"Don't Worry, Be Happy"

PHILIPPIANS 4: 4-7

⁴ Always be full of joy in the Lord. I say it again—rejoice! ⁵ Let everyone see that you are considerate in all you do. Remember, the Lord is coming soon.

 ⁶ Don’t worry about anything; instead, pray about everything. Tell God what you need, and thank him for all he has done. ⁷ Then you will experience God’s peace, which exceeds anything we can understand. His peace will guard your hearts and minds as you live in Christ Jesus.

          I am truly inspired by the book of Philippians; there is a wealth of lessons to be learned from this book. For instance, the above verses come right after a plea for two women believers to settle their differences and focus on what they have in common—the Word of God.

          Paul then writes about being full of joy in all circumstances, he continues with “Don’t worry about anything; instead pray about everything”.  Yesterday was the 10^th anniversary of the awful day in which thousands were killed by a group of terrorists. Tensions were high this past weekend, with people remembering the devastation and the media pumping up their ratings by warning people of inevitable new attacks. Paul is not calling us to be “Polly Annas”; he is calling us to be strong in our faith.

          Paul did not write this letter to the Philippians from the veranda of a seaside villa, he wrote this message from prison. He is not promoting wearing rose color glasses; he is reminding followers of Christ that even when things look bleak there is still reason to rejoice. As we face our inevitable dark times (whether in our personal life or in our worldly life) we need to be a beacon of light to others. We need to pray and continue to build that relationship with God, so others will look at us and say, “How can you be so calm during all of this?” Then we can share that peace “which exceeds anything we can understand.” We can share the fact that God’s peace will guard our hearts and minds as we live in Christ Jesus.

          There is an old song by Bobby McFerrin, released in September of 1988, titled, “Don’t Worry, Be Happy”.  One thing Mr. McFerrin’s song lacks is a call to prayer. Prayer is the key to peace and happiness; because prayer is the key to building our relationship with God. Prayer is the one thing we can control when things are spiraling out of control. Interestingly enough the key to control is giving that control over to God.

          May we all experience God’s ultimate peace and become beacons always willing and able to share His light and love with others.