Anxiety. Philippians 2:28. “I sent him therefore the more carefully, that, when ye see him again, ye may rejoice, and that I may be the less sorrowful.” We get anxious when someone who usually attends the assembly meetings is missing. Anxiety also arises when time passes, and we don’t know what has happened. It takes over our thoughts, making it difficult to focus on what needs to be done. It’s hard to truly cast our cares on the One who bears our burdens unless we actually speak about what those burdens are. He invites us to rest in Him and be content because He knows and controls both events and people. Even though the Spirit encourages us to trust in Him, our natural tendency is to lay down our worries and then pick them up again. There’s no need to justify our anxious actions, as it ultimately changes nothing.
I ask myself, “Why not listen to the voice of reason? Better yet, why not act in faith?” When opportunities come, seize them; take your time, don’t act in haste. There is One who loves His people deeply and has told us to trust in Him. Leave your worries entirely with Him, knowing He understands them all. It will be right in the end because He has walked this path Himself, as a Man, and faced similar struggles as you are experiencing now. He will handle them as only God can, because He is the omniscient God.
Epaphroditus was sent home to Philippi by Paul and was to be received with joy. Such people deserve to be trusted and respected. It is right for us to honor those who do what we cannot do or go where we cannot go. In Epaphroditus' service, he was wholehearted. That kind of person would give their life for the sake of the Lord Jesus Christ. This is the kind of person who will work for God in all kinds of weather. He served with dignity, labored faithfully, and gladly represented others' interests. Paul did not see Epaphroditus' sickness with indifference or dismiss it as unimportant. These examples of those with the mind of Christ are given so that we will not look at our calling carelessly or with indifference.