Luke writes: ‘Jesus said, “Simon, listen to me! Satan has demanded the right to test each one of you, as a farmer does when he separates wheat from the husks. But Simon, I have prayed that your faith will be strong. And when you have come back to me, help the others”’ (vv. 31-32 CEV). We often face the most spiritual attack when we’re living out God’s plan for our lives. When we’re determined to make a difference in the world for His glory, and to advance His kingdom, we’ll most likely face more intense attack from Satan as he doesn’t want us to be doing kingdom work. But we need to remember God’s in control. Jesus said, ‘All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me’ (Matthew 28:18 NIV). So when we’re feeling under attack, we shouldn’t give up. In actual fact, when we’re going through tough times, it can lead to us having a testimony to God’s goodness. As we see in Luke 22, Jesus was allowing Simon Peter to experience a trial so that he could encourage his brothers. Perhaps God’s doing the same with us. He knows that the church, and the world, need to see and hear real stories of His power. So our difficulties may be preparing us to encourage others who are struggling. Remember what Joseph said to his brothers: ‘You meant evil against me, but God meant it for good’ (Genesis 50:20 NASB). Since God loves us and is in control of our lives, good things will come from the difficulties we’re going through right now.