The Quiet Power of Enemies
“And a dangerous game, I think, to make enemies left, right, and center. Not if one is comfortable with having enemies. Are you?”
The Nature of Power
Power, like a blade, cuts both ways. It carves empires from chaos, but its gleam draws the eyes of those who covet its shine. Natalia’s words echo with that ageless caution: to wield power is to court enemies, for even your shadow offends those who walk in darkness.
“You have no enemies, you say? Alas, my friend, the boast is poor.
He who has mingled in the fray of duty, that the brave endure,
Must have made foes. If you have none, small is the work that you have done.”
– Charles Mackay
Enemies are not the price of doing wrong, but the evidence of standing for something right.
The Wisdom of Solomon
“If you faint in the day of adversity, your strength is small.”
Proverbs 24:10 (ESV)
It is not comfort with enemies that crowns you with wisdom, but knowing their presence is as natural as shadows cast by light. Faint-hearted are they who flee conflict to keep false peace, for their silence is purchased with their purpose.
The Courage of Grit
I’m often reminded that grit is forged in the teeth of opposition. Each scorn, each whispered betrayal, each cunning snare set by envious hands, hey temper the soul with an iron resolve to stand, though the earth quake beneath our feet.
The Dark Reflection
Enemies are our true mirrors. They reveal the parts of us we seek to hide; fear, pride, greatness. For only greatness draws true opposition. To be hated is to be seen; to be feared is to be felt.
The approval of men is fleeting, but the approval of God is eternal. It is better to be hated for standing in His light than loved for dimming your flame to please the shadows.
The Final Question
“Are you comfortable having enemies?”
My answer, like Natalia’s silent confidence, is thus:
“Oh yes. For if I am to be known, let it be for the strength that stood,
And if I am to be opposed, let it be because I would not yield to darkness,
Nor betray the light within.”
Final Reflection
Enemies do not diminish your purpose; they refine it. Their resistance hones your resolve. For it is written:
“No weapon that is fashioned against you shall succeed, and you shall refute every tongue that rises against you in judgment. This is the heritage of the servants of the Lord and their vindication from me, declares the Lord.”
Isaiah 54:17, ESV
So let them rise. For their hatred is but a herald of your strength.