Advent Devotional: Day 12

“Rejoice in the Lord always.  I will say it again:  Rejoice!  Let your gentleness be evident to all The Lord is near. 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.”  Philippians 4:4-7 NIV

Do you ever have a moment when reading scripture of “wow that’s a lot to unpack”?  These four verses did that to me.  I went blank as I tried to write.  If you could see my notebook (yes, I write everything first then go back and type it), you would laugh.  Prayer: that’s what I needed to do as I was typing up the blank page in my notebook.

Gentleness be evident to all.  I can hear Mac Davis singing “Oh Lord it’s hard to be humble”.  I have nothing to be prideful about, and yet my pride at times gets in the way of my requests for help.  This is an anxious heart, one that desires control and doesn’t need assistance.  My requests to God in these moments are far from an earnest plea humbly presented, and there is nothing about the request that brings thanksgiving.  In these moments, God usually nudges me to see His presence and he requires me to step down.

God already knows what we need, but it is in the humbling of ourselves that we find peace that transcends all understanding.  This is hard for us, especially me, because we feel we can do it without help.  Sometimes I need to step down and rejoice (praise) before I make my request known. When my pride says, “here I am, God”, stepping down looks like “God, here I am flat on my face”.   I need to acknowledge all that He has already given me and I have no need to ask for anything else.   

A humble, thankful heart invites God’s presence nearer to us, which is rewarded with a peace that will guard that humble, thankful heart and keep our thoughts from becoming anxious.  Thanksgiving has nothing to do with my abilities, but His instead.  I needed this reminder today.  My abilities left a page completely blank and not a single word could come.

Where is pride keeping you from finding peace?  Are your thought anxious because of pride?  Where can you shift your “thanksgiving” to be more about Him?