阅读经文 

我小时候去外婆家吃饭时，她总是让我洗碗。她厨房水池的窗户上有个架子，上面摆放着漂亮的紫色、白色和粉红色的非洲紫罗兰。她还在窗台上放着便签，上面是手写的圣经经文。我记得有一张便签上记着保罗说要“凡事”祷告的忠告。

虽然保罗当时可能是个囚犯，但他写了一封积极乐观的信给腓立比教会，文字中洋溢着喜乐。他为基督徒的日常生活提供了健全的牧养建议，其中包括祷告的建议。和其他书信一样，保罗敦促他的朋友们要凡事祷告。而且“应当一无挂虑”，他说，应该凡事都带到神的面前来求告。

保罗还提到至关重要的一件事：要以感恩的心祷告。的确，“感恩”是基督徒生活的基本特征之一。怀着感恩的心，我们向天父承认自己完全倚赖祂的慈爱信实。

保罗向我们保证，我们若藉着感恩的祷告把一切交给神，就会经历到属神的平安，胜过一切世俗的智慧，使我们在耶稣的爱中安稳。我外婆深知并喜欢时常提说这一点。

When I visited for meals at my grandmother's house as a boy, she always let me do the dishes. Her kitchen-sink window had a shelf with beautiful purple, white, and pink African violets. She also kept notecards on her windowsill with handwritten Bible verses. One card, I remember, highlighted Paul's sound advice for praying "in every situation."

Though he was probably a prisoner at the time, Paul writes a cheerful, optimistic letter to the church in Philippi, brimming with joy. He includes sound pastoral advice for daily Christian living, including suggestions for prayer. As in other letters, Paul urges his friends to pray in all situations. And "do not be anxious about anything," he says, but bring everything before God.

Paul also mentions a vitally important ingredient: praying with a thankful heart. Indeed, "thanksgiving" is one of the basic characteristics of the Christian life. With a thankful heart we can acknowledge that we are utterly dependent on our loving and faithful heavenly Father.

Paul assures us that when we bring everything to God in prayer with thanksgiving, we will experience the peace of God that beats all conventional wisdom and keeps us secure in Jesus' love. My grandmother knew this and loved to be reminded of it.