Careful for Nothing

It might seem strange to read what Paul wrote in Philippians 4:6 . For there he wrote, "Be careful for nothing; but in every thing by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known unto God." Yet this is a wonderful truth and a fitting exhortation.

By being careful for nothing Paul means not being full of care about anything. He is by no means telling us here to be careless. We must be full of care in the sense that we must be deeply concerned with things spiritual. Does Paul not tell us to pray and supplicate with thanksgiving? Surely we will not pray for that for which we do not care. We will not give thanks for that which we do not care to have.

What Paul calls us here to do is not to worry. Positively he exhorts us to put our trust in God, being confident that He will give us everything we need to reach the glory which He has promised us in Christ. He calls us to pray to God, not only supplicating but also thanking Him. Never may we come to God in prayer to express anger because of what He caused to happen. Always we must come in thankfulness even for what He sent that brings us misery and hurts our flesh. We can thank Him for death and bereavement, when it is a child of God whom He takes from us, for He takes that person to glory.

We must come to God in prayer for all that which He has promised us in Christ. Coming not careful means that we come being absolutely sure not only that He is faithful to all His promises, but also that He does all things in profound wisdom and in most tender mercy. We have absolutely no reason to worry or to think that the almighty and most gracious God forgets or makes a mistake.

Pray then to God that you may be free from cares and anxiety, and you may be sure that He will fulfill all you pray for as a citizen in His kingdom.

Read: John 14:1-21

Meditations on the Heidelberg Catechism

Through the Bible in One Year
Read today:
Jeremiah 51:54-64 ; Jeremiah 52:1-34 
Titus 3:1-15 
Psalm 100:1-5 
Proverbs 26:18-19 
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Quote for Reflection:

"Standing before God as beggars, we will find that He fulfills our every need, the greatest need being the knowledge of salvation in Jesus Christ. Receiving this, you and I are blessed, yea, happy, for being poor in spirit we are eternally rich." — Rev. R. Miersma, The Standard Bearer, vol. 77, p. 4