Chrysostom
Good and Faithful Servant
You understand well that these continuous hurdles are not mere misfortunes but part of a fierce, unseen warfare. That is a sober and necessary insight. But watch carefully what you ask of God in such a battle. Do not seek simply for the shield of ease or the removal of every pain. God’s truest gifts are a contrite and humbled heart, a spirit awake and self-possessed, filled with repentance. When you ask for protection, ask first for these. A fighter needs strong armor, a watchful commander, and a soul ready for blood and conflict, not one softened by constant deliverance from trial. The Lord is indeed your fortress, but He often fortifies you not by taking away the siege but by strengthening the walls within.
This season of deep pain, which you have borne for two years, is the very arena where you may prove whether you give thanks to God for what you suffer. A person who truly confesses gratitude for his afflictions will never seek revenge or dwell in fear of those who wish him harm, because he sees that even the malice of enemies can become a spiritual traffic for his soul. Lamenting can be worse than any human revenge, for when we cry out without thanksgiving, we call upon the Lord as an avenger rather than humbling ourselves under His mighty hand. But if you receive these ills with thanksgiving, you rob the evil one of his prize and gain your own brother, or here, your own peace, by refusing to repay evil with evil, fear for fear.
Do not be anxious about the hidden burdens or the ungodly powers you suspect. The Commander who orders your warfare is already standing by, unconquerable and ever-ready to help. Turn your prayer, then, toward those spiritual weapons without which no bodily protection avails. Seek the mind that renders good for evil, the heart that searches out the poor to succor even while you suffer, the spirit that can say with truth, “Thy will be done.” For in His prayer, Christ placed nothing earthly but everything heavenly: first the hallowing of God’s name, the coming of His kingdom, the doing of His will; and only then our daily bread. If you find yourself begging repeatedly for temporal safety, examine whether your prayer has not slipped into that vain repetition.
So war this good warfare. Take these medical trials and fears as the instruments by which you may be made an arm of righteousness. Let your household become a school of spiritual philosophy: repay no evil, bless those who curse you, and let your endurance be a testimony. If your body is afflicted, do not count it evil; it can be a weapon as readily as a target. What you truly need, forgiveness of debts, a spirit that forgives debtors, and a heart set on the true riches, these are the things for which you must cry out. Then, having done all, stand. Whether relief comes or the storm continues, you will have gained something far greater than mere safety: you will have gained your soul, sober and awake, ready for the phalanx of spiritual wickedness.
This season of deep pain, which you have borne for two years, is the very arena where you may prove whether you give thanks to God for what you suffer. A person who truly confesses gratitude for his afflictions will never seek revenge or dwell in fear of those who wish him harm, because he sees that even the malice of enemies can become a spiritual traffic for his soul. Lamenting can be worse than any human revenge, for when we cry out without thanksgiving, we call upon the Lord as an avenger rather than humbling ourselves under His mighty hand. But if you receive these ills with thanksgiving, you rob the evil one of his prize and gain your own brother, or here, your own peace, by refusing to repay evil with evil, fear for fear.
Do not be anxious about the hidden burdens or the ungodly powers you suspect. The Commander who orders your warfare is already standing by, unconquerable and ever-ready to help. Turn your prayer, then, toward those spiritual weapons without which no bodily protection avails. Seek the mind that renders good for evil, the heart that searches out the poor to succor even while you suffer, the spirit that can say with truth, “Thy will be done.” For in His prayer, Christ placed nothing earthly but everything heavenly: first the hallowing of God’s name, the coming of His kingdom, the doing of His will; and only then our daily bread. If you find yourself begging repeatedly for temporal safety, examine whether your prayer has not slipped into that vain repetition.
So war this good warfare. Take these medical trials and fears as the instruments by which you may be made an arm of righteousness. Let your household become a school of spiritual philosophy: repay no evil, bless those who curse you, and let your endurance be a testimony. If your body is afflicted, do not count it evil; it can be a weapon as readily as a target. What you truly need, forgiveness of debts, a spirit that forgives debtors, and a heart set on the true riches, these are the things for which you must cry out. Then, having done all, stand. Whether relief comes or the storm continues, you will have gained something far greater than mere safety: you will have gained your soul, sober and awake, ready for the phalanx of spiritual wickedness.
