Vazquez Counseling

Tonight, I meditated on Philippians 4:4-8, where the Apostle Paul stated:

 “Rejoice in the Lord always. Again I will say, rejoice!

Let your gentleness be known to all men. The Lord is at hand.

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

Finally, brethren, whatever things are true, whatever things are noble, whatever things are just, whatever things are pure, whatever things are lovely, whatever things are of good report, if there is any virtue and if there is anything praiseworthy—meditate on these things. The things which you learned and received and heard and saw in me, these do, and the God of peace will be with you.” (New King James Version)

Actually, I have often meditated on these Bible verses. In this passage, our LORD gives us a solution to the problem of anxiety. As always, we have to remember the historical and cultural context of all Scripture, including this passage. Paul was writing to 1st Century Christians who were being persecuted and killed for their faith. I don’t think that Paul had in mind the type of anxiety that comes from illness, whether it be physical or mental. I also don’t think that this passage would only apply to us if we were facing certain death for believing in Christ. As always, we must understand that while the Bible was not written to us, it was definitely written for us, so we need to learn how to apply it accurately to our lives in the here and now.

So, how do we apply Paul’s instructions laid out in these verses to our lives? If we set aside the required understanding of the context of these verses, how can we take them and apply them to our own anxieties? First, notice that Paul does not say that anxiety is sinful. He tells us to “be anxious for nothing.” This statement clearly agrees that anxiety exists. If Paul stopped his admonition with this statement, it would not really help us much to deal with our anxiety.

Going back to the historical context of this passage, Paul’s audience would most definitely have had severe anxiety, as Rome at that time was using many Christians as human torches, among other indescribable tortures that almost certainly led to death. How would you feel if you knew that at any moment, soldiers could come crashing through your door and drag you and your Family to places where you would all be systematically killed? Stop right now and let that sink in for a moment. Right now, there are many Christians in the world who are facing similar horrors. I told a Client today that here in America, the Church does not face nearly the same level of persecution that many Christians face in countries like China, Nigeria, Syria, and many others.

As a side note, the Church seems to grow exponentially wherever it persecuted the worst. That is exactly what happened in the first century when people like Saul of Tarsus (before he became the Apostle Paul) were dragging Christians out of their homes and killing them in horrible ways, simply because they chose to follow our LORD Jesus. It was at that time that the Church was scattered beyond Jerusalem, and like embers from a brush fire, ignited a worldwide movement called the Church, which our LORD Jesus said would not be stopped by the gates of Hades (a reference to death because in the ancient world, Hades represented death).

Does God understand when we are facing very difficult situations, and we get anxious? Of course he does. Our LORD understands all of our fears and anxieties because He took on the form of a Man and experienced everything we experience. Do you think Jesus faced persecution and ultimately, His crucifixion, with no anxiety? I would submit to you that he would not be fully human as the Scriptures plainly affirm if had no anxiety during those very difficult times.

What Jesus had was the courage given to him by God the Father and God the Holy Spirit, a courage that allowed Him to face the excruciatingly painful sacrifice that He willingly made. Jesus went to the Cross, despite any fear and anxiety He had because He was committed to fulfilling the will of the Father. What happened in the Garden of Gethsemane proved that Jesus was afraid of what would happen the next day. Courage does not mean that we have no fear; it means that, with God’s help, we can face those fears and do what he have to do anyway, like our Blessed LORD Jesus did.

Going back to the passage from Philippians above, notice the solution that Paul gives for anxiety. First, he teaches us that we are to make our requests known to God with thanksgiving, and that by doing so, the transcendent peace of God will guard our hearts and minds in Christ Jesus. I have this peace that surpasses all understanding because over the last three months, our Blessed LORD has healed me of an underlying anxiety that I have had for very long time. And He did it as I’ve been keeping a prayer journal, listening to God speak to me in my time of devotion. Our LORD keeps His promises, and He will give You His peace, if you pray with thanksgiving and also according to His will.

If Paul had stopped at this point in the passage, I would say problem solved, but the Apostle taught us something further to help rid us of our anxiety. He exhorted us in verse 8 to meditate on the good things in life, on the noble things, on things that are praiseworthy, in other words, on positive things. This is a solution for anxiety that I give to all my Clients who have anxiety, even those who are agnostic or atheist. Focusing on the good things in life can help anyone overcome their anxiety, Christian or not. Notice something else that this passage does not say. Paul does not say that bad things won’t happen, or that there are  no negative things in the world. He would be lying if he did. God does not promise us that bad things won’t happen to Christians (or anyone, really); He promises Christians that He will be in our lives when they do, watching over us and helping us get through those things.

When we feel overwhelmed or anxious, it does not mean that we have a lack of faith in God. Fear, anxiety, and all emotions like them, are signals to us that something is wrong. Blessed be our Creator God that He is the solution for all of our fears, real or imagined. We need to trust in God because as He promises in His Scriptures, He will never leave us nor forsake us (Hebrews 13:5).