War

"Repay no-one evil for evil." - Romans 12:17

I am fighting having to go to war.

It is not a war I intended to have but it is one which I have seen brewing for some months now. In a way, I suppose it has been a process of self-concealation from myself, an acknowledged closing of my own eyes in hopes that peace and amiability could be maintained. This hope seems to be rapidly receding in the distance, and as Aragorn says to King Theoden in The Two Towers "War already marches upon your land."

What's a Christian to do?

This is where I always come into conflict with myself. On one hand I am commanded as above, "Repay no-one evil for evil" and "If it is possible, so much as it depends on you, live peaceably with all men" (Romans 12:18). On the other hand, there is the knowledge of being in the right and having to consistently take one "for the team" to preserve peace, let alone a constant guessing game of what support will come.

So really the question I'm asking is how, in modern social milieus, does a Christian fight? How does one stand up for what is the right, even if it calls for brutal infighting and still maintain one's witness? Is it as simple as conducting one's self in as Christlike as possible ("Be angry but sin not") while battling as hard as possible? Is it possible that in some cases winning is truly the more critical event (I don't think so, but it is worth considering)? Do I just fade from sight and let others live out the consequences of their actions? Or as Sun Tzu says "Anciently the skillful warriors first made themselves invincible and awaited the enemy's moment of vulnerability"?

How does one preserve a witness and prepare for these things at the same time?