From Anxiety To Contentment Through Philippians 4

We move from a raw story of anxiety after retirement to a grounded walk through Philippians 4, exploring unity, joy, prayer, and contentment in Christ. Practical steps replace fear with peace, retrain thoughts toward what is lovely, and honor generosity as worship.

• personal account of anxiety and loss of routine
• call to unity and peacemaking in the church
• rejoicing rooted in God’s nearness
• replacing worry with prayer and thanksgiving
• training thoughts on what is true and lovely
• contentment in lack and abundance through Christ’s strength
• generosity as a fragrant offering and act of worship
• core takeaways on peace, joy, and faith over fear

Check the book out Discernment
Check out the website www.forchrisrministry.com
We cannot do this without you
There are costs involved
Any gift would be lovely

If you do not have a relationship with Jesus Christ, you better Get Right.....

Chapters

• 0:00 Opening Worship And Setup
• 2:31 Personal Battle With Anxiety
• 8:01 Transition To Philippians 4 Study
• 12:01 Unity And Rejoicing In The Lord
• 17:41 Replacing Anxiety With Prayer
• 21:31 Thinking On What Is True And Lovely
• 25:31 Contentment And Strength In Christ
• 29:31 Generosity, Provision, And Worship
• 33:31 Core Takeaways: Peace, Joy, Unity

Transcript

SPEAKER_00: 0:42

Man, that was good. Little worship music today. This is Be Rob. This is the Food for Thought Faith Cast. Guys, I love you. Let me turn this music off. So good, man. So good. So good to get up and uh pray and worship the Lord. And um the Lord is good and He gives us another day, and it's sunny outside, and it's beautiful even though it's cold. Well, it's cold for the South. I don't know about the rest of the nation. Y'all probably used to that stuff, huh? We ain't used to that stuff down here. But guys, um man, it's Wednesday. Wednesday, what they call hump day. I don't even know why, but I guess it's because it's right in the middle, so it's in the middle, so you climb the hump and then go back down, and then you get the weekend. And there's pagan uh things tied to the days and the reason they call it the weekend, and I just don't have the stuff right in front of me. But we're not gonna talk about that today on the Faith Cast. Faith Cast fam, I just thank you for tuning in and thank you for listening. And um, we're gonna be looking. I got up in the verse of the day was Philippians 4, 6. It says, Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition with thanksgiving, present your request to God. Guys, you I mean, anxiety is at an all-time high. Because medication for anxiety is probably at an all-time high. I don't know the statistics. I mean, we can look them up real quick, but we're not gonna do that. But just to give you, I mean, when I retired from the car business, I was there. I was in the car business. Let's see, let's see. Let's see. I was in the car business for like 25 years. So, for 25 years, the only thing I knew was going to a dealership, going to my office, going to my computer, and sitting there, well, not sitting there for 10 hours. I got up, walked around, and helped customers and that sort of thing, helped the desk. But case being is for 25 years, I had a place, a destination, a home away from home that I spent most of my life at. And then I would come home. So when I retired, and and really I didn't do much during those 25 years except for go out to eat, which half the time I had anxiety, half the time I felt comfortable. But when I retired, every time we would go somewhere in a public place for the first three to four, maybe six months, I would have anxiety attacks and get sick. And um I couldn't and we couldn't enjoy going out, we couldn't enjoy going to restaurants, we couldn't, and it was because I was outside of my comfort zone. Even though I was this person that was good with the public, was good in public, I was outside of my comfort zone because I wasn't the center of attention. See, when I was at the car dealership, I was really good at what I did. That's why I was in it for 25 years. People who are not good only last about three years because they either turn into crooks, they steal, or they just can't handle the pressure because the business is very, very brutal. So, long story short, every time I went in public and I wasn't at the dealership or I wasn't at my house, or even when I was going to church and led worship, I was on the stage leading worship. So basically, I was used to being the man, and when I wasn't the man, I had anxiety. It was kind of wild. I don't know how to explain it, but that was the case. Even at church, I was used to being on stage with my guitar. Even if I went out to play a gig, I was on stage. I I didn't go out and watch bands and sit in the crowd much. I did when I was younger because I didn't really have the anxiety, but as I got older, um, I don't know what it was. I guess it was the comfort of those places and not the comfort of God. So more and more as I after I retired, I got over that sort of thing. I even had a fear of heights, which I never had before. It's wild. And of course, I was drinking a lot too. So that could have had something to do with that. Um but anyway, we're gonna talk about Philippians 4 12, Philippians verse 4. Okay. Today we're gonna go over Philippians verse 4. We're gonna study that a little bit. And so if you got your Bibles, uh, please turn to Philippians chapter 4. Um I'm gonna take a quick break, quick pause, and um whip some dogs. No, I'm not gonna whip them. I'm gonna take them out the room and uh not by force or anything. I'm gonna get them out the room, probably give them a treat, and then I'm gonna shut the door. So um uh here's a jingle. Yeah, man, don't you just love that jazzy stuff, man? That's some good stuff. I like it, but I'm a music guy, you know what I'm saying? And that was perfect timing, and because that was perfect timing, God's timing is perfect. We have to trust in him even when we don't even understand the process, because we never know what God's going to do, and we never know what God's going to put us through, whether it be good, whether it be bad, whether it be amazing, whether it be a lesson. It's life with God. It's waking up every day with love in your heart and greeting everybody with love in your heart. And we're looking today at Philippians 4. We are going to start with verse 1. First, let's give thanks. Dear Father, we come to you today. We just thank you for allowing us to gather. We thank you for allowing us to have a platform to spread your word, Lord, your truth. We give thanks, Father, for everything you do. We give thanks for just creation everything. Just looking around, just so amazed at everything you've allowed to happen. So amazed that you allowed us to be here to witness this moment in time, Lord. So amazed. So astonished, Lord. Lord, we give thanks for today. Lord, we give thanks for the lessons of yesterday. Lord, we give thanks for the blessings to come, the lessons to come. Lord, this is yours and only yours. And we pray that you keep the light of mercy and grace upon us. We pray these things in the holy, heavenly name of Jesus. Yeshua. Amen and hallelujah. Well, guys, like I said, uh if you've got your Bibles, turn to Philippians chapter four. I'm in the NIV version, so here we go. Chapter 4, verse 1. Therefore, my brothers and sisters, whom you whom I love and long for, my joy and crown, stand firm in the Lord in this way. Dear friends, I plead with Udia and I plead with Syntek to be of the same mind in the Lord. Yes, and I ask you, my true companion, help these women since they have contented at my side in the cause of the gospel along with Clement and the rest of my co-workers whose names are in the book of life. You see, Paul starts by urging believers to stay strong in their faith and work out disagreements peacefully. Let me say that again. Stay strong in their faith and work out disagreements peacefully. You see what's going on at this point in time. Everybody would argue if I posted the sky was blue. They would argue for the sake of arguing. There would be long paragraphs, and that's why my Facebook page has so much going on because the algos are up. But anyway, we won't talk about that. But Paul specifically encourages two women in the church to agree with the Lord, showing what matters to God. Unity matters to God. Us being brothers and sisters and coming together matter to God. But guys, we know even the strongest believers can have conflict. The disciples had conflicts. The church should help restore peace. We have to stay grounded in Christ and protect our unity because that's what matters to God. Us coming together, standing firm and living in unity as one body. How would your body feel if your left leg wanted to go right and your right leg wanted to go left? And they had brains of their own. That's what God deals with. With us. I I mean I've never heard it put that way, but God just put that on me to say that. That's how it feels to God. When half of us want to go left, half of us want to go right, and we're not standing together in unity as one body of Christ. You see, I see all these new age people talking about I am Jesus. I am, I am. That's blaspheme, man. Blaspheme. We are the body of Christ. And if we don't come together, you might be the finger, I might be the toe. You never know. So let's move on. Let's move on. Philippians 4 says, Rejoice in the Lord always. I will say it again, rejoice. Let your gentleness be evident to all the Lord is near. Sounds like when I talk, right? I always repeat myself. But he says, Rejoice in the Lord always, and I will say again, rejoice. Paul repeats this. The same reason I repeat it, because I want to emphasize it. Paul does this for emphasis. It's not fake happiness, it's the truth. So he repeats himself. He wants to get the nail driven through. He wants to hammer it down. In your head, in your heart. Choosing joy is who God is, is what God wants, not because life is easy. You see, Christian joy is rooted in God. It's not rooted in anything of this world. So no matter your circumstance, no matter where you are, no matter what you're doing, whether you're rejoicing in a fortune, or you're hungry and you can't afford to eat. He wants everybody rooted in him. Despite your circumstances. Prayer should not be a last call. You should rejoice always. Good news, bad news, no news, rejoice. Moving along. One of my favorite verses of all time. Everybody who struggles with anxiety that's listening, listen to this verse and what it says. Take heed. Take it to heart. Soak it in. Philippians 4, 6. Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation by prayer and petition with thanksgiving, present your request to God. This is one of the most quoted verses in the Bible. You want to know why? Do you want to know why? It's a principle that needs to be taught in every school. It's a principle that needs to be taught in every workplace. It's a principle that especially needs to be taught in your home. The principle that Paul teaches replaces anxiety with prayer. It replaces your worry with trust. It replaces that fear, that false evidence appearing real that the devil tries to trick you with. It replaces that with thanksgiving for the living God. You see? God is a God of peace. God will guard your hearts and your minds as long as you have Christ Jesus in your heart and you believe. Moving along, verse eight and nine. Actually, we miss seven. So do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition with thanksgiving, present your request to God and the peace of God, with which transcends all understanding will guard your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus. That's what I'm talking about. He will protect you. But you have to believe it. Verse 8. Finally, brothers and sisters, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable, if anything is excellent or praiseworthy, think about such things. Whatever you have learned or received or heard from me or seen in me put into practice, and the God of peace will be with you. You see, Paul tells believers how to think and exactly what to think about. Because the evil one will try to trick you and tell you this is not true. So Paul tells. Tells you to believe in the truth, to believe in nobility, to believe in what is right, to believe in what is pure, to believe in what is lovely. You see, I did not say beautiful, I did not say gorgeous, I said lovely. You see the difference here is the evil one comes in the form of light. The Bible says that. The evil one comes, the beauty on the eye outside. But we have to test the spirit. Remember first John to see if it is lovely, if the love is in the heart, the spirit. So that's why I say lovely, not beautiful, not gorgeous. Paul tells believers to think about excellence, to think about what is praiseworthy. When he means praiseworthy, he means praiseworthy to God. So do not get it twisted. Do not get it twisted. Elevation music is great as long as you're praising God. Forrest Frank is great as long as you're praising God. Brandon Lake is amazing and great and good looking for a dude. But as long as you're praising God and not Him, do you see what I'm saying? This practice that Paul is talking about, this practice is spiritual health. That is connected to your mentality and your mental focus. Because what you dwell and think about in your mind shapes you. It shapes your peace. Right thinking. This practice that Paul is talking about leads to a right lifestyle, to right living. Does that make sense? It's kind of funny, right? Right. Okay, guys, let's move on. Verse 10. I rejoice greatly in the Lord that at last you renewed your concern for me. Indeed you were concerned, but you had no opportunity to show it. I am saying this because I am in need, for I have learned to be content whatever the circumstances. I know what it is to be in need, and I know what it is to have plenty. I have learned the secret of being content in every situation. Whether well fed, hungry, whether living in plenty or in want, I can do all things through him who gives me strength. Isn't that amazing? Isn't that amazing? I'm highlighting that right there. Verse thirteen. That's another famous verse. I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me. You see, Paul is talking about contentment, not just achievement. He says he's learned to be content when he's had plenty, when he's had little, when he's been in comfort, and when he's been in hardship. Sounds like me. My family's like, what are you gonna do? What are you gonna do? We're gonna lose our house. We're gonna lose our cars. I'm like, no, we're not. God's gonna take care of us like he has for the 27 years we've been married. And we have an anniversary coming up on the day of Cupid, the Valentine's Day. So, guys, be praying. But guys, God is amazing. And Paul is talking about that. You should be content in every situation. He says the secret of being content, he is learned. What does content mean? Comfort? Knowing that you're fine and dandy? Yep. So let's move along to verse 14. Yet it was good for you to share in my troubles. Moreover, as you Philistines know, in the early days of your acquaintance with the gospel, when I set out from Macedonia, not one church shared with me in the matter of giving and receiving, except you only. For even when I was in Thessalonica, you sent me aid more than once when I was in need. Not that I desire your gifts. What I desire is that more be credited to your account. I have received full payment and have more than enough. I am amply supplied now that I have received from Ephroditus the gifts you sent. They are a fragrant offering, an acceptable sacrifice pleasing to God, and my God will meet all your needs according to the riches of his glory in Jesus Christ. To our Father, to our God and Father be glory for ever and ever. Amen. You see, Paul thanks the Philistines here for supporting him financially. He explains that their giving pleases God, that their generosity is a form of spiritual worship. That God will supply everything they need. That another famous verse, nineteen, and my God will meet all your needs according to the riches of his glory in Christ Jesus. You see, God honors a generous heart. You see, God honors a faithful heart. God honors a giving heart. That's a fact. That's a fact, Jack. I don't know if we got any Jacks listening, but um you know, but let's look at chapter four as a whole. You see, Philippians 4 here, what I got out of it, it teaches believers how to live with peace, joy, how to train your mind to think right, live in unity, come together as the body of Christ. Be content and trust in God in every situation. Learn to have peace because it will destroy anxiety. Learn to have joy because it will destroy despair. Learn to come together in unity because that will destroy division. And right now we need that more than ever. Because there's a lot of people living in fear, and false evidence appearing real is not real. We have to learn to trust God over fear, faith over fear. And most of all, we have to learn to be content in every situation. Do not compare your situation to another because you are not like that person. That grass is not greener. I promise you, your grass will turn brown and die while you worry about your neighbor's grass. That creates comparison. That creates division, that creates despair, which creates anxiety because it you are worried. When you should be content with everything you have, every situation you have. Content that God has put you in the book of life. Content. Be content because our God is a generous God. Have a faithful heart. Worship instead of worry. Guys, don't let this moment slip by. Anxiety is at an all-time high. You want to know why? Because there's a TV hanging on every wall in America. And that TV spits nothing but lies. And when you are bombarded with lies in an information war, you are to pray for our leaders. Because our battle is not flesh and blood. We know this. So, guys, keep the armor of God on. Keep God first. Because He loves you and He is a generous God, and He wants you to have a generous heart, and He wants you to be content where you are. Because where you are is not where you are going. Where you are is not where you are going to be stuck. God will take you out of every situation, but you have to be still and know that He is God, and you have to have faith and know that He loves you because He loves you. And brothers and sisters in Christ, B Rob loves you. Faith Cast Fam, I want to thank you today for tuning in. Check the book out Discernment. And check out the website www.forchministry.com. And remember, guys, we cannot do this without you. There are costs involved. And I'm interviewing for new jobs because I'm not making any money. So any gift would be lovely. God loves you. I love you. And if you do not have a relationship with our Lord Yeshua Christ Jesus, you better get right.