Today, I’m finishing up my series on Philippians 4:6-7. In the end, it’s really not about thinking less and praying more. God has called his children to live in peace and we can choose to reject or accept his offer. In no way do I want to minimize the anxiety that anyone experiences, but we are not called to live as victims.

Most people choose to let their thoughts and emotions happen to them. I realize that there are psychological and physiological forces at work, but I don’t believe we have to live as victims. I believe that we must become far more intentional about what we’re thinking about. We need to think about what we’re thinking about. As we deepen our relationship with God, we will progressively surrender our cares and concerns to him. His promise to us as we do this is to graciously bestow his peace on our hearts and minds so that we can live in freedom.

In our fast-paced and busy world, peace is becoming a very rare commodity. Most people medicate their stress and anxiety in a variety of different ways…..alcohol, drugs, work, video games, television….and the list just keeps on going. I don’t know about you, but I don’t want to have a life that I need to escape from. I believe that true peace has been offered to us and I want to grab a hold of it.

I certainly haven’t arrived on this journey, but I have resolved to never quit. While God gave us our minds for a reason and thinking can be very productive, some of us probably do need to think less and pray more. Our natural tendency is to put way too much stock in our own perspective as opposed to realizing that we don’t see clearly most of the time (1 Corinthians 13:12).  The call in Philippians 4:6-7 is to not settle for what is considered “normal” in our culture. “Normal” is to live under the tyranny of constant stress, worry and anxiety. You don’t have to be a rocket scientist to realize that “normal” is broken. I think I’d much rather be a weirdo and take my cues from another source. The same invitation is extended to all of us. Are you in?