Family from A-Z

Text: Philippians 4:4-9

This exhortation, along with others that instruct us not to worry or not to be afraid, doesn’t mean not trying to relieve the anxiety. In other words, it doesn’t say we have to stay put in whatever is making us anxious.

• A plot to kill the apostle Paul was discovered and he chose to escape. (Acts 9:23-25)
• Use available resources. Get help, learn from others, join a support group, get financial counseling. Take the medication.

This verse is referencing anxiety-producing situations that you don’t have any control over, or that you are attempting to manage but it’s still pending.

1.  Do not be anxious about anything.

Most of our anxieties are either caused by our families or are connected to our families.

Today’s message is a prescribed treatment from the Lord for anything that is creating distress in our emotional, spiritual or mental health.

2.  Prayer, supplication and Thanksgiving

What is the difference between prayer and supplication? Prayer encompasses all communication with God.  Talking things over with Him, processing things with Him. Supplication is a specific type of prayer that involves asking for help.  It’s a more intense form of prayer.

With thanksgiving…

• We may not always know what God wants us to do with a specific situation, but we always know what He wants us to do in it: Give thanks!

What are we giving thanks for?  We’re giving thanks that we have a heavenly Father:

• Who sees us, hears us, knows us and has promised to work all things together for the good of those who are called according to His purposes (Romans 8:28).
• We are also giving thanks for the pleasant things that are happening in our families. The things we’re proud of about our kids or our spouse or our sister and brother.

The Lord deserves our thanksgiving.  He is worthy of our thanks.

“Rejoice in the Lord always” means celebrating who God is and what He has done.

Going Deeper

Luke 14:25-27 (NIV) ²⁵ Large crowds were traveling with Jesus, and turning to them he said: ²⁶ “If anyone comes to me and does not hate his father and mother, his wife and children, his brothers and sisters–yes, even his own life–he cannot be my disciple. ²⁷ And anyone who does not carry his cross and follow me cannot be my disciple.

Jesus was not telling the people to hate their families.  The point Jesus was making is that while the family is God’s idea and the fundamental building block of society, it is not to be our primary focus in life.  That honor is reserved for God.

Who are my mother and brothers? Those who do the will of God.  Matthew 12:48-50 (NASB77)

• Our families are not the end in themselves; they are one of the primary means to loving the Lord with all our heart, soul, mind and strength. God wants to use the power of our concern for our families to reveal more of Himself to us.

In everything give thanks involves recognizing and affirming before the Lord His preeminence in our lives.

3.  And the peace of God

The passage promises the peace of God that surpasses all understanding.  A peace that makes no earthly sense. A peace that will protect our hearts and minds in Christ Jesus.

Our limitations are God’s opportunities. 

The way to process family from A-Z is to strategically and intentionally involve the Lord in the process.