The Best Antidote

According to the dictionary, an antidote is “a remedy to counteract the effects of poison; something that relieves, prevents, or counteracts.” There may be many things for which we need an antidote.

When my granddaughter was young, she would call me and say, “Grandma, I’m bored.” And we would then launch into an interesting conversation. By the end of it, she would be in a better mood. I’m glad I could be her antidote for boredom. And I’m glad that she’s not bored anymore, but I miss those conversations.

On a more serious note, I’m thinking today about the antidote for anxiety. I know I’ve written about anxiety before, but today I’m concentrating on the antidote prescribed in Philippians 4:6-7. “Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God; and the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus” (NKJV). In my favorite New Testament translation, J. B. Phillips words it this way: ”Don’t worry over anything whatever; tell God every detail of your needs in earnest and thankful prayer, and the peace of God which transcends human understanding, will keep constant guard over your hearts and minds as they rest in Christ Jesus.”

Oh, I need that reminder so often! If I don’t heed the warning here, and let anxiety rule, it becomes like a poison in my system, which can be devastating. I know. Easier said than done. We all need the reminder of the familiar words, “Be anxious for nothing.” But without the rest of the verse it’s an impossible command. Prayer with thanksgiving is what we need to put the anxiety to rest. And the result is an amazing promise: the peace of God.

All of this is very real to me today because I’m trying to recuperate from a fall down the stairs that landed me in the hospital with a broken sternum and a fractured vertebrae. Unfortunately, there’s no treatment for it, so I just have to gut it out, enduring the pain. I’m home now, thankful that the injuries weren’t any worse.

So here’s my earnest prayer this morning: “Dear Lord, thank you that I’m still alive, not crippled by my fall, with my brain still working enough to think and write about it all. Thanks for helping me be understanding of others in pain, and even relate just a little to the pain Jesus suffered on my behalf. I thank you that according to your design, ‘I am fearfully and wonderfully made.’ So continue your healing within me as only you can. And let me rest in your promises, knowing that all will be well someday. Even perfect, when I am with You in glory.” Is God’s antidote real to you? Can you relate?