Scripture

These are the kings...whom the children of Israel defeated . . . on the other side of the Jordan...And these are the kings conquered on this side of the Jordan.
(Joshua 12:1&7)

Devotional

We must overcome our enemies of the past, present and future. Our past enemies, those on the other side of our Jordan, are often just memories of the sins of our youth---escapades and youthful rebellions, abuses and bad memories. These must be defeated before we can conquer the kings on this side of our Jordan. Let us make sure that we have overcome those sins of our past by repenting of them and no longer boasting about them. Once we have this victory, let us attack without mercy those sinful kings that plague us. Let us do so without mercy and without fear. No matter how threatening they may be, with Christ on our side and armed with the sword of the Lord, we can be more than triumphant. Let us rout those sins that so easily beset us and drive them from our Promised Land, and let us continue defeating those kings that would likewise attempt to invade us.

Text For The Day

Joshua 12:1, 7: These are the kings…whom the children of Israel defeated…on the other side of the Jordan…And these are the kings…conquered on this side of the Jordan.

Thought For The Day

“The real enemies of our life are the ‘oughts’ and the ‘ifs.’ They pull us backward into the unalterable past and forward into the unpredictable future. But real life takes place in the here and the now. God is a God of the present. God is always in the moment, be that moment hard or easy, joyful or painful.” Henri J. Nouwen in Here and Now: Living in the Spirit. Christianity Today

Questions To Ponder

Do you wear the sins of your youth as trophies or causes for repentance?
Is it ever too late to repent of the sins of our past?
How do we go about repenting of those things that took place years ago?

Morning Study Guide

Defining: “Conquering sin”: to subdue, to overcome; to vanquish. “Not by might nor by power, but by My Spirit,’ Says the Lord of hosts,” Zechariah 4:6.

Referencing: “I looked, and behold, a white horse. He who sat on it had a bow; and a crown was given to him, and he went out conquering and to conquer,” Revelation 6:2.

Applying: Go out today with the confidence that, “We are more than conquerors through Him who loved us,” Romans 8:37.