Chrysostom
Beloved of All
Your cry for help has been heard, and the pain you describe, feeling harassed through your own mother and brother for so long, is a heavy burden to carry. It is right that you have brought it to the Lord, for He sees what is done in secret and He hears those who call upon Him.
Scripture teaches us to see clearly who our true enemy is. Man, even when he wounds us, remains our neighbor and our brother, but the devil is our irreconcilable foe. It is he who breeds division and stirs up strife within homes. For that reason we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against the evil one. The right prayer is not that God would strike your mother or your brother, for we are not to devour our brother with our tongue and then ask God to join us in it. The right prayer is that God would bruise Satan under our feet, as it is written, and break his power to use hurt, anger and harsh words to divide you.
Family ties by nature are strong. A mother to her children, a brother to his brother, these are among the closest bonds of this life. Yet none of these bonds can save us or redeem us on the last day, for each will give account for his own works, and neither father nor mother nor brother can rescue another then. Jesus Himself showed us something higher when He said that His mother and brother and sister are those who do the will of His Father. This does not remove the command to honor your mother or to love your brother, but it reminds us that our first loyalty is to Christ, and that our deepest hope must be in Him, not in whether even those closest to us treat us well. Spiritual love comes down from heaven and is not overthrown even by injury, and it can sustain you when natural love fails.
So I urge you to turn your prayer in this direction. Pray for deliverance from the harassment and for peace in your home, and pray also for your mother and brother, that God would have mercy on them, open their eyes, and bring them to repentance and to do His will. Ask the Lord to guard your own mouth and heart, that you would not return evil for evil or let anger take root, but would speak truth with gentleness. Where you can, seek quiet and consistent prayer, stay in the Word, and remain in fellowship with faithful believers who can pray with you and counsel you face to face. If you are in danger or the harassment becomes threatening, seek help from a pastor or other trusted and godly people nearby, and set wise boundaries that allow you to honor your mother without exposing yourself continually to harm.
Let us pray together:
Lord Jesus Christ, look with compassion upon Your child who has felt harassed for so long, even within his own family. You know the wounds that have come through mother and brother. Break the work of the devil that seeks to steal peace and sow hatred. Bruise Satan under Your feet and set this home in order. Give endurance and a clean heart to Your child, teach him to love and to forgive as You have forgiven, and to hate only what is evil. Draw his mother and brother to Yourself, that they may do the will of the Father and find mercy. Guard all of you and lead you in the way of peace, for You reward each according to Your mercy and truth. Amen.
Scripture teaches us to see clearly who our true enemy is. Man, even when he wounds us, remains our neighbor and our brother, but the devil is our irreconcilable foe. It is he who breeds division and stirs up strife within homes. For that reason we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against the evil one. The right prayer is not that God would strike your mother or your brother, for we are not to devour our brother with our tongue and then ask God to join us in it. The right prayer is that God would bruise Satan under our feet, as it is written, and break his power to use hurt, anger and harsh words to divide you.
Family ties by nature are strong. A mother to her children, a brother to his brother, these are among the closest bonds of this life. Yet none of these bonds can save us or redeem us on the last day, for each will give account for his own works, and neither father nor mother nor brother can rescue another then. Jesus Himself showed us something higher when He said that His mother and brother and sister are those who do the will of His Father. This does not remove the command to honor your mother or to love your brother, but it reminds us that our first loyalty is to Christ, and that our deepest hope must be in Him, not in whether even those closest to us treat us well. Spiritual love comes down from heaven and is not overthrown even by injury, and it can sustain you when natural love fails.
So I urge you to turn your prayer in this direction. Pray for deliverance from the harassment and for peace in your home, and pray also for your mother and brother, that God would have mercy on them, open their eyes, and bring them to repentance and to do His will. Ask the Lord to guard your own mouth and heart, that you would not return evil for evil or let anger take root, but would speak truth with gentleness. Where you can, seek quiet and consistent prayer, stay in the Word, and remain in fellowship with faithful believers who can pray with you and counsel you face to face. If you are in danger or the harassment becomes threatening, seek help from a pastor or other trusted and godly people nearby, and set wise boundaries that allow you to honor your mother without exposing yourself continually to harm.
Let us pray together:
Lord Jesus Christ, look with compassion upon Your child who has felt harassed for so long, even within his own family. You know the wounds that have come through mother and brother. Break the work of the devil that seeks to steal peace and sow hatred. Bruise Satan under Your feet and set this home in order. Give endurance and a clean heart to Your child, teach him to love and to forgive as You have forgiven, and to hate only what is evil. Draw his mother and brother to Yourself, that they may do the will of the Father and find mercy. Guard all of you and lead you in the way of peace, for You reward each according to Your mercy and truth. Amen.
