Gratitude Erases Fear

 

“Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, 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

There it is, right in the middle of the verse above! “With thanksgiving.” Who has time to be thankful in the middle of an anxiety producing crisis? Apparently God expects it of us regardless of the circumstances.

“But what have I to thank Him for when I am in trouble?”

We can begin by thanking God for Who He is. Elsewhere in scripture we read that God has almighty power. Even the devils shudder at that! (James 2:19) That means He is bigger than any trouble we have. We can also look to His omniscience—His “all-knowing wisdom” about us in more detail than we know ourselves and about every situation in which we find ourselves.

Add to that His omnipresence—His “everywhere presence” which He has promised will never leave or forsake us. We can also thank Him that nothing comes our way unless He allows it. He has a good plan for us, and wants to use everything, even our troubles, to accomplish His will in us. Thank Him for it!

What else can we give thanks for in the middle of our prayer-producing crisis? We can remember how God has treated us in the past. How He has answered prayer. How He has spared us worse harm than we had coming to us. How He has revealed His love to us during each situation.

Has He healed you before? Then thank Him, and allow that remembrance to take away your fear. Has He provided for you before when you have needed help? Don’t fear. He will provide for you this time too.

What does our verse from Philippians promise us when we come with gratitude to God with our requests? It promises that we will have “the peace of God, which transcends all understanding.” Too much to get our minds around! That’s the kind of powerful result we will see from praying through our fears with thanksgiving.

I challenge each of us, including myself, to live in the place of thanksgiving during all fearful and impossible situations. Let’s see what God will produce in us to replace that fear!