Philippians 4:6-7, Part 2

The Scripture verse Philippians 4:6-7 tells us we are not to be anxious about anything.

It tells us we are to instead humbly present our requests to God by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving.

Some Bible translations use the word supplication instead of petition.

What exactly does petition/supplication mean?

It means to make a formal request.

Instead of, “Hey, I want you to work on this”, or, “this needs your attention,”, it is a carefully considered request politely and humbly expressed.

We are asking the God of the Universe for something we want or need. Honor, reverence, and respect is required.

We can make requests about any situation, or anything we see, feel, or experience. It doesn’t even have to be for or about us.

In fact, we can, and should, petition for others. 1 Timothy 2:1 tells us “…petitions, prayers, intercession and thanksgiving should be made for all people…” (NIV)

It’s important to remember that petitions should be made in agreement with Scripture.

God will not grant requests that go against His will or His Word.

Consider this verse:

This is the confidence we have in approaching God: that if we ask anything according to His will, He hears us ¹⁵ And if we know that He hears us—whatever we ask—we know that we have what we asked of Him. ~1 John 5:14-15 (NIV)

Did you catch that? If we ask anything according to His will…

Our petitions must be in agreement with His will.

That’s one of the reasons why knowing what Scripture says is so important.

If we know a request we have doesn’t agree with what Scripture says, we can adjust our petition and/or ourselves to more properly reflect what God’s will is. This puts us in a position to be heard.

Once we know God has heard our request, we can thank Him and trust that He will respond.

It may take a while for the answer to come and/or the situation to change, but we can be sure He is working on it and will bring about the best outcome for all involved.

This is the best response we can hope to receive for any petition we might bring before Him.

 

What petitions do you want to bring before God today? Will you remember to submit them with thanksgiving?

 

 

For further reading

1 Timothy 2:1 …petitions, prayers, intercession and thanksgiving be made for all people… (NIV)

My post on Philippians 4:6-7
My post on How to Give Thanks