Only when the grace of God comes does a person stand on his feet. Otherwise, without grace, he always changes and always falls.
So be a man and don’t be afraid at all. Do you see how that brother you wrote about endured the temptation? You, too, should do likewise.
Acquire a brave spirit against the temptations that come. In any case, they will come. Forget about what your despondency and indolence tell you. Don’t be afraid of them.
Just as the previous temptations passed by the grace of God, these, too, will pass once they do their job. Temptations are medicines and healing herbs that heal our visible passions and our invisible wounds.
So have patience in order to profit every day, to store up wages, rest, and joy in the heavenly kingdom. For the night of death is coming when no one will be able to work anymore.
Therefore, hurry. Time is short.
Elder Joseph the Heychest