Overcoming Worry with Prayer
“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 (NLT)
That great theologian, Erma Bombeck, once said, “Worry is like a rocking chair: it gives you something to do but never gets you anywhere.” The truth is that worrying is worthless! It's stewing without doing. It can’t change your past or your future; it just wastes time today!
The good news is that the Bible offers an antidote for your worries. In Philippians 4:6-7 (NLT), the Bible says, “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.” Did you notice that rather than just telling us not to worry, the Bible tells us what to do instead – replace your worries with prayer! How?
“…pray about everything.” That’s right! You can pray about everything! There’s not a concern too big for God to handle or a care too small for His concern that you can’t pray about. If it’s big enough to worry about, it’s big enough to pray about. Here’s a strategy I like to use. Turn your worries into prayer targets. Whatever causes you to worry can become a prayer target for you to focus your prayers on! Make your worries targets for prayer, and watch God handle them one by one! Your whole attitude will lighten up as you release your anxieties to God’s care and control! God is offering you a choice right now. You can worry or you can pray. When you pray, you are giving God your worries and letting Him meet your needs.
“Tell God what you need….” But be specific. Nothing becomes dynamic in your life until it becomes specific. Trust me - He’s big enough for the job. Make a list of the things that cause you to worry and then commit that list to God in prayer! Start today in your prayer journal. Then meditate on Philippians 4:6-7, and you will begin to experience His peace, which exceeds anything we can understand!
Finally, as you pray, don’t forget to “thank Him for all He has done.” This is one of the most vital aspects of prayer. God inhabits the praises of His people. Thanksgiving is one of the greatest expressions of faith we can make. As we thank Him for all He has done, our faith begins to grow. Soon, we will be thanking Him for all He is going to do with a confidence that drives out worry.
To read this devotional online or catch up on past ones, visit https://kerryshook.org/blog.
Another important part of your daily devotional is spending time with God in prayer. The Woodlands Church Prayer Board lists prayer requests submitted by our members and provides a way to send them some encouragement by using a button on the page to let them know that you prayed for them. Whether you use the Prayer Board, or pray from your heart, the goal is to build the habit of incorporating prayer into your quiet time.
Need prayer yourself? Let us know by submitting a prayer request on the Woodlands Church Prayer Board.
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