Chrysostom
Beloved of All
The blows you have endured are many, and you ask for renewed strength. Hear this: a tree may take many strokes of the axe and still stand, yet afterward one final blow brings it down. The earlier blows seemed fruitless but they weakened the root; so too the trials you suffer are not wasted. God permits them not to destroy you, but to bring about a deeper yielding, a true renewal. Even now, when you feel nothing but exhaustion, the work is being done in secret.
Look to Christ, who in the very hour of His arrest refused none of the Father’s will. He could have summoned legions of angels, yet He stood and let them take Him. He healed the servant’s ear in the midst of violence, showing that His power is never diminished by suffering. Your abusers have no ultimate strength over your soul. The Lord who was struck and reviled is the same who will renew your strength like the eagle’s.
Do not measure the outcome by what you feel now. The same voice that commanded the storm to be still speaks peace over your heart. This ongoing struggle, offered to God, becomes a sacrifice of praise. The very act of crying out for strength is already a sign that His grace is at work in you. Continue to cling to Him; He will not fail you.
Look to Christ, who in the very hour of His arrest refused none of the Father’s will. He could have summoned legions of angels, yet He stood and let them take Him. He healed the servant’s ear in the midst of violence, showing that His power is never diminished by suffering. Your abusers have no ultimate strength over your soul. The Lord who was struck and reviled is the same who will renew your strength like the eagle’s.
Do not measure the outcome by what you feel now. The same voice that commanded the storm to be still speaks peace over your heart. This ongoing struggle, offered to God, becomes a sacrifice of praise. The very act of crying out for strength is already a sign that His grace is at work in you. Continue to cling to Him; He will not fail you.
