Be careful for nothing (have no anxiety); but in every thing by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known unto God. And the peace of God, which passeth all understanding, shall keep your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus. (Phil. 4:6)

The peace that passes understanding is a great thing to experience. When, according to all the circumstances, you should be upset, in a panic, in turmoil and worried, yet you have peace that is unexplainable, it is a wonderful experience. The world is starving for this kind of peace. You cannot buy it; it is not for sale. It is a free gift from Jesus. It is yours when you accept Him as your Lord and Savior and learn to operate in His principles. The prayer of commitment is a powerful prayer that moves your burden from you onto Jesus. First Peter 5:7 says, "Casting all your care upon him; for he careth for you." The Amplified Bible translation says:

Casting the whole of your care [all your anxieties, all your worries, all you concerns, once and for all] on Him, for He cares for you affectionately and cares about you watchfully. (1 Peter 5:7)

What a privilege! Many Christians never use this great benefit even though it belongs to them. Are you enjoying the peace that results when you cast all your care on Him? The word cast means to pitch or throw vehemently. The sooner you do this the better. You do this though prayer. Commit your problems to His loving care. Do this as soon as the Holy Spirit makes you aware that you are worrying or that you have lost your peace. The devil wants you to worry. First Peter 5:9 (AMP) says to "withstand" the devil "against his onset"—that means at the beginning of the attack, right away. Do not wait until he has had an opportunity to work you over for several days. The longer you wait to resist, the stronger the devil's hold on you will become. Then it is harder to break free. As soon as you realize you are worrying, refuse to worry. Cast the care of the situation on God. Change your thinking pattern. When I was first learning this principle of "casting my care" and "not worrying," I knew my thinking was wrong. I would spend all day casting down imaginations, and they would come right back. I remember being very frustrated about the whole thing. I said to the Lord, "How can a person just not think about something?" You see, in order to not worry, you must not think about the problem. When you do need to think about it to make decisions, you will have to think positively about it and not negatively. You can be realistic about your problem and not be negative. I still vividly remember what Jesus said to me when I asked, "How can I just not think about this problem?" He said, "It's very simple, Joyce. Just think about something else." You see, you cannot think about the problem if you think about something that is not a problem. Philippians 4:6 says to not worry but pray instead. Verse 7 promises that if you do verse 6, you will have the peace that passes understanding. Verse 8 (AMP) says:

For the rest, brethren, whatever is worthy of reverence and is honorable and seemly, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely and lovable, whatever is kind and winsome and gracious, if there is any virtue and excellence, if there is anything worthy of praise, think on these things.... (Phil. 4:8)

Now I pray that God will give you grace, which is the power of the Holy Spirit, to put these principles into practice in your life so that you might enjoy the blessedness of a peaceful life. I also pray that the Father might have free recourse to use you to His honor and glory. Source: Peace by Joyce Meyer Excerpt permission granted by Harrison House Publishers