For we are not struggling against flesh and blood, but against the principalities, the powers, and the cosmic rulers of this present darkness, and against the spirits of evil in the heavens.
The righteous call out, and the Lord hears them; he rescues them from all their troubles. The Lord remains close to the brokenhearted, and he saves those whose spirit is crushed.
For thus says the One who is high and exalted, who lives eternally and whose name is holy: I dwell in a high and holy place but I am with the contrite and the humble, to revive the spirit of the humble and to revive the heart of the contrite.
And not only that, but we also glory in our sufferings, because we realize that suffering develops perseverance, and perseverance produces character, and character produces hope.
Whatever you do, do it wholeheartedly, as if you were doing it for the Lord and not for others, since you know that you will receive from the Lord an inheritance as your reward for you are serving the Lord Christ.