"Be careful for nothing [Don’t worry]; but in every thing by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known unto God." - Philippians 4:6 KJV

Interestingly, a prime example of this took place in Philippi.

Paul and Silas were severely beaten and thrown into prison because they had cast a devil out of a girl that was being used for fortune-telling, ruining her owners ability to make big money off from her. The jailer was ordered to make sure Paul and Silas didn’t escape.

"Who, having received such a charge, thrust them into the inner prison, and made their feet fast in the stocks." - Acts 16:24 KJV

"And at midnight Paul and Silas prayed, and sang praises unto God: and the prisoners heard them." - Acts 16:25

Paul and Silas PRAYED WITH THANKSGIVING, praying and singing praises to God.

No matter what your need is, big or small, God can take care of it!

"And suddenly there was a great earthquake, so that the foundations of the prison were shaken: and immediately all the doors were opened, and every one's bands were loosed." - Acts 16:26

God answered Paul and Silas’ prayer they prayed with thanksgiving! God SHOOK the prison and opened the doors, LOOSING EVERYONE’S bands.

"And the keeper of the prison awaking out of his sleep, and seeing the prison doors open, he drew out his sword, and would have killed himself, supposing that the prisoners had been fled. But Paul cried with a loud voice, saying, Do thyself no harm: for we are all here.

“Then he called for a light, and sprang in, and came trembling, and fell down before Paul and Silas, And brought them out, and said, Sirs, what must I do to be saved?" - Acts 16:27-30 KJV

It is here that we see that, through the power of the Holy Ghost, Paul and Silas’ prayer went above what they may have asked or thought.

"Now unto him that is able to do exceeding abundantly above all that we ask or think, according to the power that worketh in us," - Ephesians 3:20 KJV

God not only answered their prayers by shaking the prison, opening the doors, and loosing all the prisoner’s bands, but God had also just caused Paul and Silas’ path to cross the path of the man from Macedonia that Paul had seen in a heavenly vision BEFORE they went to Philippi!

"And a vision appeared to Paul in the night; there stood a man of Macedonia, and prayed him, saying, Come over into Macedonia, and help us." - Acts 16:9

Paul and Silas knew from this vision that the Lord had called them to preach the gospel in Macedonia, Philippi being a city in eastern Macedonia (Acts 16:12).

"And after he had seen the vision, immediately we endeavoured to go into Macedonia, assuredly gathering that the Lord had called us for to preach the gospel unto them." - Acts 16:10

When the jailer came trembling, and fell down before Paul and Silas, and brought them out, and said, Sirs, what must I do to be saved? Paul and Silas immediately responded,

"Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt be saved, and thy house." - Acts 16:31 KJV

What did Paul and Silas say next?

"And they spake unto him the word of the Lord, and to all that were in his house." - Acts 16:32

Paul and Silas, preachers of the gospel, then spoke the word of the Lord to the jailor and those in his house. They were fulfilling the mission of the heavenly vision of preaching the gospel to the man of Macedonia that said in the vision, “Come over into Macedonia, and help us."

And it didn’t stop there! After hearing the word of the Lord, the jailor and his household OBEYED the word of the Lord!

"And he took them the same hour of the night, and washed their stripes; and was baptized, he and all his, straightway." - Acts 16:33

The jailor and his household heard the word of the Lord, they believed the word of the Lord, and they OBEYED the word of the Lord! They were BAPTIZED!!

"And when he had brought them into his house, he set meat before them, and rejoiced, believing in God with all his house." - Acts 16:34

What is the gospel message that Paul and Silas preached to the jailor and his household?

The same gospel message that was preached throughout the New Testament that BEGAN on the Day of Pentecost!

On the Day of Pentecost, Peter preached to the multitude that gathered the gospel of Jesus, His death, burial, and resurrection. Then he preached what they should do.

"Now when they heard this, they were pricked in their heart, and said unto Peter and to the rest of the apostles, Men and brethren, what shall we do?

“Then Peter said unto them, Repent, and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins, and ye shall receive the gift of the Holy Ghost." - Acts 2:37-38 KJV

As a result of Paul and Silas’ prayers and supplications with thanksgiving, not only did God loose Paul and Silas from jail, not only did God bring Paul and Silas to preach the gospel to and baptize the man of Macedonia that was in the vision that was calling out for help, but God also turned the tables on the magistrates that had beaten them and thrown them in jail.

The magistrates were now the ones that were shaking – with fear of what they had done to Paul and Silas!

"And when it was day, the magistrates sent the serjeants, saying, Let those men go... But Paul said unto them, They have beaten us openly uncondemned, being Romans, and have cast us into prison; and now do they thrust us out privily? nay verily; but let them come themselves and fetch us out. And the serjeants told these words unto the magistrates: and they feared, when they heard that they were Romans.

“And they came and besought them, and brought them out, and desired them to depart out of the city. And they went out of the prison, and entered into the house of Lydia [a believer that opened her home to Paul and Silas]: and when they had seen the brethren, they comforted them, and departed." - Acts 16:35, 37-40 KJV