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December 14, 2003 |
"Philippians"
Knowing Him - Knowing Joy |
Pastor Brian Shimer
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"Call to Worship"
Philippians 4: 4-7
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Would you open your Bibles to Philippians 4 and look at verses 4 through 7?
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Verse four says: "Rejoice in the Lord always. I will say it again, Rejoice!" It is a command from the Lord. Joy in the Lord -- who created all things, who is the answer to all our dilemmas and problems.
How can we rejoice when weighed down by worries and concerns? We cannot.
So, the two commands of this passage.
First, do not be anxious for anything. Anxiety was the word that stumped me in the 8th grade spelling bee as Bonnie Hubbard and I were the last standing. It stumped me and she took first place. Although I could not spell the word, I do experience anxiety! Too bad I have not been as poor at experiencing it as spelling it!
Worry is praying to yourself. It is concern turned inward. Our eldest left home in August to live a year in Texas. Although far away, we are able to be in contact via email and phone frequently. It does not feel so bad. But in the beginning of November she and a team of 25 girls went all the way to Thailand for two weeks. No phone contact. Only 2 emails. Those two weeks were long for Karen and me.
How many times a day did we think of her -- Prayer walking through Buddhist temples, ministering in bars, doing street evangelism, reaching out to prostitutes? We'd get awakened at odd hours and pray. We'd have flash thoughts and pray. The key for us was to pray. It was hard not to worry, hard not to just gnaw on the unknown.
Thankfully God is a realist. We cannot just "not do" something. We must do something else. God does not only say, "do not be anxious" but tells us what to do instead.
That is the second command. "Present your requests to God," Paul wrote. The whole sentence runs like this: "Do not be anxious for anything, but in everything by prayer and petition with thanksgiving, present your requests to God…"
Like a waiter in a restaurant brings your meal and then leaves, so we are to bring our requests to God and leave them there. The waiter does not set the plate down before you, and still hold on to the plate. Nor does he stand there and watch you eat to see if you like it. Instead, he just leaves.
We presented Anna to God. We entrusted her life into His care. And we did not know what the outcome of our trust would be, but we did know God. God is always faithful. God can bring good even out of bad situations. And Anna came back safely, triumphing through a great trip and surviving 14 hours of incredibly turbulent flying all the way from Taipei to Los Angeles.
Did you bring things today gnawing at your heart?
Present them to God now -- just lay them on God's table. If you want, take a prayer slip and write the thing or things down and we'll join you in presenting them.
If you'll do this, God has promised you something amazing: peace. You'll hear the announcement of the arrival of that peace in a moment when the angels will fly in and announce: "Peace on Earth."
God made peace and joy for us to experience. Worry steals it from us.
So, present those requests.
Then God's peace will act like troops guarding a specific location. That location in this passage is your heart and mine. We present our requests and God's peace because a guard around our hearts,
Here is your call to worship - right here. To present all that troubles you to God, to let Jesus into that heart of yours like the innkeeper opened the stable. And I pray that this Christmas you will discover the joy these children will demonstrate today and that that Peace on earth will be a guard around your hearts!
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