Is Spiritual Warfare for Real?

Heads spinning and bodies flying through the air. Sound about right?

Yikes!

I confess that I used to think that. I watched waaaay too many movies on demonic possession. It was interesting. And disturbing. I was in my early teens.

I carried those images into my world view. I thought these stories were so creepy, if they were real they would certainly be uncommon. Or so I thought.

So, why this post? Is it real? Yes. Is it like in the movies? Yes and no.

I have never experienced a client like the person in The Exorcist (Thank you, God!) But I have read credible stories of possession.

The kind of warfare I deal with in my office is oppression. HUGE difference from possession.

I can hear you now...But Kimberlee, I thought Christians could not have this happen to them because of the Holy Spirit.

Well, sorry friends. Christians can and will get oppressed.

How real is it? Very.

What does it feel like? It is different for everyone.

Oppression can just be the lies we believe and the enemy reminding us of those lies and distorting our world view. It can be feelings of depression, anxiety, or other symptoms that mimic a mental health diagnosis.

It can also sometimes accompany physical feelings. I have had clients get a terrible headache in session. Another severe stomach pains. A client felt heavy depression like a heavy weight on their emotional mind. I had a few clients that felt like something was crawling on them. I knew these were from Satan because when we commanded them to stop, they did.

We will revisit this a little later on in this blog.

A person can get oppressed for reasons such as:

* Worshiping other gods (think of: money, people, religion, etc). See Colossians 3:5.

*. Lie based thinking (examples are 'I am not good enough,' 'I am shameful,' 'I am ugly'). See 1 Peter 2:9. If you believe that Jesus is the son of God, then you belong to a Royal Priesthood. You are chosen and a special possession of God's.

*. Trauma of any kind (emotional, sexual, physical). When you are in a weakened state, the enemy will try to take advantage of you. See 1 Peter 5:8.

* Unhealthy soul ties (intimacy outside of marriage, unhealthy parents, or other close relationships that were/are unhealthy). When you are close to someone and it is not healthy, sin is created, confusion is present and many times good decisions are compromised. When sin is created, that is an entry for the enemy.

*. Family generational lines that carry demonic influence. Do you have any grandparent that was a Freemason or an Eastern Star? What about family in a cult? See Exodus 34:7. While Jesus' sacrifice did cancel curses, the enemy could still be present. He just needs to dealt with.

*. Word curses. Things such as "I will never get close to anyone again," "I will never forgive you," "I am such a screw-up." You get the idea. Sound familiar? Most people create word curses without realizing it. We even create these curses on other people. Read Proverbs 18:21 about the power of the tongue.

Our enemy does not want you to be free. He wants you to live in bondage hoping you will never see the fruit of Jesus' sacrifice for you. So, if you have a deep lie that you are shining a light on... A lie that has prevented you from moving forward in life, you can bet that it will anger the minion (demon) that is guarding that lie (or trauma, soul tie, etc).

When God's light is shown on a lie, that is typically when a person may feel a rousing of the enemy. The awesome thing about this is that you--if you are a true Christ-follower, you have the authority to cast it out/make it stop (referring above to some of the physical feelings you may experience from one of these things). See Mark 16:17-18.

After it stops, then it is time to ask God for His truth over that lie. His truth extinguishes the lie. The enemy then has no "right" to be there anymore and gets kicked out. As Jesus commands, it is important to fill that space with the Holy Spirit so that the enemy does not try to sneak back in with his friends and make it worse (yes, he may try). Please read Luke 11: 24-26.

60% of my clients that want inner healing, experience some sort of warfare in our sessions. It is not dramatic. It is not scary because our God is so much bigger than the little poo heads that are trying to harm you.

Once God speaks His truth to replace the lie, it is transformative, and when the enemy is sent away, you will feel lighter, joy-filled, and peaceful. You will have a healthy new world view and a healthy new view of yourself.

For my clients that have endured years of abuse...this kind of healing can take a bit longer due to many layers. Possibly even fractured parts that developed a long time ago to help protect you from trauma. But have hope. Healing is there for you. Jesus wants to set you free.

Action plan: If you want to learn more about your authority over the enemy through Jesus, start with reading Scripture about it. Luke 10:19-20, 1 John 4:4, 2 Corinthian 2:14, Mark 16:17, and Luke 9:49-50.

I added that last one in to show you that as long as you have faith in Jesus, know in your heart that He is the Son of God and understand His authority, that is all you need (BUT I still highly recommend a teacher in this area). There are so many more verses. Google it. You will see.

My prayer is for you to walk in freedom from any chain that is holding you down. Jesus died for you, sweet friend, so that you may live in victory!

Cheering you on!