Chrysostom
Beloved of All
Your cry has been heard and we bring your burden before the Lord with you. We grieve the weight of suffering you describe, the long days and nights of harassment and pain, and the longing simply to live in peace. God sees and does not turn away from those who are afflicted and who call upon Him.
We will pray for every person who is suffering in this way, that the Lord in His mercy would bring deliverance, protection and peace. We pray that He would spread His wings over the vulnerable, guard them from every evil work, preserve them, and grant them rest and freedom as He has promised. As the Scripture says, many are the afflictions of the righteous, but the Lord delivers them out of them all, and He will deliver and preserve for His heavenly kingdom those who belong to Him.
We understand the desire to ask God to strike down those who do evil without mercy. The Scriptures teach us that vengeance belongs to the Lord and that He is both just and merciful. So we do not pray for the death of any person, even those who do great harm, but we do pray with urgency that God would stop every work of cruelty, bring all hidden evil into the light, restrain the hands of those who harm others, and bring them to justice through lawful means and to repentance before Him. We pray that those who cause pain would be confronted with the truth of what they do, that their hearts would be changed, and that they would turn from evil and seek forgiveness through Jesus Christ, through whom alone there is salvation.
The Scriptures also teach us that affliction, while grievous, is not wasted in God's hands. The narrow way is pressed by affliction, and tribulation works patience, and patience experience, and experience hope, and hope does not put us to shame. This does not mean that suffering itself is good or that God delights in pain, but that He is able to use even these hard seasons to refine, to draw us closer to Himself, and to keep us from being overcome. Like gold passing through fire, He can make us brighter, and He promises to be near to those who suffer.
So we pray in this way:
Father, in the name of Jesus Christ, look with compassion on all who are tormented and harassed. You know their affliction day after day and month after month. Deliver them from every evil work. Cover them under Your wings. Give them safety, sound sleep, peace of mind, and freedom to live the lives You have given them. Frustrate every plan that seeks to harm them, and let justice be done according to Your righteousness. Bring those who do evil to repentance and to account, and grant that they may no longer harm others. Strengthen the afflicted to endure with hope, to give thanks even in hardship, and to know that You have not forgotten them. Lead them into supportive community, wise counsel, and help from those who can protect and care for them, and keep them close to You until the day of full deliverance. Amen.
We encourage you to remain steadfast in prayer, to stay connected to a faithful local church where you can be known and supported, and to seek help from trusted pastors and from those in authority who can provide protection and care. If you are walking alongside someone who is suffering, continue to stand with them, listen, and point them to Christ and to safe, practical help.
We will continue to pray that the hand of God would move to bring relief, justice, and peace, and that all who suffer would know His nearness and His power to deliver.
We will pray for every person who is suffering in this way, that the Lord in His mercy would bring deliverance, protection and peace. We pray that He would spread His wings over the vulnerable, guard them from every evil work, preserve them, and grant them rest and freedom as He has promised. As the Scripture says, many are the afflictions of the righteous, but the Lord delivers them out of them all, and He will deliver and preserve for His heavenly kingdom those who belong to Him.
We understand the desire to ask God to strike down those who do evil without mercy. The Scriptures teach us that vengeance belongs to the Lord and that He is both just and merciful. So we do not pray for the death of any person, even those who do great harm, but we do pray with urgency that God would stop every work of cruelty, bring all hidden evil into the light, restrain the hands of those who harm others, and bring them to justice through lawful means and to repentance before Him. We pray that those who cause pain would be confronted with the truth of what they do, that their hearts would be changed, and that they would turn from evil and seek forgiveness through Jesus Christ, through whom alone there is salvation.
The Scriptures also teach us that affliction, while grievous, is not wasted in God's hands. The narrow way is pressed by affliction, and tribulation works patience, and patience experience, and experience hope, and hope does not put us to shame. This does not mean that suffering itself is good or that God delights in pain, but that He is able to use even these hard seasons to refine, to draw us closer to Himself, and to keep us from being overcome. Like gold passing through fire, He can make us brighter, and He promises to be near to those who suffer.
So we pray in this way:
Father, in the name of Jesus Christ, look with compassion on all who are tormented and harassed. You know their affliction day after day and month after month. Deliver them from every evil work. Cover them under Your wings. Give them safety, sound sleep, peace of mind, and freedom to live the lives You have given them. Frustrate every plan that seeks to harm them, and let justice be done according to Your righteousness. Bring those who do evil to repentance and to account, and grant that they may no longer harm others. Strengthen the afflicted to endure with hope, to give thanks even in hardship, and to know that You have not forgotten them. Lead them into supportive community, wise counsel, and help from those who can protect and care for them, and keep them close to You until the day of full deliverance. Amen.
We encourage you to remain steadfast in prayer, to stay connected to a faithful local church where you can be known and supported, and to seek help from trusted pastors and from those in authority who can provide protection and care. If you are walking alongside someone who is suffering, continue to stand with them, listen, and point them to Christ and to safe, practical help.
We will continue to pray that the hand of God would move to bring relief, justice, and peace, and that all who suffer would know His nearness and His power to deliver.
