Today I had an extraordinary experience, I met the spirit of death.
This is a confusing statement, believe me, I know. But yes, today I met a demon who identified himself as “death”.
This occurrence happened while we were visiting a church in a nearby town. Half of my team went and we assumed it would be an average church service. We preached for them and joined with them in worship. It was a wonderful church filled with smiling faces and joyful hearts. When we were nearing the end of the service, the pastor asked if anyone wanted prayer. (It’s common to come up to the front for prayer at the end of the service).
We began listening to their prayer requests and praying over the people. As we were praying, one woman began to make strange growling noises. I noticed but didn’t give it much thought until she got much louder and the pastor went over to her. I could tell something was happening so I moved closer to look. The pastor/prophetess had her hand on the woman’s head and was shouting something in Chichewa. Then I heard her say, “demon, come out!!”
Now the woman had all of my attention and I watched closely as this event unfolded. The woman began screaming and the pastor called for everybody to begin praying. Then she started asking, “Who are you, demon!? What is your purpose here!?” She repeated these questions several times then the woman’s head flung back and she started responding. She shouted a few words in Chichewa and the translator told us the demon is calling itself “death” and that’s its purpose was to kill her.
I was shocked. I couldn’t believe it. Sure I had heard about this stuff, but it was happening right in front of me. I didn’t know what to do, so I began to pray. I prayed over the woman as she kept screaming. I was scared but could absolutely feel the presence of the Holy Spirit. So with one voice (and two languages) we all prayed over this woman and after many loud screams she finally stopped and with a quiet voice whispered, “Jesus…”
The demon had left her, she was back.
Never have I experienced anything like what I saw today. But what a testament today is to the power of the Lord. The bible describes satan as the prince and power of the air. His authority and power on this earth is not small. So often I find myself ignorant to the spiritual realm but we are called to fight for the spiritual realm, to stand against the devil and his attacks.
“For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against the ruler, against the authorities, against the cosmic powers over this present darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places.” (Galatians 6:12)
Be aware, spiritual warfare is going on all around us. Read the rest of Ephesians 6 and pay attention to how Paul tells us to fight against the “spiritual forces of evil.”
The Lord is good and has been faithful every single step of the way, this is my last week in Africa before going to The Philippines. Please pray for the team and me as we finish the Lords work here. Pray that we will finish strong and transition smoothly.
I am so thankful for those of you who have been supporting me throughout this journey. I cannot find the words to express my gratitude, just know that without you, this could never have been possible.
GOD IS GOOD
