“Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.” Philippians 4:6-7 (NIV)

The year was 1998. We had moved from Florida the prior year and still struggled to settle in our new home. Finances were tight. Homeschooling was a burden. Church was a struggle. I was depressed and overwhelmed. I constantly prayed for peace but found myself tossed on stormy seas.

Then a series of things happened. I attended a week’s worth of revival meetings with a well-known evangelist. I ended the week at a women’s conference with dynamic, popular speakers. Then, a single statement the pastor made in his sermon on Thanksgiving Sunday broke through the gloom with rays of hope. He said, “Giving thanks equals peace.”

A few days later, my husband took the children fishing, leaving me alone to prepare Thanksgiving dinner. I put some worshipful music on and began to sing to God. I chopped. I prayed. I stirred. I poured out my heart. I set the table and started crying over my home, my family, my despair. Then God whispered to me, “Thanksgiving equals peace.”

So I started thanking Him. I thanked Him for the children. I thanked Him for the loud, rambunctious children. I thanked Him for my husband. I thanked Him for my husband’s job that caused him undue stress and failed to provide enough income.

The more I thanked God, the softer my heart became. I was still crying, but my tears changed from bitter tears to joyful tears. By the time the family came back from fishing, they had a new wife and mother. God had, in those few hours, transformed me from depressed and overwhelmed to peaceful. He calmed the seas of life by giving me the key to a peaceful home.

Previously, I did not have a “gentle and quiet spirit.” That day I experienced an overwhelming calm come into my home just from counting my blessings and thanking God for them.

Today, when things start to go awry, when you feel anxious, irritable and stressed, stop and thank God for everything.

Carol J. Alexander writes from her home in the Shenandoah Valley of Virginia. Her articles have appeared in BackHome Magazine, Home Education Magazine, Grit, and The Country Register. You can read more of Carol’s musings at her blog www.EverythingHomeWithCarol.blogspot.com. Read Carol’s devotions.