I have secrets. You have secrets. We all have secrets. There are things in our lives we wish to keep hidden from plain sight.

What are those things we hide? Are they hidden for our good? For the good of others? Or are they hidden because we don’t want anyone to know our dirty, little secrets?

God wants to use us. He wants to prosper us. He wants to lead us in to His promises. But when we hold on to things He’s commanded us to let go of, we hinder our own progress.

Once Israel had conquered Jericho (with a lot of marching, trumpet-blowing, and shouting), God led them to Ai. The land was ready for the taking and there was only one rule: don’t take the foreign idols. Simple, yes? Not so much for one man by the name of Achan. Achan took the forbidden fruit, so to speak. Because of his disobedience, Israel lost the battle and lives were lost.

God doesn’t tell us to let go of things because He doesn’t want us to have good things. He only wants good things for us! The items that Achan kept and hid beneath his tent weren’t necessarily bad. They had monetary value. They could have been melted down or re-purposed. But that wasn’t the point. The point was that he had something God told him he shouldn’t have.

Now go! Make the people holy. Tell them, “Set yourselves apart to the Lord for tomorrow. The Lord, the God of Israel, says some of you are keeping things he commanded you to destroy. You will never defeat your enemies until you throw away those things.

Joshua 8:13 (NCV)

There times when God wants to bring us ahead, but our own disobedience holds us back. Are you holding on to something God told you to let go of? Do you have hidden contraband in your life?

Daily Bible reading: Joshua 7-8, Luke 2:25-52