Why in the world did you decide to post that sign?” “Because,” the owner replied, “before I posted that sign, people kept tripping over him.”
The store owner didn’t expect his old hound dog to guard anything. Yet, in Philippians 4 God does have some practical advice for guarding our minds. The word “worry” in Philippians 4 literally means to pull apart. And that is what worry does, it pulls us apart. The word “peace” literally means to hold together. One of the keys to experiencing God’s peace is prayer. This involves telling Him what we need and thanking Him for what He’s already done. So God’s remedy for the worries of the world that can pull us apart is to pray to Him and trust His ability to hold it all together.
What are the things that you are most worried about? Tell God about them. Tell God what you need. And thank God for what He’s already done.
