Message summary: Have you ever forfeited peace? There always seems to be something new we can "choose" or "choose not" to worry about!

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“Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving make your requests known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus” (Philippians 4:6,7).

Yesterday we gathered in a public park with members from our Crossroads Sunday School class for a picnic. Of course it was a tasty variety of mostly homemade food dishes. We've never been to a church picnic wherever we've lived and not tasted good food. The above photo only shows part of the spread as there was a counter with hot foods in crockpots and a full table with desserts naturally.

At the first little country church we served in southwest Missouri right after we got married in 1976 it was "Dinner on the grounds" with some fine southern fried chicken brought in a wicker picnic basket, by 93 year old Beula Sutherland. I'm almost certain someone else prepared blackberry cobbler as well. What kind of church picnic memories do you have?

Following our meal yesterday Brooksyne prepared a couple of quizzes for the group. The first was a "name that tune" in which a portion of a hymn was played on the keyboard and the class had to guess the name of the hymn. It was challenging since w/o the lyrics it can throw you off, but several did very well, getting 9 out of 10. Others were able to hum the tune but couldn't come up with the title.

The second quiz was a sheet with ten lines taken from ten different hymns. The class was to identify which hymn it was. Most worked as couples making it a little more fun. We will post that quiz below if you would like to take it. One line on the second quiz is, "Are we weak and heavy laden, cumbered with a load of care?" Can you identify where that's from without the hymn title or tune?

We ended the gathering by singing that very hymn, "What A Friend We Have In Jesus" and what a sweet refrain filled that public park.

But today we will consider another thoughtful line from the same hymn, "Oh, what peace we often forfeit". To forfeit means to "lose or be deprived of". Many of us are likely most familiar with the word in a sport's context, such as one team forfeiting to another.

Have you ever forfeited peace? In this context we are speaking of the internal peace of mind and heart which is surely what Joseph M. Scriven had in mind when he wrote the poem in 1855 to comfort his mother.

Perhaps Scriven had the daily text in mind when he wrote the song. It's a verse we both memorized early in our ministry and have shared many times with others. Let's consider it as a command and a promise.

The command:

A) "Do not be anxious about anything". The word for "anxious" in the original Greek (merimnao) is very interesting. One descriptive definition is "to turn over and over in the mind."  Isn't that essentially what we do when we worry?

B) "But in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God."

The promise:

"And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus."  This is explicitly speaking of the internal peace of heart and mind where anxiety affects us, "guard your hearts and your minds".

What specific issue in your life are you anxious about today? Is it the same thing you were anxious about a month ago, a year ago or even ten years ago? Probably not. I have written on this subject many times and have preached on it numerous times. I've read some good books based on Biblical teachings (The best I ever recall was a small book by Jay Adams titled "What to do about worry"*).

But I just can't say I've completely overcome my tendency to worry and admit I am still overcoming even at the age of 71, as there always seems to be something new we can "choose" or "choose not" to worry about!

Be encouraged today, Hebrews 3:13.

Stephen & Brooksyne Weber