Prayer request

Greetings my Life Group friends,
I am in need of prayer as I most likely will be losing my job in the coming week. Things have not worked out the way I had hoped, and while I am trying to accept the situation, the timing kind of stinks.

The good news is I haven't used any sarcasm or words that could be misunderstood. That is huge growth for me, usually I deal with stress or drama with venom.

Someone who knows me well sent this to my email today, I wanted to share with you.

Blessings to you,
Sara

Philippians 4:6-7 Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God; 7 and the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.

One of the characteristics that should identify us as the people of God is freedom from anxiety. One of the most common maladies of modern life is worry. On the big scale, we worry about the Middle East and North Korea; we worry about the economy or global warming or West Nile virus. On the individual level we worry about our health, we worry about social security, we worry about paying the bills and we worry about making ends meet. People spend tens of millions of dollars every year on medicines to reduce stress and millions more are spent on medicines to cope with the results of stress and worry like ulcers or high blood pressure. Anxiety is like Starbucks: it’s everywhere. We are a busy, nervous, anxious and worried generation of people. In our day and age it seems like worry is just part of the equation; but it doesn’t have to be.

In this verse, Paul gives the recipe for worry free living. Every Christian can greatly reduce their stress level by following the dictates of this verse. In this sermon, entitled, “Don’t worry, be happy” Paul prescribes a restriction, a reaction and guarantees a result, with one important caveat.

First, the restriction: be anxious for nothing. Grammatically, the present imperative means, “Stop worrying.” Paul assumes they are worriers and they need to stop. Worry means being preoccupied; letting your mind dwell on something that is negative or uncertain. While Paul doesn’t tell us what it is that has them collectively distracted, he wants them to cut it out. And the implication is they can control it. Often we allow our minds to be preoccupied with the negative and we think, or even say, “I can’t help it.” Paul says, when it comes to worry, yes you can.

What are the dangers of worrying? What does God care if we worry or not? Is it so bad to sit and stew and have a pity party for ourselves? Besides the negative health issues that accompany a life of worry, besides being occupied with the negatives can immobilize us, there is a more sinister element to worrying.