Rejoice in the Lord always. Again I will say, rejoice! – Philippians 4:4

Philippians 4:4-9 DON’T WORRY BE HAPPY

 “anxious” = “to be pulled in different directions”  Old English root of “worry” means “to strangle”  Worry affects our thinking, digestion, coordination  SPIRITUALLY…  Wrong Thinking (the mind), Wrong Feeling (the heart)  Worry is the greatest thief of joy  Antidote to worry is to have a Secure Mind (Phil. 4:7)  Peace of God will guard you (4:7) and guide you (4:9)  Praying right – Thinking right – Living right WHAT IS WORRY?

 PRAYER  General word for making request known to God  Carries the idea of adoration, devotion, and worship  Adoration is what is needed: Seeing God’s greatness and majesty  Often we rush into His presence and hastily tell Him our needs, when we ought to approach His throne calmly and in deepest reverence  1 st step in praying right is ADORATION PRAYING RIGHT (4:6-7)

 SUPPLICATION  An earnest sharing of our needs & problems  God wants us to be earnest in our asking (Mt. 7:7-11)  As Jesus prayed in the Garden (Heb. 5:7)  Supplication is not a matter of physical energy but of spiritual intensity (Rom. 15:30; Col. 4:12) PRAYING RIGHT (4:6-7)

 APPRECIATION  Giving thanks to God (Eph. 5:20; Col. 3:15-17)  Certainly the Father enjoys hearing His children say, “Thank you”  When Jesus healed the 10 lepers, only 1 returned to give thanks (Lk. 17:11-19)  We are eager to ask but slow to appreciate PRAYING RIGHT (4:6-7)

 Depends on the right kind of mind…  If we have the Single Mind of Phil. 1, then we can give Adoration  If we have the Submissive Mind of Phil. 2, we can come with Supplications  If we have the Spiritual Mind of Phil. 3, we can show our Appreciation  We must practice Phil. 1, 2, 3 if we are going to experience the secure mind of Phil. 4 PRAYING RIGHT (4:6-7)

 Take “everything to God in prayer”  “Don’t worry about anything, but pray about everything”  Talk to God about everything that concerns us for He is the 1 st step toward victory over worry  The “peace of God” stands guard over the two areas of worry – the HEART (wrong feeling) and the MIND (wrong thinking) PRAYING RIGHT (4:6-7)

 When we give our hearts to Christ in salvation, we receive “peace with God” (Rom. 5:1) and the “peace of God” takes us further into His blessings  This doesn’t mean absence of trials, but confidence within, regardless of circumstance, people, or things  Example of Daniel PRAYING RIGHT (4:6-7)

 Peace involves the heart and the MIND  Isaiah 26:3  Thinking wrong leads to feeling wrong and before long the head and mind are pulled apart and we are strangled by worry  Thoughts are real and powerful, even though they cannot be seen, weighed or measured  2 Corinthians 10:5 THINKING RIGHT (4:8)

 The “Whatever Test”  Whatever is true…  Whatever is honest and just…  Whatever is pure, lovely & of good report…  Whatever possesses virtue and praise…  The Christian who fills his heart and mind with God’s Word will have a “built-in radar for detecting wrong thoughts  Thinking right is the result of meditating on God’s word THINKING RIGHT (4:8)

 You cannot separate outward action and inward attitude  Sins always results in unrest and purity results in peace (Isa. 32:17; Jas. 3:17)  Living right is a necessary condition for receiving the peace of God LIVING RIGHT (4:9)

 Paul balances 4 activities:  “learned & received”  “heard & seen”  It’s one thing to learn a truth, but quite another to receive it inwardly and make it part of our inward man (1 Thess. 2:13)  Facts in the head are not enough; we must also have truths in the heart  We must learn the Word, receive it, hear it, and do it (Jas. 1:22) LIVING RIGHT (4:9)

 “The Peace of God” is one test of whether or not we are in the will of God (Col. 3:15)  If we are walking with the Lord, then the peace of God will influence our hearts  Whenever we disobey, we lose that peace  God’s peace is the “umpire” that call us when we are “out” LIVING RIGHT (4:9)

 Praying Right – Thinking Right – Living Right  Either we yield heart and mind to God and practice praying, thinking, and living right –or- yield to the flesh and find ourselves torn apart by worry  There’s no need to worry!  With the peace of God to guard us and the God of peace to guide us – Why Worry! CONCLUSION