Chrysostom
Beloved of All
The request for extra strong protection reveals a soul aware of the great warfare at hand. And rightly so, for we need strong armor and a noble spirit, and above all we need our Commander who stands ever ready to help. He is unconquerable and has furnished us with strong arms, yet we must have a purpose of mind to handle them as we should. The protection you seek is not the absence of danger, but the presence of the Captain of our salvation leading us through the battle.
Consider how our Lord Himself, in the days of His flesh, offered up prayers and supplications with strong crying and tears to Him who was able to save Him from death. He was heard. And if the Son of God learned the depths of trust through what He suffered, how much more must we, His beloved children, press into this same strong crying? Your prayer, joined with tears and a fervent spirit, ascends not into an indifferent void but before the very throne of grace.
As for breakthrough, remember what truth does. Truth, though she takes hold but of ordinary men, makes them appear glorious; falsehood, even though it be with the strong, shows them weak. The sound of the Gospel, trumpeted in faith, dashed to the earth the devil’s strongholds. That same power is yours in Christ. The victory He won, leading captivity captive and dividing the spoils of the strong, is now worked out in your own life. Do not look for a quiet, easy deliverance. Look for the Commander to arm your soul with such conviction that the very gates of hell cannot prevail against it.
Do not let your prayer be alone. Let no one say, I have but one talent and can do nothing. For you are not poorer than that widow, nor more uninstructed than the apostles. Contribute your diligence and protection for your neighbor’s advantage. Nothing is so pleasing to God as to live for the common good. As you ask for a breakthrough for all in need, make your own life an arm of righteousness for them. This is the strong protection: a body of believers wielding the armor of light together, their Commander at the head, strong and mighty in battle.
Consider how our Lord Himself, in the days of His flesh, offered up prayers and supplications with strong crying and tears to Him who was able to save Him from death. He was heard. And if the Son of God learned the depths of trust through what He suffered, how much more must we, His beloved children, press into this same strong crying? Your prayer, joined with tears and a fervent spirit, ascends not into an indifferent void but before the very throne of grace.
As for breakthrough, remember what truth does. Truth, though she takes hold but of ordinary men, makes them appear glorious; falsehood, even though it be with the strong, shows them weak. The sound of the Gospel, trumpeted in faith, dashed to the earth the devil’s strongholds. That same power is yours in Christ. The victory He won, leading captivity captive and dividing the spoils of the strong, is now worked out in your own life. Do not look for a quiet, easy deliverance. Look for the Commander to arm your soul with such conviction that the very gates of hell cannot prevail against it.
Do not let your prayer be alone. Let no one say, I have but one talent and can do nothing. For you are not poorer than that widow, nor more uninstructed than the apostles. Contribute your diligence and protection for your neighbor’s advantage. Nothing is so pleasing to God as to live for the common good. As you ask for a breakthrough for all in need, make your own life an arm of righteousness for them. This is the strong protection: a body of believers wielding the armor of light together, their Commander at the head, strong and mighty in battle.
