PRAY, PETITION, & TRUST

In Philippians 4:6-7 (NLT) Paul said, "Don't worry about anything; instead, pray about everything. Tell God what you need, and thank him for all he has done. {7} If you do this, you will experience God's peace, which is far more wonderful than the human mind can understand. His peace will guard your hearts and minds as you live in Christ Jesus." Paul says in order to gain the peace in our lives we need, we need to do three things.

1. PRAY: He tells us to pray about everything. That's right everything. There is nothing about which God does not want us to talk. He is a caring Father and wants to hear what is on your heart. I believe this part of our prayer time ought to consist of praise and adoration to Him.

2. TELL GOD WHAT YOU NEED: We might say, "I thought that was what the first point was. Isn't that what prayer is?" This part of the prayer means to petition. It is following the first and foremost thing in our prayer life--ADORATION! Remember that God is big and no prayer too small that He does not care.

3. THANK HIM FOR ALL THAT HE HAS DONE: To me this is claiming the victory. This is the faith part of the relationship. It is claiming that God has already worked out the answer, we must just wait on Him. It is not being "thankful" for pain, but it is trusting His plan, whatever that will be.

We must understand that when all these things happen, the trust factor allows us to enjoy peace. It is a peace that goes beyond all sense. It is joy indescribable.