As a Christian, you have to live in the midst of an ungodly world. And it does you no good to sit around crying "Woe is me!" Listen: Jesus did not pray for you to be taken out of the world. And what he did not pray for, you need not desire. Far better to face the difficulty in the Lord's strength and glorify him in it!

The enemy is always watching, waiting to catch you in some inconsistency. So be holy. Be very holy. Remember that all eyes are on you, and people expect more from you than from others. Strive to give no occasion for blame. Let your goodness be the only "fault" they can find. Be like Daniel, and compel them to admit: "We can find nothing to charge against this man except concerning the law of his God."

But don't just be consistent—be useful! Perhaps you are thinking, "If I were somewhere else, I could really serve the Lord. But I cannot do any good where I am." Stop that thinking right now! The worse the people around you, the more desperately they need your exertions. If they are crooked, you must set them straight. If they are perverse, you must turn their proud hearts to the truth. Where should the physician be but where there are many sick? Where is honor to be won by the soldier but in the hottest fire of battle?

And when you grow weary of the strife and sin that meets you on every hand, remember this: every saint who ever lived has endured the same trial. They were not carried on beds of down to heaven, and you must not expect to travel more easily than they. They had to hazard their lives unto the death in the high places of the field. You will not be crowned until you also have endured hardness as a good soldier of Jesus Christ.

Therefore, stand fast in the faith! Quit you like men! Be strong!