Wednesday, February 4, 2009

Jesus and the Occult

Satan uses all kinds of abuse to render Christians ineffective. One is direct-right out of his hand: occult involvement. Daisy grew up in a family that was heavily involved in the occult. She told me, "All throughout my childhood I was deathly afraid of my mom. she was an angry, cold, distant person who constantly (physically) abused me. It was as if she took all her rage on me. My father was the only doctor in our small town and was never home." What was most horrifying about her case was that, as a child, at times she could actually see a demonic presence. "As a toddler I distinctly remember evil beings coming through the window to harasses me. These beings would hover near my crib until I lost consciousness due to fear. Amazingly enough, God entered this arena unbidden. "Around that same time, God, in His great love, brought a godly Christian family into our neighborhood. Through their grandmother I first heard about the Lord Jesus Christ. I was too young to understand the depth of Christ's message, but I fully understood that there was Someone who loved me unconditionally." Daisy listened to these folks and found in them a source of comfort and hope. However, her situation at home did not change. "The conditions of my family and childhood worsened as I grew older. I became suicidal in my adolescence, and my mother threaded to commit me to a mental hospital. I got the message loud and clear that I was crazy. Seeking help, I began attending a nearby church. However, this church did not preach the Gospel, and it's social message did not soothe my conscience nor bring peace to my fearful heart. "Finding no hope in hollow 'religion,' I turned to drinking and sex." Daisy said, She found that the only love she knew was abuse, so when she met a charming but abusive young man (named John) she thought she was in love. In 1970, the year she turned twenty-one, she accepted John's offer of marriage. But she was not happy. "It was not long before my marriage fell apart, with my husband threatening to kill me," Daisy said. "He showed up at the hospital one day where I was being treated (for wounds he had inflicted on me) and threatened to kill my doctor. Almost immediately I filed for divorce." The strange thing in the midst of this was the constant call of God on her heart. In the midst of her horrid situation God spoke, and she says, "I was filled with a burning desire for God. I set out on as mission to seek the Jesus Christ I had heard about when I was a young child." After her release from the hospital and subsequent divorce, Daisy returned to wondering about what God would do with her. He answered swiftly: "A few months later my baby-sitter introduced me to a pastor's daughter who was holding Bible studies in her home. There I came to a fuller understanding of the work of Christ on the cross to free me from my sins and bondage to the evil one. There were many nights when I would stay up reading the gospel of John with my light on because of my terror of demonic spirits." During that time, she prayed one night for Christ to come into her life, not sure He really would. Instantly, she said, "A great peace came to my heart." Though this was a new beginning for Daisy, her journey was not at an end. She told me, "In 1986 I met a very nice man in the church I was attending. After a year and four months of dating we married. Almost immediately we had problems. We were triggering each other's woundedness. There was something that hindered our intimacy. After a very traumatic childhood and a turbulent adulthood, I had hoped that this marriage would bring the peace and joy of intimacy. However, there were things that the Lord wanted to change in me." After her second marriage dissolved she came for counseling and there God showed her the lies of Satan that she was still believing. As these truths registered in her spirit, God gave her the power to renounce those lies and believe His truth. We continued to work together, and she recently said, "I am now finding in Christ what I was looking for in marriage. Through the blood of Christ and the truth of Scripture I am being healed. The Lord has been faithful to keep His Word, 'You have considered my trouble; You have known my soul in adversities' (Psalm 31:7). He is my Yeshua, the Holy One of Israel, the Lamb of God." Daisy's case illustrates it's not a matter of drugs or human wisdom or even great compassion and love from a decent friend; no, it's the purpose and person of Christ who vanquishes the lies of the devil and takes back the ground the enemy has claimed. Dr. Ken Copley is available for counseling, conferences, and local church meetings.

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