For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the cosmic powers over this present darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places.
Ephesians 6:12
Evils spirits are real; spiritual warfare is real. There is so much going on around us that we don’t even see. In America, Satan uses the media, the economy, and other superficial, materialistic areas to attack us. In Africa, Satan uses more spiritual tactics (not to say that American media isn’t spiritually affected; I believe it is. But I just mean one we more commonly think of as spiritual.) Witchcraft is quite common in Malawi. So are demonic forces. In my time here in Malawi, I’ve experienced quite a bit of that. Here are a couple stories.
Our first Sunday here in Malawi, my teammates Kara and Stacey, and I went to a church led by Pastor Emmanuel. Towards the end of the service, a lady started screaming and crying. The pastor and some others began to pray for her. Fracson (the translator) came over to Kara, Stacey, and I and told us that this woman had the gift of prophecy; she had said that some Satan worshippers wanted to kill the pastor. Um…welcome to Africa? She also said that the Holy Spirit had worked through us in the talks that we had given during the church service. Well, that’s certainly encouraging, but let’s go back to that whole killing the pastor thing. So anyways, a little bit later, we were called over to join them in prayer for her. As we laid hands on her and prayed, she began to shout and convulse. It was pretty obvious at that point that we weren’t dealing with your average church prayer. As we continued to pray, you could tell that she had an aversion to Jesus. While I don’t know all of what she was shouting since it was in a different language, she several times said the name of Jesus, and it wasn’t in a very worshipful friendly manner. As we continued to pray for Jesus to work in her and for the spirits to be cast out, she gradually began to grow calmer. After a period of maybe 10 minutes, she went from shouting, screaming, and convulsing to calmly lying down and singing. Through our prayers, God had delivered her from the evil spirits. To be honest, I don’t fully understand all of what happened. I don’t know how long she had been possessed; I don’t know if her prophetic message had been from God or from the spirits inside of her; I don’t know why the spirits decided to possess her. But I have no doubt that she was possessed. I have no doubt that it’s a reality that occurs. Be praying for this woman; I have no idea what has become of her in the few weeks since that event, but I know that God still has plans for her.
Like I said earlier, witchcraft is a common practice in Malawi. So much so that if you’re sick, make sure you ask to go to the hospital and not a doctor, or you may be getting a treatment you don’t want to receive. One Saturday in Luwaze, we went to a house to pray for a mother and her two children. According to the mother, her older child, who was probably around two years old, had had a witchcraft curse put on him. He now had an illness that caused him to have difficulty digesting food. When we first saw him, his stomach was very bloated. As we prayed healing over him and prayed against the curse, his stomach started to go down. By the end, it wasn’t down all the way, but it was obvious that God was already beginning to work. Even better, by the end, the mother made the decision to follow Christ. Praise God!
As we talked to the mother and to Fracson, we learned how common witchcraft is in the area. Even more disturbing, the schools of darkness (I realize it sounds like something out of Harry Potter, but it’s what the witchcraft schools are called) target younger children to brainwash them with this false (and very dangerous doctrine). In fact, the boy who had placed this curse on the young child was only 13 years old! Probably too young to even fully understand what he was doing, but still opening avenues for Satan.
As we heard this, our eyes were opened to the spiritual reality that is in Malawi. Like I said, spiritual warfare is real, and it’s something that has to be battled against. Be praying for this country, particularly for the Christians who have to battle this atmosphere every day.
As I’ve been in this country, and in this spiritual atmosphere, for nearly a month, I’ve learned how this spiritual atmosphere can affect me also. Stay tuned to hear more about that and how God is teaching me and growing me through it.
