Today, we are going to prepare our hearts for communion at the end of the service by walking through Chapter four in the book of Philippians.  While in prison, as he was about to be beheaded, Paul wrote an epistle about the subject of anxiety.

Once in a while, how many of you may wrestle with the feelings of anxiety brought about by being worried about something?   We all worry, but sometimes I believe it is warranted – don’t you?  For example, there was a story about a Portuguese Monastery situated at the top of a steep cliff.   The only way to reach this monastery was by riding in a suspended basket pulled up by Portuguese monks at the top.  Well, one day, as a tourist was riding in the basket, he noticed that the rope was old and frayed.  Therefore, he asked the monk riding with him, “How often do you guys change the rope?”  The monk replied, “No worry! – No worry!  Whenever it breaks, we change it right away.”  Sometimes worry is worth it!

Sometimes people will try to make you feel better when you are worrying by saying, “Don’t worry, God will provide.”  However, these words may tend to irritate you, and may leave you with the urge to tell them to shut up!  So let’s read about a three-step remedy for worrying, as written in the book of Philippians:  “Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your request be made known to God.  And the peace of God, which surpasses all comprehension, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.”  (Phil. 4:6-7)

This remedy starts with relationships.  If we have unsettled relationships in life, then we will be unsettled.  I have often sat with people on their dying beds, and their greatest worries, their greatest concerns, their greatest fears in life are that they didn’t make their relationships right.  If your relationships are out of kilter or broken, then everything in your life gets fragile and out of balance.  These are unsettled issues within you, and this is exactly where worry begins.

The steps to remedy worry are:

1.Relate RIGHTLY.

We must have correct relationships.  “I urge Euodia and I urge Syntyche to live in harmony in the Lord.  Indeed, true companion, I ask you also to help these women who have shared my struggle in the cause of the gospel, together with Clement also and the rest of my fellow workers, whose names are in the book of life.”  (Phil. 4:2-3).

Paul is urging others to help these women and Clement, because they were with him from the beginning.  God wants us to start correcting any relationships that are out of kilter, beginning with people whose names are written in the Book of Life.  This is because they are part of our family.

The Bible says, “Therefore, if you are offering your gift at the altar and there remember that your brother or sister has something against you, leave your gift there in front of the altar. First go and be reconciled to them; then come and offer your gift.” (Matt. 5:23-24)

A couple of years ago, and within one and a half years, we planted out eight churches.  Pastor Elwin, a beloved son of mine (in the faith) started New Hope Metro.  Although I didn’t want him to go, I blessed him in doing so.   During this transition, it was a tough time for me, because of several issues that had transpired.  New Hope shrunk from having a huge attendance to a much smaller one.  I was tired and depleted from turning around the college in Eugene.  Then Farrington auditorium’s roof collapsed.  Right after this, Pastor James Craft was brought in to help me, and that went astray.  Therefore, I didn’t have any time to work with Elwin or the other pastors of the eight churches.

In my Life Calendar, there is a place that says “relationships”.  This is where I write down names of people that I think are out of kilter with me. For many months, I had continually written down Elwin’s name.  Well, a few months ago, Elwin was dealing with the treatment of his leukemia, and his son was also going through his own struggles.  As I was praying, the Lord said to call him, and just make it right.  So I contacted Elwin and his son, acknowledged their situations, told them that I was praying for them, and started to work with them.  God then started to heal issues that had separated us.

 It is really neat to see how God starts to heal things, regardless of what has happened, because of having an attitude of “righting” relationships – even if you didn’t do anything to instigate the schism.  We need to be a people that are initiating healing relationships.  This is the first step of the remedy for worrying.  As Christians, we need to make sure that we keep relationships among people who are the blood covenant of God, and whose names are written in the Lambs Book of Life.

2.Pray RIGHTLY.

The Bible says, “Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your request be made known to God.  And the peace of God, which surpasses all comprehension, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.”  (Phil. 4:6-7)

Paul is saying to make sure that you always pray with a heart of “thanksgiving”.  If you do this, then the peace of God will guard your hearts and minds.  When we are “thankful” for everything that is happening in our lives, we worry less.   This is because this attitude allows us to have a positive perspective.

In the story of the ten lepers that were crying out for healing, Christ healed them all; however, only one came back to Him and fell at His feet, thanking Him for his healing.  The Bible says, “Jesus asked, ‘Were not all ten cleansed?  Where are the other nine?  Has no one returned to give praise to God except this foreigner?’  Then He said to him, ‘Rise and go; your faith has made you well.’” (Luke 17: 17-19)  Jesus is calling this ex-lepers gratefulness, his faith.

I am wondering if God is saying that if we add the ingredient of being “grateful” to our prayers, our perspective of life will change.  We will then become less cautious, less concerned, less disbelieving, and less worried.   Could it be that the faith we are looking for is in the form of “thankfulness”?

A woman named Linda and her husband Jim Warner, decided to take a year off and travel around the world thanking a dozen people who had greatly influenced their lives through information gleaned from literature or through other means.  Linda told me that I was one of those people.  Therefore, she personally called me, and she and her husband took me to dinner. Reflecting on this, I am wondering if Heaven considers Linda and Jim as among the greatest people of faith?

I want you to view a video of what a young man said to his mother at the hospital when a doctor told him that his mother had gone into cardiac arrest.  The doctor told him that the doctors could either try to revive her, which would break every bone in her body, or just let her go.  Upon deciding to let her go, he lay down next to her, kissed her, and told her how much he loved her, respected her, and how thankful he was for all that she had done for him –even though he had never done this before.  Like this video, let our chances at “righting” relationships not be in our rear-view mirror; but instead, let them be just in front of our windshield.

Thirdly, we need to

3.Think RIGHTLY.

“Finally, brethren, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is of good repute, if there is any excellence and if anything worthy of praise, dwell on these things.  The things you have learned and received and heard and seen in me, practice these things, and the God of peace will be with you.” (Phil. 4:8-9)

Make sure that you are thinking rightly.  Think before you speak.

Here is an acrostic for the word THINK.

1. T ruth: The letter “T”, stands for truth.  If it is not the truth, then don’t say anything.

2. H elpful:  If something is not helpful, do not say it.

3. I mportant:  Has God prepared their heart to hear it?  Will what you say make a difference in this person’s life?

4.  N ecessary:  I do not need to say it, if it is not necessary.

5. K ind:  Speak the truth in love.  This is the most important ingredient in this acrostic.

Sow a thought, and reap an action.  Sow an action, and reap a habit.  Sow a habit and reap a character.  Sow a character, and reap our identity.  We reap what we sow.  We cannot sow a corn seed and expect to get back lychee. “Do not be deceived.  God is not mocked.  Seed time and harvest, you reap what you sow.  (Gal: 6:7)

According to the principles of God’s Kingdom, you can cause certain things to happen by what you sow.  Some of you can change the bad fruit that you have been receiving by changing what you are sowing right now – in the middle of your bad harvest.  Just start sowing good seed – right now.  Continue to practice sowing good seed and soon good fruit will grow and peace will be with you.

If you want to be a good preacher or speaker, then go for it.  Keep practicing and practicing.  There is no other way to do this.  Practice these things.  When you are thinking right, then the God of peace will be with you.  This is a remedy for not worrying.

So ask yourself these questions. If I woke up tomorrow morning, and the only things that were left in my life were the things that I can thank God for today, then what would they be?  Start here, and it will change the way you think.  So think right, pray right, and relate right.  Then you will experience a diminishing of worry, and everything will begin to change.  First Thessalonians says, “In everything give thanks, for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus.”

In everything, give thanks – that is the will of God.  This will allow you to be open to whatever He is doing in your life.  The Bible says, “After taking the cup, He gave thanks…”  “And He took the bread, and gave thanks…”  God is more concerned about us being thankful than anything else.

As we are waiting for communion, think about two questions:  First, what do I need to be thankful for, and secondly, what relationships do I need to make right?  Think also about “thanksgiving” – often one of the most neglected words in our prayers.  God used that word to redeem the world.

As we take this communion I pray that God will help us to be a people of “thanksgiving”, and a people having “right” relationships.  In Jesus name, Amen.

Questions:

· Why is the word “thanksgiving” so important when we pray?

· Think of a person that you need to make a right relationship with.  How will you do this?

· What are the three steps to remedy worry?

· How can we relate, pray, and think rightly?