Be
joyful always; pray continually; give thanks in all circumstances, for this is
God's will for you in Christ Jesus. Do not put out the Spirit's fire; do not
treat prophecies with contempt. Test everything. Hold on to the good. Avoid
every kind of evil. - 1Thessalonians
God's will for us in Christ Jesus. Seven instructions from God on how to live your life within His will. Five of the seven are written as absolutes which has led to often heard Christian lament that achieving such standards is simply not possible. Realize that what we may limit to being possible in our finite minds does not change what the will of God is for our lives. The key to taking hold of the eternal life we have already been blessed with is in seeking such standards.
Be joyful always? That certainly sounds impossible by the standards the world has set up. If we stare at our circumstances long enough, joy is not usually the resulting emotion. That is because the world teaches and reinforces the negative. The devil will show you everything you do not have so you cannot appreciate what God has given you. David had everything but the devil showed him Bathsheba, and he fell. A great part of why we cannot imagine being joyful always is that we have allowed the world to define happiness. We have correlated it to money, fame, or power. We say to ourselves; "If I can just achieve this, or earn that...then I will be happy." God is not speaking about temporal joy however, but eternal joy:
You
will show me the path of life; In Your presence is fullness of joy; At Your right hand are pleasures forevermore. Psalm
The fullness of joy that we need to be seeking is simply found in His presence! When the world shows you all of the temporal reasons to not be joyful, you counter them with the eternal reasons of how God has made you joyful. If you continue to chase the temporal, you will always be disappointed because the things of this world are fleeting. If you turn to the eternal, the chase is already over. Your joy is already there.
Pray continually? Absolutely! Once again however we can allow the world to define prayer. It can become almost ritualistic of we are not careful. A prayer only at set times, for set causes. Prayers become a complaining session to God letting Him know all of the areas we feel He has fallen short in; instead of praise sessions for all He has done. Prayer is supposed to be relational. God is concerned about every aspect of our lives.
Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, 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: 6-7
The Word does not say present only your top concerns to God. It does not say present only that which has gotten out of control in your life. It says in EVERYTHING. Why? Because God realizes that the enemy will use the small things to plant seeds of doubt. Those seeds grow into a little hill in your life as the enemy seeks to gain a foothold in your heart or mind. Soon, that hill becomes a mountain that seems insurmountable and then we bring it to God and ask for help. The foothold has become a stronghold. If we would just bring everything to God, then the devil would not gain the foothold or stronghold. Not only that, but the very peace of God would protect our hearts and minds from those seeds of doubt. Once again, the enemy seeking to distract you from the eternal, by way of the temporal.
