Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus. Philippians 4:6-7
This verse has been sent to me in devotional blog emails six times in the past month (thank you fellow bloggers!)i When that happens, I know I need to dig deeper. So, I decided to look at the verse one word at a time. All I can say is, "Wow!"
First of all, "do not be anxious." The word translated "anxious" is merimnaó (μεριμνάω). It means to be anxious about, distracted, to care for. But look at this: literally, it means to be "divided into parts" and figuratively, "to go to pieces," pulled apart in different directions.ii Ah yes, go to pieces – can I ever relate to that!
OK, the next part: "about anything." Do not go to pieces about anything. The Greek word is médeis (μηδείς). It means "no one, nothing, not even one." It comes from a word that means "not a possibility." I love that! There are no exceptions here.
"... but in every situation." The Greek actually does not mention situations. It simply means "all, each, every." And look at this! It means "all in the sense of 'each (every) part that applies.' The emphasis of the total picture then is on 'one piece at a time.'"
One piece at a time. One piece at a time of my anxious, pulled-apart life. One piece at a time of my divided, broken heart. When anxiety causes me to go to pieces, I'm to hand over to God one piece at a time, as I grapple with them, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving. That right there brings comfort and peace to me. I don't have to have it all together. God understands my brokenness. One piece at a time child.
"... present your requests to God." This part blew away the rest of my mind. The word translated "present" is gnórizó (γνωρίζω). It means "to make known." In fact, that is how most of the other versions of the Bible translate this passage: do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God (ESV). Make known to God? But doesn't he already know?
Even before a word is on my tongue, behold, O Lord, you know it altogether. Psalm 139:4
... your Father knows exactly what you need even before you ask him! Matthew 6:8 (NLT)
Think about it, we are not making anything known to God at all when we pray. But maybe God wants us to pray, to bring our requests to him, so that our needs become known to ourselves. Or rather, our need, singular - that we become aware of, and acknowledge, our one need of God.
There is no way that I can keep myself together in the siege warfare that is this life. I am overwhelmed often and the broken pieces of my life are scattered over the rocks of decades - but my Father is able, my Father knows. And I can bring to him each fear, each doubt, all the temptations to hopelessness, the hungers and thirsts, the pain and illnesses - mine and those for whom my heart breaks. I can bring him every repeated failure, every stupid mistake, every seeming defeat. I can bring one broken piece at a time to the One who can transform one piece at a time to "one peace at a time."
God is the only One who can put our broken pieces back together, and give us the peace that transcends, that is beyond all our awareness, all our knowledge, our sense of timing, even all our logical thinking. The One who can assure that ultimate failure is "not a possibility."
And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose. Romans 8:28
Search me, God, and know my heart; test me and know my anxious thoughts. See if there is any offensive way (way of pain, sorrow, idolatry) in me, and lead me in the way everlasting. Psalm 139:23-24
i Wonderful Peace by Gail Johnson; Anxiety Management, by Alan Kearns; Grace Nugget for 6.17.24, by Mike Fisk; Don't allow your troubles to trump your trust in God, by Yohni Din; A New Way of Faith, by Nancy Ruegg; Hope for today: peace guards our hearts by Beholding Him Ministries.
ii Definitions from HELPS Word-studies, The Discovery Bible, and Strong's Exhaustive Concordance
Photo and blog copyright Sheila Bair 2024
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