The Weeds of Anxiety

Do not be anxious about anything, 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 your minds in Christ Jesus

Philippians 4:6-7

Are the "what-ifs" in life getting you down? Have weeds of anxiety sprung up in your heart and mind? How do you get rid of them? How can your mind finally meet peace?

This passage from Philippians is among one of the most well known from the Bible. But do we really understand what it means? If we really are living by these verses, we shouldn't be anxious; but instead we recite the verse over and over and like and share it on Facebook, yet it still has no affect on our lives. Let's dissect these verses, and let Christ uproot the weeds of anxiety that have so quickly taken over.

We are commanded not to be anxious about anything. Anxiety is a sin, and consumes our minds and lives. But when a rose patch is full of weeds, is it counted as a loss? No- we must take the time and the effort to go to each individual weed and pluck it out. Not from the surface, but from the root. We must take a look at the root of our anxiety. Elizabeth George said in her book, The Heart of a Woman Who Prays,

Over 90 percent of what you worry about never comes to pass. To worry is to waste time; therefore, the more you worry, the less you accomplish

Look at the root of your worry weed. Is it unnecessary? Is it a waste of energy? "Do not be anxious about anything"

We all know that simply understanding that we aren't to worry, doesn't stop us from worrying- so what is the weed killer? What will stop the worry before it starts?

Christ! He is the only one who can pluck each and every one of your worries from your life. Call upon Him!

Prayer and supplication is the mixture that Christ will use to spray on our seemingly relentless patch of weeds. So, "let your requests be made known to God," Talk to God! As soon as the "what if" enters your mind, tell Him. And fight it back through the power of prayer! The person who takes away the weeds of anxiety is Christ; so if we are not consistently in communication with Him or spending time with Him in His Word, how can we expect our anxiety to go away? It can't fix itself! When one weed sprouts up and isn't taken care of, more weeds will begin to grow and take over. So instead of letting your anxiety sit and weigh on your heart and mind, turn to the God who can kill the thought before it even sprouts.

And what is prayer and supplication accompanied by? Thanksgiving. This is one of the key weapons we have against anxiety, but many of us aren't using it. It is all "gloom and doom" as soon as a weed shows its head, and we cease to realize that we have plenty to be thankful for! Start thanking Christ instead of focusing on what there is to be worried about. Once you develop a pattern of thanksgiving in your life, I promise you that your worries will begin to fade off into the distance.

So instead of simply reading this passage of scripture...get out and live it! Stop letting your weeds grow out of control in your rose patch and turn to the "peace of God that surpasses all understanding." The only way your weeds will disappear is through Christ. And the only person who will guard your hearts and minds is Christ. So what are you waiting for? Run to Him!



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