“As you go, preach this message: ‘The kingdom of heaven is near.’ Heal the sick, raise the dead, cleanse those who have leprosy, drive out demons. Freely you have received, freely give.” Matthew 10:6
This is the passage that the Lord has been speaking to me out of for months. These were Jesus’ words as he sent out the disciples.
And I think they are his words to us today. So, that’s what we are doing.
Taylor is one of the guys who showed up at training camp and had no idea what the Lord wanted to do in his life that week. None of us could have guessed the calling the Lord has on his life and the extent that HE would go to to accomplish His purposes. But we are all in awe of how much the Lord loves this son and how he rescued him from darkness.
In Taylor’s words:
Eighteen years ago I became ensnared by
the attractive web of hardcore porn. I was a six year old Christian
and the 18 years that followed have been full of many different
struggles. I mean, I’m sure we can all attest to having mommy and
daddy issues, issues of self-worth, loneliness, insecurity, and
hopelessness. I experienced all of these and more. It was all big
stuff, but the porn, that eventually grew into a drive for sex,
continued to be a CRUSHING burden with no
escape in sight. I did experience growth and success in areas of my
life and even bared fruit in the name of Christ, but I never
experienced deliverance, deliverance that we all read so much about in
the Bible. That is until this Thursday, April 2nd, on AIM’s training
grounds.
the attractive web of hardcore porn. I was a six year old Christian
and the 18 years that followed have been full of many different
struggles. I mean, I’m sure we can all attest to having mommy and
daddy issues, issues of self-worth, loneliness, insecurity, and
hopelessness. I experienced all of these and more. It was all big
stuff, but the porn, that eventually grew into a drive for sex,
continued to be a CRUSHING burden with no
escape in sight. I did experience growth and success in areas of my
life and even bared fruit in the name of Christ, but I never
experienced deliverance, deliverance that we all read so much about in
the Bible. That is until this Thursday, April 2nd, on AIM’s training
grounds.
Afterfive days of experiencing freedom from my generational sin, feelings of
worthlessness, hopelessness, the need for female attention, and a
laundry list of others, we began talking about spiritual gifts like:
prophecy, healing, visions, and intercession. After Pastor Mark
finished speaking, he invited any member of our 34 person team, who
wanted more of what God had to offer, even if we weren’t sure about all
this stuff, to come up and be prayed for. I knew that I wanted to
receive any gifts that God would give me, so I walked up, trying the
whole time to fight off the doubts that continued to grow in my mind.
You see, after experiencing days full of emotional freedom, and a
pouring and softening of my heart, it was strange that on this night I
didn’t feel a thing, nothing at all. As I’m standing there, waiting,
Matt, one of our leaders, looks up at me from praying over a friend.
He gives me a huge smile and points at me while mouthing the word,
“You!” At this point I knew it was time to get down to bitness.
Continue reading at your own “religious” risk,
because I’m about to blow the top off that box you’ve kept God in all
these years! I’m not really sure why I fell, but as Matt and Pastor
Mark began praying over me, I lost my footing and Matt slowly lowered
me to the ground. They never stopped praying, even for a second.
Pastor Mark walked off to tend to others, while my brother Will
walked over to replace him. At this point I had begun to shake
sporadically . I would experience short bursts of intense shaking, or
a long sting of gentle shaking. My left hand began to take on the
form like that of a stroke victim and my mouth was locked in some form
a “O” shape. I began to feel something moving in my arm and mouth as
well. It was as if my body were numb and asleep, without the needling
pain that usually accompanies such sensations. As my convulsions grew
bigger and more intense, I started sputtering. The men praying over me
were encouraging me to speak in tongues and inviting the Holy Spirit to
work through me. All the while I was thinking, “Hmm, this is getting
pretty weird, but I guess I’m starting to speak in tongues!”
because I’m about to blow the top off that box you’ve kept God in all
these years! I’m not really sure why I fell, but as Matt and Pastor
Mark began praying over me, I lost my footing and Matt slowly lowered
me to the ground. They never stopped praying, even for a second.
Pastor Mark walked off to tend to others, while my brother Will
walked over to replace him. At this point I had begun to shake
sporadically . I would experience short bursts of intense shaking, or
a long sting of gentle shaking. My left hand began to take on the
form like that of a stroke victim and my mouth was locked in some form
a “O” shape. I began to feel something moving in my arm and mouth as
well. It was as if my body were numb and asleep, without the needling
pain that usually accompanies such sensations. As my convulsions grew
bigger and more intense, I started sputtering. The men praying over me
were encouraging me to speak in tongues and inviting the Holy Spirit to
work through me. All the while I was thinking, “Hmm, this is getting
pretty weird, but I guess I’m starting to speak in tongues!”
Matt heard my sputters and urged me to speak louder. Will was beginning to praise God, but his heart was telling him to, “Rebuke!”
Will was confused, “No God, this is a good thing! He’s speaking in
tongues and your Spirit is on him. This can’t be bad!” But his heart
continued to shout, “Rebuke!” He was getting
frustrated, so he opened his eyes. When he did this, what he saw and
did after his eyes were open confirmed what his heart was saying. At
the base of my throat was a giant lump and when Will put his hand on
the lump, I think we all knew at that moment it wasn’t the Holy Spirit
I was manifesting, but a demon! “Holy s–t…it’s a demon,” I remember
thinking. The intensity of Matt’s prayers increased and I could
literally feel the air around me growing thicker as my convulsions and
their prayers grew in paralleled unison. Once Matt felt that it was a
demon, he began asking God to give him its name. He prayed louder and
harder! “Give me a name Lord! I need the name!” That was all Will
needed to hear and he finally confirmed his heart with his mouth and
shouted, “I rebuke you!” Matt immediately followed that with the
demon’s name, “Sexual shame!”
Will was confused, “No God, this is a good thing! He’s speaking in
tongues and your Spirit is on him. This can’t be bad!” But his heart
continued to shout, “Rebuke!” He was getting
frustrated, so he opened his eyes. When he did this, what he saw and
did after his eyes were open confirmed what his heart was saying. At
the base of my throat was a giant lump and when Will put his hand on
the lump, I think we all knew at that moment it wasn’t the Holy Spirit
I was manifesting, but a demon! “Holy s–t…it’s a demon,” I remember
thinking. The intensity of Matt’s prayers increased and I could
literally feel the air around me growing thicker as my convulsions and
their prayers grew in paralleled unison. Once Matt felt that it was a
demon, he began asking God to give him its name. He prayed louder and
harder! “Give me a name Lord! I need the name!” That was all Will
needed to hear and he finally confirmed his heart with his mouth and
shouted, “I rebuke you!” Matt immediately followed that with the
demon’s name, “Sexual shame!”
My eyes shot open! My body took on a mind of its own! I had no control, but I felt everything.
Anger, so much anger! Their hands had been on me, but they lost their
grip as I tried to pull away. I started for the left side of the room,
but by this time they had tackled me back to the ground. I was clawing the ground and screaming, “Nooo! Nooo! Nooo!”
With a guttural scream that came from something deeper than myself. It
was full of fear, power, and hate. I was literally dragging the two of
them across the room. They never stopped praying! Time seemed to slow
down and the two to three minutes after the demon manifested itself
seem much longer now as I’m remembering it. By this time two more guys
on our team joined Matt and Will in holding me down and praying over
me. I remember seeing Warren and AJ
with their faces taking on intense forms of prayer as the demon was
trying to fight them off. Four men were trying to hold me down and I
was still dragging them as I fought. I was so strong! Then there came
the turning point…
Anger, so much anger! Their hands had been on me, but they lost their
grip as I tried to pull away. I started for the left side of the room,
but by this time they had tackled me back to the ground. I was clawing the ground and screaming, “Nooo! Nooo! Nooo!”
With a guttural scream that came from something deeper than myself. It
was full of fear, power, and hate. I was literally dragging the two of
them across the room. They never stopped praying! Time seemed to slow
down and the two to three minutes after the demon manifested itself
seem much longer now as I’m remembering it. By this time two more guys
on our team joined Matt and Will in holding me down and praying over
me. I remember seeing Warren and AJ
with their faces taking on intense forms of prayer as the demon was
trying to fight them off. Four men were trying to hold me down and I
was still dragging them as I fought. I was so strong! Then there came
the turning point…
I literally felt a weight come over me, that was so heavy, I can
only assume was the hand of God. The demon was powerless, but I could
still feel the intense hatred! Somehow during this time they flipped
me onto my back and Matt had begun praying into my face as loudly and
powerfully as he could muster. The demon looked him square in the face
and the hate grew more intense! It was hard to believe! My screams
of, “Nooo!”, turned to curses of, “F–k you! F–k you! F–k you!” They
never stopped praying. The process climaxed and the Spirit of God was
upon me. The demon had no choice, but to flee, he was beaten.
only assume was the hand of God. The demon was powerless, but I could
still feel the intense hatred! Somehow during this time they flipped
me onto my back and Matt had begun praying into my face as loudly and
powerfully as he could muster. The demon looked him square in the face
and the hate grew more intense! It was hard to believe! My screams
of, “Nooo!”, turned to curses of, “F–k you! F–k you! F–k you!” They
never stopped praying. The process climaxed and the Spirit of God was
upon me. The demon had no choice, but to flee, he was beaten.
I immediately felt an incredible peace. I was sweating, hoarse,
and exhausted beyond measure, but there was a giant smile on my face.
I knew and felt God’s love in the deepest parts of my soul. I had been
given freedom, a word that has become the theme of my life these past
days. I finally recognized the power of God’s people and the strength
he’s put in all us Christians! The box of religion that I’ve always
put him in was laying pieces around me. “Thank you Father,” I breathed.
and exhausted beyond measure, but there was a giant smile on my face.
I knew and felt God’s love in the deepest parts of my soul. I had been
given freedom, a word that has become the theme of my life these past
days. I finally recognized the power of God’s people and the strength
he’s put in all us Christians! The box of religion that I’ve always
put him in was laying pieces around me. “Thank you Father,” I breathed.
— If you have any questions, I encourage you to ask!
This is pretty big stuff for most of us. It was big for me! But I
believe that our God is capable of anything! He loves you and wants
you to know that He sent His son to set you free!
This is pretty big stuff for most of us. It was big for me! But I
believe that our God is capable of anything! He loves you and wants
you to know that He sent His son to set you free!
