Several of you have related to me recently some attacks of anxiety. I have also been tempted with this old trick of the evil one. Anxiety can evolve from tension or nervousness to fear to paralysis to a persistent feeling of unknown or known impending doom.
Note how the evil one perpetrates this trick on us over and over again. In AA meetings you will hear FEAR treated as an acronym F.E.A.R. = False, Events, Appearing, Real. The devil is but a liar. He is the father of all lies. He will lie to us until we fight back by telling him to shut up while making a decision to believe. Once we make a decision to believe Jesus there is no reason for fear.
Think about God’s message sent through his messengers to us. Every time Jesus or angels appear, the first thing they say to us is “Fear not”. Ask yourself why.
Are you anxious? Jesus gave me a message recently to give to all of the team members of one of our partners that I would like to share with you. The message is from the fourth chapter of Paul the teacher to the gentiles’ letter to the church at Philippi. It was revealed to him by the Holy Spirit. It is not a judgment. It is a wonderful promise.
“Be anxious for nothing”. Remember that to be anxious for nothing is a moment by moment decision. “but in all things through prayer and supplication…( surrendering your flesh. Understanding that it is not about you. Making a decision to believe the promises of Jesus. Asking and therefore knowing that you receive when you ask…Mark 11:24) “With thanksgiving in your heart”…this is a powerful directive. We have thanksgiving in our heart because we have made the decision to believe that we have received from our Father who said that he will give us anything if we ask and that he has already given us all things that pertain to life and Godliness.
“Let your requests be known to God”. We are to ask for whatever the desires of our hearts are. We have been taught that it is greedy to ask for things for ourselves. WRONG! We are to ask that we may receive. Here are a few of the promises of Jesus that when you speak them will cause commotion among works oriented folk.
“Until now you have asked nothing, ask that you may receive that your joy may be full”.
“If you being evil know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your heavenly Father give you good things if you ask ?”
“Ask anything in my name and I will give it to you”
“Whenever two or more of you agree touching anything in the earth, asking anything of the Father in the name of the Son, it shall be given to you.”
“Ask the Father anything in the name of the Son and it shall be given you that the Father may be glorified through the son”.
“Therefore, I tell you, whatsoever things you desire, when you pray believe that you receive and they shall be yours”.
Continuing Pails teaching…”and the peace that passes all understanding will guard your hearts and minds in Jesus.”
Think about it this way:
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Commandment…”Be anxious for nothing”.
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Directions for how to obey the commandment…”In ALL things…through prayer and supplication” again this means surrendering our will, making a decision to believe the seen more than the unseen; not to deal with the situation, problem or challenge in our minds or flesh.
“With thanksgiving in our hearts…as earlier, make a decision to believe that because of our reconciled position with God, we have been given all things that pertain to life and Godliness. Make a decision to believe that Jesus meant what he said in the promises you just read. Making a decision to believe Jesus will cause a spirit of thanksgiving to come over us. Thanksgiving is evidence of a decision to believe.
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Promise of reward for obeying the commandment. “and the peace that passes all understanding will guard your hearts and minds in Jesus.” I have counseled literally thousands of people in all walks of life and I assure you that the thing that people desire more than any other thing is peace. Right here the Bible shows us how to receive the thing we want most in life and it is this simple, MAKE A DECISION TO BE ANXIOUS FOR NOTHING.
There is a huge power promise to the receipt of peace. Your hearts and minds will be guarded by Jesus. WOW! This is a huge teaching. I promise not to go off to deep on this teaching right now, but trust me you could right a novel about this one promise.
Why do your heart and mind need guarding? Because from the overflow of your heart your mouth will speak. What you believe in your heart you will speak without doubt from your mouth and you can and most assuredly will have what you say, if it is said without doubt.
As you set the course of this moment, I pray and believe that this teaching will bless and keep you on the narrow path with Jesus.
Love, your brother in Jesus…Pastor Allen
