If we are truly one with the Lord in our experience and something negative happens to us, we need not be anxious or troubled. If we are not one with the Lord in a practical way, virtually every person, every matter, and every thing will bother us. We may be disturbed by our husband or wife or by our children. When we are not one with the Lord, nothing will be satisfactory to us. For example, apart from the Lord, no job is satisfying. The secret of satisfaction is to be one with Christ. When we are one with the Lord, we can be satisfied with our circumstances, and we can be forbearing with everyone, every thing, and every matter. Only when we are one with Christ can we be forbearing to the uttermost and be satisfied in all situations.
If we would not have any anxiety, we must recognize that all afflictions, sufferings, calamities, disasters, and catastrophes are assigned by God. We also must be one with the Lord in our experience. Yes, we may realize the necessity of passing through suffering and affliction. But if we would be free from anxiety, we need something more than this realization. We must also be one with the Lord. Otherwise, eventually our circumstances or the things which happen to us will cause anxiety, and we shall not be satisfied with anything or anyone.
The older a person becomes, the more difficult it is for him to be satisfied. Throughout the years I have observed a good number of elderly persons who did not have Christ. The older they were, the more dissatisfied they became. Some were disgusted with almost everything and everyone. If we do not practice being one with the Lord, our situation will also become worse as we grow older. Out of a feeling of dissatisfaction, we may blame our circumstances or the members of our family. It is easy to satisfy a child or a young person, but difficult to satisfy someone who is older. This fact should motivate us to be one with the Lord in a practical way that we may be free from anxiety and have a life of forbearance.
In 4:6 and 7 Paul says, “In nothing be anxious, but in everything, by prayer and petition with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God; and the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your thoughts in Christ Jesus.” Paul certainly composed these verses in a very thoughtful way. In verse 6 he speaks of prayer, petition, and thanksgiving. Prayer is general and includes the essence of worship and fellowship; petition is special and is related to particular needs. According to Christian experience, to pray is to have fellowship, communion, with the Lord and to worship Him. Daily we need to have a time to contact the Lord, to have fellowship with Him, and to worship Him. During the course of our fellowship, we may have particular requests. Thus, we not only pray in a general way, but make petitions to the Lord in a particular way. We offer our petitions to the One with whom we are having fellowship. Petition, therefore, is a special request made during the course of our prayer.
It is significant that in 4:6 Paul does not speak of prayer, petition, and thanksgiving, but of prayer and petition with thanksgiving. Both our prayer and petition should be accompanied by thanksgiving to the Lord. Recently I once again learned the lesson of being thankful to the Lord. When I asked the Lord to restore my health, I was rebuked by Him for not thanking Him for the measure of health I still had. Whenever we are ill, we need to say, “Lord, I thank You that I am still healthy to a certain degree. Lord, I am ill, but I am not so ill that I cannot minister Christ to the saints. But, Lord, You know that I am not altogether healthy. Therefore, I ask You to improve my health and make me fully healthy again.” We all need to learn to petition the Lord in this way.
Suppose a brother prays that the Lord will change his wife. If he prays in this way, the Lord may ask him why he does not offer thanks for his wife. Then the brother should pray, “Lord, I thank You for giving me a good wife.” After offering thanks to the Lord, he then may proceed to ask Him to transform his wife.
Another brother may lose his job and pray to the Lord concerning employment. Instead of saying, “Lord, I have lost my job and I need You to have mercy on me,” he should first thank the Lord. Perhaps he should say, “Lord, I thank You that I did not lose this job before now. Lord, I also thank You for the means I still have to support my family. O Lord, I have many things for which to thank You.” Then along with his thanksgiving, he may ask the Lord to give him another job. But even as he prays concerning a new job, he should still be thankful and say, “Lord, I believe that You will give me a new job. Lord, You know what I need. I even thank You ahead of time for the job You will give me.”
Let us all learn to pray and petition with thanksgiving. If we are thankful to the Lord, this will keep us from anxiety. But if we pray to the Lord out of worry, our anxiety will increase. Praying about our situation may actually cause our anxiety to grow. But if we pray and petition with thanksgiving, our anxiety will be driven away.
I must testify that I have learned to pray and petition with thanksgiving not from doctrine, but from my experience with the Lord. When I was ill recently, the Lord did rebuke me for not thanking Him. He reminded me that I am still healthy enough to function by releasing the Word. He rebuked me for allowing a little illness to disturb me and for complaining about my situation instead of exercising forbearance. By rebuking me for not thanking Him sufficiently, the Lord helped me to be satisfied in Him and not to be anxious. I thank the Lord for this training, which has come through a time of illness and through the Lord’s rebuke.