A guard is drawn around a place that is to be protected and defended against intruding enemies. In time of danger it is a necessity. Now there is constant danger in the spiritual sphere of conflict, and all depends on the citadel of the heart being kept from the various intrusions of the wicked one. What when the heart is left unguarded? The world does not always get hold of our hearts and thoughts by allurements of pleasure and wealth, but sometimes it uses the bitter bait of anxiety--which, strange to say, men bite as readily as any other. There is a strange fascination in worry, a hypnotic power that irresistibly compels the human soul and carries it by short route away from God, through trouble and darkness, into eternal ruin. There is just one protection against its insidious power. God's guard. "In nothing be anxious; but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known unto God. And the peace of God, which passeth all understanding, shall guard your hearts and your thoughts in Christ Jesus." (Phil. 4:6, 7.)

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