In spiritual warfare you can sometimes consider the situation in detachment, because you know you are going to win. It is interesting to spend part of a year on a Western battlefield and part on an Eastern one.
In Great Britain the battle is mainly against indifference and complacency. “To whom much is given, from him much is required” is a thought which often comes to mind about the West, when you have seen a mainly illiterate and physically self-starving Church in the East.
In Pakistan the battle is mainly against the encroaching powers of darkness. To hold a spiritually strategic point is difficult; to attack can be dangerous; and to retreat is fatal. As I write this, I reflect on the five months spent in Pakistan since returning from furlough. The Enemy’s tactics are quite plain. He tried to destroy a Christian institution which exercises a strategic ministry. He also tried to destroy the careers of staff members. He attacked from without and failed; then he attacked from within, failing again.
When things were at their worst, we decided to do two things: to praise God whatever happened, and rebuke the power of darkness in the Name of Christ (Acts 13:10). When the Devil does overtime, you can be sure the Holy Spirit is at work too. One of the first-year students was converted two months ago, and we saw Christ’s transforming power. “I will build my church; and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it.”
Several times I have felt like Jonah, and wished to go to Karachi and board a ship to England, but the Lord sent me to Gujranwala, to praise Him and to rebuke the power of darkness. There will doubtless continue to be attacks, until Christ returns in triumph to demonstrate the victory that He won on a cross years ago.
Vivienne Stacey, January 1961
Vivienne Stacey dedicated her life to strengthening Christian witness among Muslims. From the beginning, training and equipping women was core to her ministry. She was committed to building up and training others, to see them grow by passing responsibility on to them. This article comes from her archive.
(c) When Women Speak… February 2022
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