“Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, 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”(Phillipians 4:6-7).
This prayer from Philippians 4:6-7 is one of my favorite prayers to focus on because of the light, happy feeling that it presents to the reader. This prayer also comes with deep meaning in its words. I have experienced a little stress over this semester adjusting to the challenging work and a faster learning pace. This prayer not only helps me balance my stress, but it also helps me understand that God does not ask for anything else but our best work and effort. This prayer helps me to balance my stress by focusing on the words and taking a deep breath. This helps me regain my focus and keep going on with whatever I was doing before. Let us focus upon the phrase “our best work.” Our best work only means that we gave our problems our best try and we were not afraid to keep going. No one expects anything more from us than to give everything a fair try. So, naturally, it makes sense that we should not be anxious, but instead focus on our prayers and petitions to God. At the end of the day, that’s all that we can do and all that really matters.
Next, let us focus on this next verse of the prayer, “And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.” This verse makes me feel so comforted that in God’s eternal peace, we will be protected and guarded by Jesus. This is so truly amazing to me that there is even a possibility of being guarded by God’s eternal love and divinity. God loves us totally and unconditionally and we should be comforted by the fact that we will be guarded both body and soul by God’s love.
One of my favorite things to do once I have found a touching prayer is to relate it to everyday life. You might wonder how you relate a prayer to everyday life or how this is even important. You can relate prayers to everyday life by just reflecting back on the prayer whenever a situation arises where you find that you need help. You may start by thinking what would Jesus do in a situation such as this. You might also think of what the prayer said and the prayer’s overall message. You can simply just say God give me strength. God will always be there to help and comfort you. All you need to do is ask. By engaging in prayer or asking God for your humble requests, you are building a relationship with your Heavenly Father. All you have to do is ask and he will always be there for you. Sometimes it might not seem like it, but God is always listening and always ready to love and forgive us.
By Rosemary Lee ’32, Contributing Writer
32rlee@montroseschool.org
