Do not be anxious about anything

Here is another frequently quoted passage found in Philippians.

Philippians 4:6–7 (ESV)  do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.

What I find especially helpful with this passage is that the apostle not only gives us a very practical command to follow but he also prescribes the means to obey it.  The solution to anxiety and worry is peace. 

Where does peace come from?  It comes from God.  What is the nature of this peace?  It is a supernatural peace that is beyond our human understanding.  How do we get this peace?  We ask God for it.  In what attitude should we approach God in order to receive it?  In an attitude of thanksgiving.  What will this peace do for us?  It will guard our hearts and minds.  What is the prerequisite for all of this?  That we are ‘in Christ Jesus’, that we are members of his body, that we belong to him.

Here are a few other translations of this verse.

(NKJV)  Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God; and the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.

(NASB)  Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God.  And the peace of God, which surpasses all comprehension, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.

(NIV) 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.

(HCSB) Don’t worry about anything, but in everything, through prayer and petition with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses every thought, will guard your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus.

(Expanded Bible) Do not worry [be anxious] about anything, but pray and ask God for everything you need [or make your requests known to God], always giving thanks. And God’s peace, which is so great we cannot understand it [transcends/surpasses all comprehension], will keep [guard] your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus.

(NLT)  Don’t worry about anything; instead, pray about everything. Tell God what you need, and thank him for all he has done.  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.

(The Voice Bible) Don’t be anxious about things; instead, pray. Pray about everything. He longs to hear your requests, so talk to God about your needs and be thankful for what has come.  And know that the peace of God (a peace that is beyond any and all of our human understanding) will stand watch over your hearts and minds in Jesus, the Anointed One.

Here are some cross references listed in the treasury of scripture knowledge.

Psalm 34:4 (ESV)  I sought the Lord, and he answered me and delivered me from all my fears.

Psalm 119:165 (ESV)  Great peace have those who love your law; nothing can make them stumble.

Matthew 6:25–33 (ESV)  “Therefore I tell you, do not be anxious about your life, what you will eat or what you will drink, nor about your body, what you will put on. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothing?  Look at the birds of the air: they neither sow nor reap nor gather into barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not of more value than they?  And which of you by being anxious can add a single hour to his span of life?  And why are you anxious about clothing? Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow: they neither toil nor spin,  yet I tell you, even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these.  But if God so clothes the grass of the field, which today is alive and tomorrow is thrown into the oven, will he not much more clothe you, O you of little faith?  Therefore do not be anxious, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’  For the Gentiles seek after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them all.  But seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be added to you.

John 14:27 (ESV)  Peace I leave with you; my peace I give to you. Not as the world gives do I give to you. Let not your hearts be troubled, neither let them be afraid.

Colossians 3:15 (ESV)   And let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, to which indeed you were called in one body. And be thankful.

1 Peter 5:7 (ESV)   casting all your anxieties on him, because he cares for you.