A. Philippians 4:6 (READ)
1. How many of you believe that PRAYER can change OUTCOMES and CIRCUMSTANCES?
ILLUSTRATION:
One Sunday morning as the Youth Pastor made his way to his 5th grade Sunday School Class, he walked in to find one of his students sitting alone in the back of the classroom praying fervently to
God. So, he stood at the door until the boy was finished.
He then walked over to the boy and told him how proud he was to see him spending time in prayer. But then the Youth Pastor inquisitively inquired, “Do you mind if I ask you something about your prayer?” The young boy nodded that it was okay. The pastor then asked, “I was just
wondering why you kept repeating the word ‘London, London, London’ in your prayer?”
The boy replied, “Well, you see, I took my final geography test in school on Friday, and I thought it might help to be in church when I asked the Lord to please make LONDON the capital of
France.”
Now, it is true that prayer WILL NOT change some things—Paris is still the Capital of France.
2. However, Paul throughout his writings taught the importance of spending time with God in PRAYER, because he BELIEVED that PRAYER can change CIRCUMSTANCES.
B. Personally, I have seen amazing things happen as a result of PRAYER:
ILLUSTRATION:
Some being told by DOCTORS that they were DYING, and yet were made WELL through
PRAYER (Our brother Mike Paulin is a prime example).
Some faced with FINANCIAL troubles, and yet through PRAYER an unexpected CHECK comes
in the MAIL.
I have seen CHILDREN whom have LEFT the Lord after graduating from High School living a LIFE of sinful rebellion, REPENT and RETURN to Christ after their PARENTS spent months and even years PRAYING fervently for them to come back to God.
C. So, is it any surprise that Paul tells the Philippian church that the way to deal with the ANXIETIES that come from DIFFICULT CIRCUMSTANCES, SPIRITUAL FAILINGS, and PEOPLE PROBLEMS,
is to turn them over to God in PRAYER?
1. The PHILOSOPHY of many people’s APPROACH to LIFE seems to be, “WHY PRAY WHEN
YOU CAN WORRY?”
a. 1 Peter 5:7- “Cast all your ANXIETY on Him because He cares for you.”
b. Psalm 55:22- “Cast your cares on the Lord and He will SUSTAIN you; He will never let the
RIGHTEOUS fall.”
2. I know it sounds SIMPLISTIC, but the greatest ANXIETY RELIEVER known to man is TALKING to
God about it in PRAYER. Just TRY it for one WEEK.
COMMENT:
Every time you feel yourself being ANXIOUS about your JOB, your CHILDREN, your SPOUSE, the BILLS, the CHURCH, stop where you are and spend a few minutes FERVENTLY PRAYING to God about it. I’ll GUARANTEE you, by the end of that PRAYER you will feel an AMAZING PEACE.
MESSAGE:
I. MAKE PRAYER A PRIORITY
A. Let’s be honest here, there are far too many times when we don’t make prayer a FIRST PRIORITY,
but a LAST RESORT.
1. “If all else FAILS, pray.”
COMMENT:
That kind of thinking says to me that we still have difficulty relinquishing the CONTROL of our LIVES into the HANDS of God.
It’s not “Jesus take the wheel!” it’s more like, “Move over Jesus, and let me drive!” We want our hands on the STEERING WHEEL. And then when our LIFE crashes and burns, that’s when we decide that MAYBE we should PRAY about this.
2. I don’t know about you, but I have learned the HARD WAY that when I am in the DRIVER’S SEAT
my LIFE doesn’t always go that WELL.
a. That’s why it is paramount that we let God be in CONTROL—that we seek His DIRECTION
and GUIDANCE in everything that we DO.
b. Let’s not make PRAYER the LAST RESORT, but the FIRST LINE OF DEFENSE.
B. There are 7 different Greek words for PRAYER, and Paul uses 3 of them in this verse (actually 4 when
you throw in the word “Thanksgiving”).
1. “PRAYER”- the most common term used; a general devotion to God. The word includes worship and adoration.
2. “PETITION” (supplication)- this is humbly presenting a need to God. No demands, just a simple appeal.
3. “REQUEST”- is a specific request; telling God exactly what we want. We pray the particulars of
our problems.
COMMENT:
In Luke 18:35ff, a BLIND man begging on the side of the road CRIED OUT to Jesus as he passed by, “Jesus, Son of David, have mercy on me!” Jesus stopped and asked, “What do you want me to do for you?”
Wouldn’t that be obvious? If a SIGHTLESS MAN requests help from the Son of God, isn’t it apparent what he NEEDS? But Jesus wanted him to SPECIFICALLY say what kind of help he needed. The blind beggar said, “Lord, I want to see.”
ILLUSTRATION:
I love the story that the late great Paul Harvey told of a young Mother who went GROCERY SHOPPING with her 4-year-old son. She had to grab a few things to make dinner that night. But before getting out of the car she told her son, “Now, listen. I have to GRAB just a few things, and I DO NOT want you to START with me about chocolate chip cookies. No cookies tonight, do you understand?”
The Mom PUSHES her son in the CART running down from isle to isle getting what few items she needs. Sure enough, they come down the AISLE where the COOKIES are and her son
starts, “Please, Mommy, can we get some chocolate chip cookies?”
She said, “Son, didn’t I tell you not to ask for any cookies. We are not getting any chocolate chip cookies, and that’s final.” But as they go down the next isle. “Please, Mommy!
Please! I NEED some chocolate chip cookies.” Agitated by now, the Mom raises her voice, “I
told you ‘NO COOKIES!’ I don’t want to hear another word about it.”
They get to the CHECKOUT and, evidently the boy thought, “This is my last chance.” So, according to Paul Harvey, her son stood up in the CART and at the top of his LUNGS the boy
yelled, “In the name of Jesus, can we get some chocolate chip cookies?”
Apparently, the other people in the store were CONVICTED, because Paul Harvey said that Mom went back to her CAR with 23 boxes of chocolate chip cookies that the other SHOPPERS
bought for her.
WHEN YOU PRAY SPECIFICALLY, INVOKING THE NAME OF JESUS—THINGS HAPPEN!
C. Although God knows our NEEDS, He wants us to SPECIFICALLY present our REQUESTS to Him.
1. A SPECIFIC PRAYER is a SINCERE prayer.
a. When we pray in GENERALITIES, it lessens the SINCERITY of our REQUEST.
b. God wants us to articulate our NEEDS to Him. He wants us to speak from our HEARTS.
COMMENT:
It’s not simply praying, “Lord, help me to get better.”
It is praying, “Lord, I have been dealing with this hacking cough for three weeks now. It keeps me up all night. It interferes with my work. Please, God, clear my lungs so I can breathe better and sleep more soundly.”
2. SPECIFIC PRAYER is an OPPORTUNITY for us to SEE God at WORK.
ILLUSTRATION:
When I was preaching in North Texas, a very dear friend and brother in Christ, Lee Harrington, worked for an OIL COMPANY making good money, but when the company started DOWNSIZING in the late 1980s, he LOST his JOB. He, his WIFE Pam, and two DAUGHTERS lived on Pam’s small INCOME and their SAVINGS. For over two years Lee tried to find WORK that was COMPARABLE in PAY to what he was making at the OIL COMPANY, but none was to be found. The SAVINGS quickly DEPLETED, so he WORKED at ODD JOBS to make what little
MONEY he could.
He came to my office one day extremely DEPRESSED. When I asked how the JOB SEARCH was coming along, he told me that he couldn’t FIND anything. He then added, “I’m just not LUCKY, I guess.” I told him, “There’s no such thing as LUCK. Have you been PRAYING?” He said that he had given up on PRAYER long ago—it was no longer a PRIORITY.
So, we sat down and PRAYED SPECIFICALLY about his FINANCIAL NEEDS and what kind
of JOB he was needing to SUPPORT his family.
A few WEEKS had PASSED, and still no JOB. My family and I went on VACATION and were gone for about a WEEK. When we RETURNED, on our GARAGE DOOR was a HUGE
BANNER that read: “THERE’S NO SUCH THING AS LUCK!”
I called Lee and he told me this AMAZING story. “Fred, I went to Texas Instruments in Fort Worth to see if they were HIRING. The receptionist INSISTED that they weren’t, but I
“I got in my car and PRAYED to God how desperately I needed this JOB. I drove to Burger King across the street and filled out the APPLICATION right then so I could take it back before heading home. This GUY came in and sat down at the TABLE across from me. He saw me filling out the APPLICATION, and told me that he worked at Texas Instruments and knew what
they would be looking for. So, he helped me FILL it out.
“The next day I get a call from TI wanting me to come in for an INTERVIEW. When I got there, the MAN who INTERVIEWED me was the same GUY who helped me FILL out my
APPLICATION, and HIRED me on the spot making more MONEY than I’ve ever made.
ONE LUCKY GUY, HUH? NO! HE FINALLY TURNED HIS ANXIETIES OVER TO GOD AND “PRESENTED HIS REQUESTS”—HIS SPECIFIC NEEDS TO HIM.
3. SPECIFIC PRAYER creates a LIGHTER LOAD.
COMMENT:
Many of our ANXIETIES are THREATENING because they are poorly DEFINED and VAGUE. When we SPECIFICALLY pray in DETAIL pouring our HEARTS out to God telling
Him not only what we NEED but why we NEED it, it puts things in PERSPECTIVE.
Prayer becomes a CATHARSIS—a CLEANSING of all the ANXIETY and NEGATIVITY that BUILDS UP in our MINDS.
II. PRAY WITH THANKSGIVING
A. Praying with GRATITUDE reminds us of how BLESSED we really are.
1. I realize that while in the midst of TURMOIL and CHAOS, it’s hard to take INVENTORY of all
our BLESSINGS and find GRATITUDE for what God IS doing and HAS done for us.
COMMENT:
Maybe the next time we FRET over having to pay our MORTGAGE or RENT, we should take a DRIVE just a few blocks from here on East Southern Ave. and I-65 to see all the homeless people who are living under the BRIDGE.
When we complain about our ACHES and PAINS, maybe we should head to St. Francis Hospital’s ONCOLOGY WING and stop to talk with some of the PATIENCE suffering with debilitating CANCER.
I am not trying to make LIGHT of our PROBLEMS, but let’s not forget our BLESSINGS in the process.
2. Remember Paul’s CIRCUMSTANCES as he writes this letter to the Philippian church.
a. He is CHAINED to two Roman guards around the clock. So, he has no FREEDOM- 1:13.
b. People on the OUTSIDE are stirring up TROUBLE for him while he’s in chains- 1:15-17
c. He doesn’t know for sure, but there is a real possibility that he might be EXECUTED by Nero
for preaching Jesus as the Christ- 1:21-24
COMMENT:
Yet, Paul says that we are to PRAY with THANKSGIVING for all that God has done for us. So, sprinkled among our heart-felt requests: “Help me, Lord…,” “God, please give me…,” “Father, won’t you show me…,” should be the words “THANK YOU!”
B. Paul had learned that regardless of what DIFFICULTY we may be going through, if we look closely,
we will FIND reasons to be THANKFUL and JOYFUL- Philippians 4:10-12 (READ)
1. I want you to fully GRASP what Paul is saying about CONTENTMENT and GRATITUDE here.
a. Again, here’s Paul writing or dictating these words while being CHAINED to two Romans Guards and WAITING for possible EXECUTION orders, and, yet, he says, “I have learned to
be content—to be grateful—whatever the circumstances.”
ILLUSTRATION:
Here is a man who knows what it is like to be RESPECTED and HONORED as a Jewish religious leader, and one who has also felt the LEATHER strips of a WHIP split open his BACK
during multiple BEATINGS because he PREACHED Jesus as the Christ.
Here is a man who had FEASTED at TABLES full of the most DELECTABLE FOODS
imaginable, and one who has LISTENED to his STOMACH growl with HUNGER.
Here’s a man who knows what it’s like to WEAR the nice clean CLOTHES and flowing ROBES of a respected Pharisee, and one who has WALKED in RAGS.
b. But Paul did not WASTE his EXPERIENCES of SUFFERING, HUNGER and NEED—he made it his CHOICE to practice GRATITUDE no matter what he HAD or DID NOT have.
2. Paul had learned that through the GOOD and the BAD, JESUS IS ENOUGH!
Philippians 4:13- “I can do everything through Him [Christ] who gives me strength.”
a. This verse has COMFORTED and STRENGTHENED many TROUBLED HEARTS. However, these words have also been MISCONSTRUED by many; especially the first part: “I can do
everything…”
COMMENT:
Some see this as a “SUPERMAN VERSE”. They want to do something very HARD or IMPOSSIBLE, and somebody tries to tell them to be careful and think it through, and they say, “Don’t worry—I can do EVERYTHING through Christ. I can leap tall buildings in a single
bound.”
b. Paul isn’t promising SUPERPOWERS.
COMMENT:
Paul is simply saying that if Jesus Christ is Lord of your life, you have EVERYTHING you
NEED to be CONTENT and every reason to be THANKFUL. You can DO all things—ENDURE all things with CONTENTMENT and THANKSGIVING—because you have Jesus.
C. Jesus Christ is there to give us the STRENGTH we need to ease our ANXIETY and find JOY,
CONTENTMENT and GRATITUDE, regardless of the SITUATION.
1. No matter what DIFFICULTIES you are FACING—JESUS IS ENOUGH.
2. No matter what the DOCTOR said—JESUS IS ENOUGH.
3. No matter how much MONEY is in your BANK ACCOUNT—JESUS IS ENOUGH.
CONCLUSION:
HAVE YOU BEEN CASTING YOUR ANXIETIES ON GOD?
