One of my favorite scriptures is Philippians 4:6 which states, "Do not fret or have any anxiety about anything, but in every circumstance and in everything, by prayer and petition (definite requests), with thanksgiving, continue to make your wants known to God." AMP
I believe this passage is one of my favorites because it gives insight into a deeper knowledge that God really does care about what we desire or need. We often think that God is too big to care about our small problems or it makes us seem less humble to ask God for something. We couldn't be further from the truth!
Jesus himself said in Matthew 7:11, "If you then, evil as you are, know how to give good and advantageous gifts to your children, how much more will your Father Who is in heaven [perfect as He is] give good and advantageous things to those who keep on asking Him!" AMP
Need more scriptures to get this firmly rooted in your soul? Let's look at Matthew 6:26, "Look at the birds of the air; they neither sow nor reap nor gather into barns, and yet your heavenly Father keeps feeding them. Are you not worth much more than they?" AMP
The first part of Philippians 4:6 says, "...do not worry...". That's a big one for most believers because we haven't cast our cares upon Him (1 Peter 5:7). We feel we have to work it out in our minds and then pray about our problems to God instead of telling our problems about God and resting in the finished work of Jesus Christ. It sounds easier than it is to do but we HAVE to stop worrying.
The second portion of the Scripture compels us to "petition" God for what we desire. Let me state this first: God is all seeing and all knowing. He knows what you need before you even position yourself to ask for it (Matt. 6:8). But it shows a great act of faith and humility on our part to ask God for what we need instead of trying to figure out a solution on our own. God our Father can provide for us infinitely better than we can provide for ourselves.
The third point made in Philippians 4:6 tells us to give thanks while we are praying. It may not seem technically correct to thank someone for something that isn't in your possession yet. However, if you fully understand that we as believers in Jesus Christ's death, burial, and resurrection are joint heirs with Christ, we know without a doubt that we have been blessed with everything we will ever need in this life (2 Peter 1:3 AMP).
Which leads me to my final thought, we should continually make our requests known to God. Let me clarify, we repeatedly pray not because He didn't hear us the first time or because we're doubting He has done what we've asked for, but because it is through constant communication (prayer) that we obtain knowledge of him. Which in turn leads to our needs being met. Need further explanation? Read 2 Peter 1:3 backwards. "Through the knowledge of Him Who called us by and to His own glory and excellence, His divine power has bestowed upon us all things that is suited to life and godliness." (emphasis mine)
Here's the formula: Don't worry about your situation; pray about your situation; give thanks to God before your situation is fully resolved; and finally, have constant communication with your Father.
