Rejoice in the Lord always. Again I will say, rejoice! (5) Let your gentleness be known to all men. The Lord is at hand. (6) Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God; (7) and the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.

The letter to the Philippians was written by the apostle Paul. To rejoice always means not just a cheerful disposition but it is a command we must choose to obey. This has to do with an attitude of contentment and hope and mental focus. This choice is illustrated in Paul’s life – he wrote this epistle when he was imprisoned in Rome, facing execution for preaching the gospel. Paul is writing of joy in the Lord that comes from the power of God operating in the believer. To be happy in Christ is to be unhappy without Him – to trust in the sufficiency and power of the indwelling Spirit. We are to live by faith, not by feeling.

The mentality of demanding our “rights” stems from love of self and sometimes a legal right can become a moral wrong – we should practise forbearance. Selflessness is a core of forbearance and we need this to have God’s joy and peace. We need forbearance in all our relationships – in church, in families, in our daily lives. We are not to be easily offended but to be gracious and give others the benefit of the doubt. We then bear witness for Jesus Christ. It is hard to trust fully in God – that thin stream of fear will end up in anxiety and all sorts of physical stresses and mental disorders. Paul is not encouraging a careless, carefree, irresponsible attitude toward people or problems and proper concern can turn to anxiety when we lack faith in God as sovereign. Prayer yields God’s peace – nothing surprises God and prayer guards our serenity. Our prayers may not always be answered as we want for God alone knows what is best but when we pray He puts His own peace into our hearts.

The serenity prayer is said by Alcoholics Anonymous the world over and is a perfect template for living in joy. “God grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change, the courage to change the things I can and the wisdom to know the difference. Merry Christmas.