Do you feel blocked? Is there something in your life that just won’t change? The word is “stymied”: we butt our heads against a wall that won’t give.
We all know the feeling. It could be with our personal lives, our relationships, our marriages, children, or siblings. It could be our jobs. It could be a sickness that seems to keep repeating, without any real clinical rhyme or reason. It could be financial — no, we’re not talking here about winning the lottery, we’re not talking about the pursuit of wealth, but of a comfortable means of living that seems to evade you, leaving you feeling insecure. You just don’t seem able to move forward. It could be a psychological or emotional problem.
Two things we need to know right off:
- God is always watching us. (Jesus is there. He is there for the calling. So are angels. Saints.)
- Often we’re blocked by an unseen foe — a spirit, familiar soul, or demon. (They exist — in great numbers!)
True, not everything can be ascribed to demonology. We can go too far in anything. But spirits affect us much more than is currently preached from our pulpits, and vastly more than is acknowledged by theologians.
The subject is tackled in a very good book, Overcoming Familiar Spirits: Deliverance From Unseen Demonic Enemies And Spiritual Debt, by a preacher named Kynan Bridges.
“Have you been frustrated by recurring problems with circumstances and/or people?” he asks, continuing our line of questioning. “If so, will you ask God to show you if hidden enemy forces are playing a role in these situations and to enable you to discern what they are so you can overcome them? Every time a demonic spirit is cast out or a demonic power is broken, the effects of that demonic power are also broken. The enemy does not want people to be truly free because, once they experience freedom, he loses his grip on them and the communities they influence. This is why it is so important that we receive the illumination of God’s Word in our lives.”
We’ll be tackling subjects like this in a series of upcoming in-person retreats.
Sometimes, we need to forgive. Christ did that — from the Cross! “Often, when we think of a person being demonized, we picture someone rolling on the ground or barking like a dog, but there are much more insidious manifestations of demonic influence in a person’s life,” says Bridges. “Diminished spiritual vision, an inability to hear the Voice of God, continual cycles of sin and defeat, and a persistent feeling of torment are all signs that a person is under the influence of a familiar spirit or spirits.
“The key to experiencing freedom is to release the offense, no matter how justified it seems. You must make a conscious decision that you will no longer live under the bondage of the enemy.”
Negative spiritual influences can come from deceased people (who are earthbound), unfortunate souls that attach to family lines from past sinfulness, or outright demons.
Some argue that only demons are at work, mimicking the deceased; for your own discernment.
Whatever the case, as Bridges points out, “There are many ways we can unknowingly invite familiar spirits into our lives. We may leave open a door to their influence due to personal trauma, unforgiveness, bitterness, or false thinking. Then we become trapped in a type of spiritual debt.
“This debt restricts us from being fully free in Christ.”
Some of the first signs of a negative spiritual attachment are confusion, anxiety, sudden anger, and a feeling of being watched (for demons “monitor” us on a constant basis). Often, as we have pointed out, it also starts with depression, regression, obsession, oppression, and in severe extreme cases, possession.
There is that double “ss” (like a hiss).
One could add stress and distress. One could add aggression. More on this in the future.
For now, focus on any blocks in your life. And as Lent intensifies, remember that Christ’s Blood is there is break all the bonds and burdens and blocks — all –– of the enemy.
[resources: Overcoming Familiar Spirits: Deliverance From Unseen Demonic Enemies And Spiritual Debt]
