Conqueror

I remember reading today’s verse from Romans and exhaling as if a thousand-pound weight had been lifted off my grieving shoulders. In a sweet whisper from the Holy Spirit, I was reminded that Jesus doesn’t expect me to win my own battles.

Jesus is not surprised that I’m lying in the middle of the battlefield weeping. I am more than the conqueror of my own story because Jesus has already conquered my sin and sorrow on the cross, once and for all. As we battle each day, each season of life after loss, we have the ultimate warrior fighting for us.

I think of Gideon, the young man whom God called to fight a massive army with just three hundred men. I think of David, a teenager with a slingshot who defeated a barbaric giant. I think of Joshua, who took down the towering walls of Jericho with nothing but prayers and trumpets. None of these men had what they needed to win the impossible battles before them. But they surrendered and submitted and called out to God, our warrior, whose power and sovereignty are the only weapons we need.

Prayer: Jesus, the fight against sorrow and despair is impossible to win on my own. Be my strength.

Written by Mattie Jackson Smith