Chrysostom
Beloved of All
Thank you for sharing your burden so openly and for your desire to honor God in a difficult place. What you are enduring is heavy, and your longing to stand firm, to resist the schemes of the enemy, and to be a faithful steward of the work and the people God has put under your care is pleasing to the Lord.
Scripture teaches that our struggle is not only against people but against spiritual forces that work through injustice and malice, and therefore God calls us to stand. To stand well is the first part of spiritual warfare. As Paul writes, having done all, to stand, and to stand fast in the Lord, clothed not with outward armor but with what is within, truth, righteousness, the gospel of peace, faith, salvation, and the Word of God. The shield of faith is what quenches the fiery darts of the devil, and those darts often come as anger, discouragement, bitterness, and the desire to repay evil for evil.
Your desire to resist the devil is right and biblical. James says to submit yourselves to God, resist the devil and he will flee from you. That resistance is not by our own strength but by drawing near to God in humility, in steady prayer, in the Word, and in patient endurance. Anger is like a fire that catches and consumes, but it is quenched by longsuffering and forbearance. When you meet harshness with patience and continue to do good, you protect your own soul and you take the weapon out of the enemy's hand.
It is also right to entrust justice to God. He sees what your supervisors tolerate and what your supervisor intends, and He will judge with perfect righteousness. The Lord shows His love in this, that the kingdom has been prepared for His people from the foundation of the world, while the fire was prepared not for you but for the devil and his angels. Those who persist in evil choose that fire for themselves, but God does not delight in it. Our calling is not to curse those who mistreat us but to do as Christ taught, to pray for them and to overcome evil with good, while trusting that God will deal with all wrong in His time and way. Vengeance belongs to the Lord, and He will repay.
God can indeed use you where you are to influence young believers. They are watching how you endure, whether you remain steady, kind, truthful, and diligent when you are under pressure. To be a good steward in this forsaken place means to work heartily as for the Lord and not for men, to lead those under you with fairness and mercy, to speak the truth without slander, to keep clear records and seek wise counsel, and to continue to appeal respectfully through proper channels while refusing to return evil for evil.
I will pray for you.
Father in heaven, I thank You for this servant who wants to stand for You in a hard workplace. You see the harassment and sabotage that has gone on for years, and You know the weariness it has caused. Grant strength to stand firm and to keep standing after having done all. Clothe this your child with the full armor of God, with truth and righteousness, with readiness to share Your peace, with faith to quench every dart, with assurance of salvation, and with Your Word as the sword of the Spirit. Give grace to resist the devil by submitting fully to You, and cause the enemy to flee. Guard the heart against bitterness and anger, and fill it with patience, wisdom, and love even for those who do wrong. Deal justly with what is unjust, in Your way and time, and keep this servant from taking vengeance into his own hands. Bless the work of his hands, help him to shepherd those entrusted to him with integrity, and let his endurance be a testimony that strengthens young believers to follow Christ. Provide deliverance, whether by changing the circumstances or by sustaining and lifting up under them, and let Your promised blessing be fulfilled as he walks faithfully with You. In the name of Jesus Christ, our only hope and Savior, amen.
Continue to seek the Lord daily, stay rooted in Scripture and prayer, stay in fellowship with mature believers who can advise you and advocate for you, and keep doing what is good. God is faithful, and He will honor those who stand firm in Him.
Scripture teaches that our struggle is not only against people but against spiritual forces that work through injustice and malice, and therefore God calls us to stand. To stand well is the first part of spiritual warfare. As Paul writes, having done all, to stand, and to stand fast in the Lord, clothed not with outward armor but with what is within, truth, righteousness, the gospel of peace, faith, salvation, and the Word of God. The shield of faith is what quenches the fiery darts of the devil, and those darts often come as anger, discouragement, bitterness, and the desire to repay evil for evil.
Your desire to resist the devil is right and biblical. James says to submit yourselves to God, resist the devil and he will flee from you. That resistance is not by our own strength but by drawing near to God in humility, in steady prayer, in the Word, and in patient endurance. Anger is like a fire that catches and consumes, but it is quenched by longsuffering and forbearance. When you meet harshness with patience and continue to do good, you protect your own soul and you take the weapon out of the enemy's hand.
It is also right to entrust justice to God. He sees what your supervisors tolerate and what your supervisor intends, and He will judge with perfect righteousness. The Lord shows His love in this, that the kingdom has been prepared for His people from the foundation of the world, while the fire was prepared not for you but for the devil and his angels. Those who persist in evil choose that fire for themselves, but God does not delight in it. Our calling is not to curse those who mistreat us but to do as Christ taught, to pray for them and to overcome evil with good, while trusting that God will deal with all wrong in His time and way. Vengeance belongs to the Lord, and He will repay.
God can indeed use you where you are to influence young believers. They are watching how you endure, whether you remain steady, kind, truthful, and diligent when you are under pressure. To be a good steward in this forsaken place means to work heartily as for the Lord and not for men, to lead those under you with fairness and mercy, to speak the truth without slander, to keep clear records and seek wise counsel, and to continue to appeal respectfully through proper channels while refusing to return evil for evil.
I will pray for you.
Father in heaven, I thank You for this servant who wants to stand for You in a hard workplace. You see the harassment and sabotage that has gone on for years, and You know the weariness it has caused. Grant strength to stand firm and to keep standing after having done all. Clothe this your child with the full armor of God, with truth and righteousness, with readiness to share Your peace, with faith to quench every dart, with assurance of salvation, and with Your Word as the sword of the Spirit. Give grace to resist the devil by submitting fully to You, and cause the enemy to flee. Guard the heart against bitterness and anger, and fill it with patience, wisdom, and love even for those who do wrong. Deal justly with what is unjust, in Your way and time, and keep this servant from taking vengeance into his own hands. Bless the work of his hands, help him to shepherd those entrusted to him with integrity, and let his endurance be a testimony that strengthens young believers to follow Christ. Provide deliverance, whether by changing the circumstances or by sustaining and lifting up under them, and let Your promised blessing be fulfilled as he walks faithfully with You. In the name of Jesus Christ, our only hope and Savior, amen.
Continue to seek the Lord daily, stay rooted in Scripture and prayer, stay in fellowship with mature believers who can advise you and advocate for you, and keep doing what is good. God is faithful, and He will honor those who stand firm in Him.
