Philippians 4:6-13

I love this passage. I believe it explains how believers should set themselves apart from the world around them. When we live this out around the people in our classes/work, they notice it and want it. At the beginning, it says that we should not worry but instead ask God to deliver us from whatever we are worried about. This could be confused to mean that we should ask God to get us out of the bad situation so that there is nothing left to worry about. But then in verses 11 and 12, Paul sheds light by explaining that he has learned to be content with any situation. What I think verse 6 is really talking about is praying that God would make us strong and content in our present situation, not that He would take us out of whatever we are worried about. He follows through in verse 13 which is also often misunderstood. Paul can do anything with God's strength. Meaning, God makes Paul strong enough to be content in any situation. That is real strength.

The situations that I worry most about are failure and mediocrity. Sometimes, I worry that I will not make it as an entrepreneur. More than that, I worry that my ministry will not change the world. It would be very hard for me to hand either of those situations over to God with thanksgiving and be strong enough to truly be content in my failure. I want to better understand that my accomplishments have nothing to do with my value.