Faith, repentance, diligence, endurance - these are some of the tools stored in the box of a conqueror. Tonight I taught on this subject to the group of teenagers I lead. Many of them face demons of a sort that I never thought of at that age. Before we jumped into Revelations we read from Hebrews 11. In the latter part of the chapter, descriptions are there of a people who were dressed in lowly clothing, tortured, stoned, and even sawn in two. It is this group of people who are called conquerors. This isn't our first image when we think of conquerors, I'd bet. Their faith, though, is commended and they are all a part of the great cloud of witnesses watching over us and cheering us on. It says that they conquered kingdoms.
These kids got it. They recognize the kingdoms that have been set up in their lives. There are kingdoms of money, fame, sex, anger, popularity, self-image, success, approval, drugs, television, porn, internet, sports, and the list goes on. All of this goes on daily. I see this every day in the classroom. Kingdoms rising and falling, but rarely do I see the victor turn out to be the oppressed student.
I pray that as adults we recognize the need for repentance. When the worn path of the easy way out, the lowered expectation, appears before us, we turn away and walk the narrow path. I hope that we see the necessity of faith. We can fight and try all day long, but in the end we fail if we do not trust in God. We need diligence in our following Christ. We are pressured in so many ways to take different roads, to try things we already know aren't of God. There is a certain stick-to-it-iveness that needs to exist. All of this relates to creating endurance: the ability to stay in for the long haul. This is no mile relay. This is more than even an Iditarod. This is life.
If we accept these things and teach them, our children will receive them. We look so often to messed up kids and blame them. It starts with us. If our children are to be saved, we must let Christ save us first. We must repent, trust Him, and remain in Him. Without Him we can do nothing.