By Reverend Mark Hunnemann
Remember Cindi Lauper's hit "Girls Just Want to Have Fun."? It was actually a re-do of a song Robert Hazard had written, with with a few approved changes. I think it is a most suitable anthem (for both sexes), as far as what drives many people. When I wrote the "Fifty Shades of Mommy Porn" blog, my goal was to analyze what is happening across our culture in general that is concurrent with, and perhaps feeding into, this lust for the occult. Long before I got "zapped" by the paranormal, I was interested in viewing the flow of intellectual and pop culture through a biblical worldview...for nearly 40 years. I enjoy analyzing the inter-connectedness of different aspects of culture and the flow of history. The paranormal juggernaut has tendrils that weave far and wide into the fabric of our society--it wasn't born in a cultural/spiritual vacuum and it does not exist now in a vacuum. Understanding certain habits of the heart are essential to deciphering the how/why of this historically unprecedented fascination with the spirit realm.
Why now? Why is our generation the first in human history to rush headlong into the spirit realm without the community safeguards of a designated mediator... a shaman, imam, rabbi, priest, or minister?
Answer...it's fun!
FUN...nothing wrong with it (per se), and so many things right about it. I wanna have fun! And according to online dating site profiles, so does the millions of folks looking for marriage...only this lust for fun has become seriously idolatrous.
About 13 years ago, I went through a biblical divorce, but simply could not (for several reasons), seriously consider dating and re-marriage. The experience damaged me to the core, and I am still broken in many ways. But, like Adam, I was lonely for companionship. So, eventually I tried some reputable dating sites.
Off and on for a few years I have visited a few appropriate dating sites. I even joined one or two for awhile in order to give it a try. There are horror stories and there are beautiful success stories--my experience has been some where in-between. However, there is one aspect of it that has gripped me lately, that is germane to our topic. And I can't shake the sense that there is a strong connection to the how/why of the mushrooming growth and influence of interest in the paranormal.
The vast majority of women on these sites designate their faith as "Christian". However, in the profile section where you introduce yourself--telling the most salient facts about yourself and what you desire in a mate--95% of the professing Christian women do not mention the Lord at all. (I don't read the guys profiles but I suspect it is worse for men). I have read thousands of profiles, so this is a rather large sampling..which makes this all the more disturbing.
However, there is one word that IS found in 99% of the profiles (Christian or not)...FUN. Yep, that word is ubiquitous in dating profiles. It is THE common denominator found amidst all the diversity in the various profiles.
Before I proceed, I need to say that there are more than a few wonderful exceptions to what I am about to say. There are some very godly men and women on those sites who make it crystal clear that God is number one to them, and a shared belief is THE priority to them. In addition, in painting with a broad brush, I run the risk of making it seem that FUN is the only thing most folks discuss--it is NOT. The longing for honesty, communication, trust and respect are but a few of the laudable traits often mentioned by most people. Having said that, it is the centrality...the primacy given to fun, that I have found so troubling.
The issue is not whether having fun is appropriate or important as A desire., (Heck that is a desire of mine as well) Rather, the issue is: what is the significance that having fun (or a man with a good sense of humor, likes to laugh, and so on) is the dominant trait that so many men and women are longing for in a mate? How are these fun-centric profiles, and the people behind them, related to what is happening supernaturally? .
On some sites, at the top of the profile section, you can even summarize in a sentence, your search in a nutshell. This is typical--"Adventurous and love to have fun and laugh... looking for same." I read that and it makes me want to weep.
In a profile, you have the opportunity, in a few hundred words, to express who you are. When a professing Christian does not even mention Jesus, that speaks volumes. Fun, fun, fun... It is the absence of Jesus and the prominence of having fun, that concerns me. And, as I did with the popularity of "mommy porn", I wonder what its significance is--especially with regards to the explosion of interest in the paranormal? Jesus said that what we say expresses what fills our hearts. According to these dating profiles, SELF-fulfillment through shared fun, is what the majority of people long for most. FUN HAS BECOME A DEMONIC IDOL IN AMERICA. As one author put it, we are amusing ourselves to death.
We have mentioned repeatedly about the disturbing trend towards the primacy of experience over reason and divine revelation. I think that this fixation on FUN, is an expression of that trend...as well as an indicator of how empty our lives are. If it would be "fun" to have sex before marriage, then why not--since girls/boys just wanna have fun? If it would be fun, exciting, stimulating, expansive, spiritually invigorating (the list goes on and on) to mess with the occult, then why not? If fun is our dominant life value, then we are spiritual casualties waiting to happen. If Satan knows how to do anything, he knows how to make sin look/feel FUN. What happens when our new husband/wife hits a "bump in the road", and he is not as fun or humorous as before? Divorce him/her, I suppose, is what many would do.
Like "Fifty Shades" of experiencing pornography (it is amazing how many women list that trilogy as the "last book read", with many more not mentioning it out of embarrassment), I think this fixation on fun is both an expression of, as well as a cause of, a dying, paganized/occult culture. We continue to consign God to the margins of our lives, and thus God is marginalized in our culture as well....and we do so with a big grin because we are having fun! Christiandom has become so anemic in our society it has lost its ability to be salt and light. Hence, America is becoming increasingly pagan with each passing day...truth is rotting in the streets, and the dust of death and dark shadows are descending upon us. God is laughing, but it is not a fun laugh (see Ps. 2).
1 John 4:1ff tells us to be discerning of the spirits. But by fixating on the experience of fun and laughter, then we are fertilizing the soil for the continued growth of the noxious weed of of spiritism.
These very same folks who long for fun and mirth, are opening the doors to a satanic lie, which will cause many to experience a wide-awake nightmare of demonic oppression...and perhaps eternity in hell....where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.
I do NOT want the last quarter of my life to be a wasted by fixating on trivial pursuits. I can't say everything in a blog, but the Reformation/biblical view of play is that it is as holy/meaningful in God's eyes as preaching or prayer. However, our time here is so short, and we live in such a dark and broken world, that we must seek God's kingdom priorities. We are called to daily die to self and live for God's glory....which is not always fun. We bring God glory by loving Him above all else and by bearing as much fruit as possible-- drawing as many as possible out of the kingdom of darkness and into the kingdom of God's dearly beloved Son.
We must remember that joy is experienced primarily as a by-product of focusing on loving our dear Lord. It is deeper than happiness or fun...which is difficult to consistently maintain in a world which is so tragically bent, broken, and fallen.
A husband and wife are to accelerate each others love for the Lord, as well as help each other bear more fruit for Him together than they would apart from each other. I hope your fun-quotient does increase in 2014, but much more, I pray that we would become increasingly God-intoxicated, and more passionate about holiness than happiness.
Mark Hunnemann is the author of Seeing Ghosts Through God's Eyes: A Worldview Analysis of Earthbound Spirits. It's also available in eBook format.
Looking inside the spiritual & literary worlds
Friday, April 17, 2015
Monday, April 13, 2015
Teaching the Heart of Wisdom and the Commentary on the Awakening Mind
His Holiness took his seat punctually at 9.30 before a capacity audience of 2100. They included 370 Koreans, 120 Mongolians and about 1000 Chinese, mostly from Taiwan with some from the mainland.
“Since most of us customarily recite the Heart of Wisdom Sutra, we’ll have recitations in your various languages,” he announced at the beginning. “Today, let’s have the Korean monks and tomorrow the Japanese.”
After the Korean recitation, His Holiness invited the Chinese to do the same and 1000 voices chanted in steady unison. He explained that at the beginning of teachings he likes to recite the verse of homage from the ‘Ornament for Clear Realization’, in praise of the Perfection of Wisdom. He follows this with the verse of homage from Nagarjuna’s’ ‘Fundamental Wisdom’ in praise of the Buddha and his explanation of dependent origination.
“I’m pleased to see Japanese, Koreans, Mongolians, Taiwanese and Chinese here for these two days of teachings. This hall is part of the Showa Joshi Women’s University, which seems an appropriate setting to explain Perfection of Wisdom teachings, since they are often referred to as the mother of all Buddhas. I also understand that these teachings are being broadcast over the internet and will be available in 39 cinema halls elsewhere in Japan. Welcome to those of you joining us there. The Buddhas teachings refer to phenomena as being like an illusion, so there’s a reminder of that as you pay attention to teachings from an illusion like image of me.”
His Holiness clarified that he would briefly explain the ‘Heart of Wisdom’ and the ‘Commentary on the Awakening Mind’ whose explicit meaning is wisdom. He pointed out that the Madhyamaka view of emptiness combined with the awakening mind of bodhichitta is the antidote to the obstructions to knowledge. He also expressed an intention to read the middle volume of Kamalashila’s ‘Stages of Meditation’, which is apt because it contains a complete survey of the path with special emphasis on concentration and special insight. He also mentioned that tomorrow he intends to give an empowerment and permission of Avalokiteshvara as well as an explanation of the ‘Three Essential Moments’.
Starting with his customary introduction to Buddhism His Holiness said:
“In this 21st century all of us 7 billion human beings are the same in wanting happiness and not wanting to be miserable. This is true of us all, whether we are religious or not. Many of the problems we face we make for ourselves, because we are self-centred and tend to see things from a narrow, short-sighted point of view, which only increases our frustration.”
He said that although there is a stress on education in today’s world, it tends to focus on materialistic goals, preparing students for a materialistic way of life in a materialistic culture. Society all but ignores the mind’s contribution to being happy. We are inclined to anger and frustration because we are not at peace within. What we need is a grounding in inner values. All religious traditions emphasize love and compassion the idea of brotherhood and sisterhood and they take different philosophical approaches to that goal.
Religious traditions are either theistic, stressing a belief in a creator god, or non-theistic, and believing in causality instead. Among the non-theistic traditions, only Buddhism advocates the absence of an independent, intrinsically existent self, asserting that there is no self separate from the body and mind. He said that within Buddhism there is the Pali tradition and the Sanskrit tradition. Both teach about the three trainings in ethics, concentration and wisdom, but differ on how wisdom is defined.
The ‘Unravelling of Thought Sutra’ explains the three Turnings of the Wheel of Dharma. The first refers to the teachings recorded in the Pali tradition, while the second and third belong to the Sanskrit tradition. His Holiness clarified that during the first Turning of the Wheel, the Buddha taught the Four Noble Truths to do with suffering, its origin, its cessation and the path that are the foundation of his teaching. He went into some detail to explain their 16 characteristics, four characteristics of each truth. He focused particularly on understanding selflessness, the possibility of undermining ignorance and attaining a cessation of suffering. When an understanding of the 16 characteristics of the Four Noble Truths is applied in practice it gives rise to the 37 factors of enlightenment.
Coming back from lunch His Holiness explained that the Heart of Wisdom Sutra belongs to a collection of texts known as the Perfection of Wisdom teachings that in their most extensive form comprise the sutra of 100,000 lines in 12 volumes. In their briefest form they consist of one syllable, ‘ah’. The Heart of Wisdom is generally regarded as consisting of 25 lines. Their explicit meaning of the Perfection of Wisdom is emptiness of intrinsic existence and its implications for the truth of cessation.
“Nagarjuna describes the meaning of cessation as occurring when emptiness overcomes the destructive emotions.Khunu Lama Rinpoche on the other hand explained, and I prefer this, that the destructive emotions dissolve into emptiness. Whereas the Buddha expounded the meaning of emptiness during the second Turning of the Wheel, during the third, he introduced the clear light nature of the mind.”
His Holiness made clear that during his explanation of the Four Noble Truths, the Buddha referred to cessation and liberation in relation to an understanding of the selflessness of persons. One of the key points in the Heart of Wisdom is where it says:
‘Avalokiteshvara ... beheld those five aggregates also as empty of inherent nature.’
The key word also, which is absent from the Chinese translation, but is found in the Sanskrit original and its Tibetan translation, indicates the selflessness of phenomena in addition to the selflessness of persons. To say that persons and phenomena are empty of inherent existence is not to say they do not exist at all. The words in the sutra, ‘Form is empty’ refer to the ultimate reality of the object, while the words ‘emptiness is form’ refer to its conventional existence. This is reiterated by the statement: ‘Emptiness is not other than forms and forms are not other than emptiness.’
The reason for seeking an understanding of emptiness is, as Chandrakirti states in his ‘Entering into the Middle Way’, ‘All faults, shortcomings and disturbing emotions arise from the misconception of [an intrinsically existent] self.’ On the basis of such a misconception we grasp at the intrinsic existent of things and generate disturbing emotions towards them, which His Holiness quotes his friend, American psychiatrist, Aaron Beck as saying is 90% our own mental projection.
His Holiness quoted Nagarjuna saying that without understanding the selflessness of phenomena you can’t really understand the selflessness of persons. In conclusion he cited the Heart of Wisdom itself:
“All the Buddhas of the past, present and future have depended, do and will depend upon the perfection of wisdom. Thereby they became, are becoming and will become unsurpassably, perfectly and completely awakened Buddhas.’
Turning to Nagarjuna’s ‘Commentary on the Awakening Mind’, His Holiness gave a concise outline. In verses 4-9 the text refutes non-Buddhist points of view. Verses 10-24 repudiates the views of Buddhist lower schools of thought and verses 25-44 address the views of the Mind Only school. In verse 48 Nagarjuna shows that emptiness is the view that cuts off misconceptions at the root.
[48]
Therefore constantly meditate on emptiness:
The basis of all phenomena,
Tranquil and illusion-like,
Groundless and destroyer of cyclic existence.
From verse 63 there is an explanation of the Madhyamaka view, exemplified by verse 68:
[68]
The conventional is taught to be emptiness;
The emptiness itself is the conventional;
One does not occur without the other,
Just as [being] produced and impermanent.
From verse 72 the practice of generosity and the cultivation of the awakening mind of bodhichitta are described, showing how understanding of emptiness becomes a motive factor for developing bodhichitta. Then, from verses 76 - 85 is an account of how to develop the practice of exchanging self and others. At which point, His Holiness announced:
“That’s all for today. Good night. We’ll meet again tomorrow.
link to original article with photos http://dalailama.com/news/post/1264-teaching-the-heart-of-wisdom-and-the-commentary-on-the-awakening-mind
Sunday, April 12, 2015
Understanding Spiritual Warfare: Becoming a Victor, Part 1
In this series I will explore the spectrum to help you the reader understand Spiritual Warfare and what it takes to achieve Victory. Spiritual Warfare as defined by Wikipedia: Spiritual Warfare is the Christian version of the concept of taking a stand against supernatural evil forces. The foundation for this ideology is having a belief in evil spirits which are able to intervene in human affairs.
Various Christian groups have adopted practices to repel such forces, as based on their doctrine of Christian demonology. A common form of spiritual warfare among Christians, is prayer in Christianity. Other practices may include exorcisms, laying-on of hands, fasting, or anointing with oil.
I will cover several aspects of Warfare that ALL of you need to understand. If you don't agree with this then you are deceived by the kingdom of evil and thus you need to do the research to see for yourself. These are four (4) areas of that EVERY single PROFESSED Christian needs to follow, obey and learn to have true victory over the Demonic which I will cover over this 4 series blog on Spiritual Warfare.
Today we will focus on the act of REVERENCE: Reverence as defined by Webster's is deep respect for someone or something. Reverence within a Christian is a deep respect for God which springs from a healthy fear of the awesome power God has. Sadly many Christian's feel that God is ALL love and not to be feared and sadly this is preached in MANY churches a feel good message and thus you have been set up by Satan.
What these misled Christian's do not understand is that with one word, God could throw you into Hell for eternity. God could transport you into the middle of the sun. God could make a tornado appear and suck you up its funnel. God could collapse the entire universe. God could shut down the critical organs in your body. God could turn the sidewalk beneath your feet into quicksand. Are you getting the picture of what God can do?
God’s power is so very terrifying because God's power is so vast and so unstoppable. There are no rules, none governing how God uses His power because God answers to no one, as we repeat God answers to NO ONE. God can do anything that God wants, and while God delights in being merciful and kind, God also delights in eternally tormenting his enemies in Hell. By the way, where did Hell come from? Hell was created and made by God to punish enemies of God. Therefore, understand this, God thinks Hell is amazingly good.
Now I am going to lay this out even more boldly. As the readers are you ready?? Yes, God loves throwing people (his people - both Christian's and Non-Christian's) into Hell and keeping them in a constant state of terror and agony for eternity as a just punishment for daring to defy their Creator.
Now if you have grown up in the spiritual warrior culture or have just had an epiphany within your life of the Church, then you like many others who may have been taught that Hell is Satan’s turf—that he’s (Satan) the king of that place and that demons are always flitting in and out of it. You may have been taught that God weeps and groans over seeing souls end up in Hell.
These aspects are ludicrous lies!! Read the bible and learn it!! It is not the demons which cart souls off to Hell, it’s God who hurls souls into it with great satisfaction after they have been judged and cannot come out (read the stern warning from Jesus in John 9:39). Hell is not demons who torture the souls in Hell its God who is doing the torturing. This is God who loves it so much that He delights in watching his victims writhe. Now you are saying wait, what? God takes delights in watching his creations suffer?? Answer sadly is YES!
This is real life: we have the God who loved us so much that he sent His only begotten Son to die for us, and we have an all-powerful God who gets off on thrashing His enemies (read the stories in the bible). This is the EXACT same God from the beginning of time to today.
God contains an eddy of extreme passions: love, mercy, justice, grace, wrath, revenge—it’s all there. Now think about this logically. Where do you think Satan got his nastiness from? Do you think anything exists apart from God’s will? God created demons and God designed them to be creatures who would find great delight in doing evil if they ever turned against Him.
They did turn—demons (Fallen Angels) used to be obedient angels, but they chose to rebel. Who do you think gave them that option? Who is it that wanted creatures with the ability to spit in His face? God did. Who is it that brought demons into the human realm so they could delight themselves in tormenting us? God did. Who is currently sustaining demons and assisting them in all their evil work? God is. Now you’re sitting there saying - What are you talking about - why would God do this to us? Well, continue to read below.
When we say that God is sovereign, this means that He is in absolute control over everything in existence. Nothing happens in God’s creation that God does not want to have happen. When you truly get your mind around this aspect, it will radically change your view of demonic oppression. Demons don’t oppress because God is asleep on the job, or because the demons think they are pulling a fast one over on God, or pulling the wool over the eyes of God so to speak either. They oppress humans because God wants them to and thus allows them to do this.
You should tremble in awe of a God who is this huge, this all powerful, this complex, and this unstoppable! Yes, you should and better be. A proper understanding of God’s awesome power and God's absolute authority over all is what drives our faces into the dirt in pure awe of Him.
However, when we fail to understand who God is and how supremely God rules over all things, then we end up praying really inappropriate things like, “God, make that demon go away!” Should molecules be commanding the Almighty King? Should the created be telling the Creator what to do and when to do it?
No, they should not, but sadly many do! There needs to be a proper reverence for God which drives such foolishness out of us and silences our directive tongues. The Creator of all things does not take orders from us "molecules" and sadly we have exalted ourselves with our inability to do anything above God. Blessings to you all and I pray that this has opened the eyes of MANY who follow this series.
I will continue with the next aspect of SUBMISSION in a blog next time.
Rev. Bradley Luoma, Exorcist
Various Christian groups have adopted practices to repel such forces, as based on their doctrine of Christian demonology. A common form of spiritual warfare among Christians, is prayer in Christianity. Other practices may include exorcisms, laying-on of hands, fasting, or anointing with oil.
I will cover several aspects of Warfare that ALL of you need to understand. If you don't agree with this then you are deceived by the kingdom of evil and thus you need to do the research to see for yourself. These are four (4) areas of that EVERY single PROFESSED Christian needs to follow, obey and learn to have true victory over the Demonic which I will cover over this 4 series blog on Spiritual Warfare.
Today we will focus on the act of REVERENCE: Reverence as defined by Webster's is deep respect for someone or something. Reverence within a Christian is a deep respect for God which springs from a healthy fear of the awesome power God has. Sadly many Christian's feel that God is ALL love and not to be feared and sadly this is preached in MANY churches a feel good message and thus you have been set up by Satan.
What these misled Christian's do not understand is that with one word, God could throw you into Hell for eternity. God could transport you into the middle of the sun. God could make a tornado appear and suck you up its funnel. God could collapse the entire universe. God could shut down the critical organs in your body. God could turn the sidewalk beneath your feet into quicksand. Are you getting the picture of what God can do?
God’s power is so very terrifying because God's power is so vast and so unstoppable. There are no rules, none governing how God uses His power because God answers to no one, as we repeat God answers to NO ONE. God can do anything that God wants, and while God delights in being merciful and kind, God also delights in eternally tormenting his enemies in Hell. By the way, where did Hell come from? Hell was created and made by God to punish enemies of God. Therefore, understand this, God thinks Hell is amazingly good.
Now I am going to lay this out even more boldly. As the readers are you ready?? Yes, God loves throwing people (his people - both Christian's and Non-Christian's) into Hell and keeping them in a constant state of terror and agony for eternity as a just punishment for daring to defy their Creator.
Now if you have grown up in the spiritual warrior culture or have just had an epiphany within your life of the Church, then you like many others who may have been taught that Hell is Satan’s turf—that he’s (Satan) the king of that place and that demons are always flitting in and out of it. You may have been taught that God weeps and groans over seeing souls end up in Hell.
These aspects are ludicrous lies!! Read the bible and learn it!! It is not the demons which cart souls off to Hell, it’s God who hurls souls into it with great satisfaction after they have been judged and cannot come out (read the stern warning from Jesus in John 9:39). Hell is not demons who torture the souls in Hell its God who is doing the torturing. This is God who loves it so much that He delights in watching his victims writhe. Now you are saying wait, what? God takes delights in watching his creations suffer?? Answer sadly is YES!
This is real life: we have the God who loved us so much that he sent His only begotten Son to die for us, and we have an all-powerful God who gets off on thrashing His enemies (read the stories in the bible). This is the EXACT same God from the beginning of time to today.
God contains an eddy of extreme passions: love, mercy, justice, grace, wrath, revenge—it’s all there. Now think about this logically. Where do you think Satan got his nastiness from? Do you think anything exists apart from God’s will? God created demons and God designed them to be creatures who would find great delight in doing evil if they ever turned against Him.
They did turn—demons (Fallen Angels) used to be obedient angels, but they chose to rebel. Who do you think gave them that option? Who is it that wanted creatures with the ability to spit in His face? God did. Who is it that brought demons into the human realm so they could delight themselves in tormenting us? God did. Who is currently sustaining demons and assisting them in all their evil work? God is. Now you’re sitting there saying - What are you talking about - why would God do this to us? Well, continue to read below.
When we say that God is sovereign, this means that He is in absolute control over everything in existence. Nothing happens in God’s creation that God does not want to have happen. When you truly get your mind around this aspect, it will radically change your view of demonic oppression. Demons don’t oppress because God is asleep on the job, or because the demons think they are pulling a fast one over on God, or pulling the wool over the eyes of God so to speak either. They oppress humans because God wants them to and thus allows them to do this.
You should tremble in awe of a God who is this huge, this all powerful, this complex, and this unstoppable! Yes, you should and better be. A proper understanding of God’s awesome power and God's absolute authority over all is what drives our faces into the dirt in pure awe of Him.
However, when we fail to understand who God is and how supremely God rules over all things, then we end up praying really inappropriate things like, “God, make that demon go away!” Should molecules be commanding the Almighty King? Should the created be telling the Creator what to do and when to do it?
No, they should not, but sadly many do! There needs to be a proper reverence for God which drives such foolishness out of us and silences our directive tongues. The Creator of all things does not take orders from us "molecules" and sadly we have exalted ourselves with our inability to do anything above God. Blessings to you all and I pray that this has opened the eyes of MANY who follow this series.
I will continue with the next aspect of SUBMISSION in a blog next time.
Rev. Bradley Luoma, Exorcist
Saturday, April 11, 2015
Evil Does Manifest Through TV!
Hello everyone. I pray you had a wonderful week and are enjoying your Sunday. I also pray everyone had a wonderful Easter and spent time with family and your loved ones. So many don't even know why we celebrate Easter. They truly don't know and think it's about candy and decorating eggs. I was shocked at the amount of people who didn't know why it was celebrated even if they don't believe in Jesus Christ. Even non believers know what the holiday represents.
I wrote a blog before it was sometime last year or maybe the year before regarding all the TV shows and movies that are about pure evil that are bombarding our TVs and our local movie theaters. The problem is impressionable minds see this and I don't just mean children or teenagers. I'm talking about adults as well and then they go out and try to mimic what they see on TV or they become obsessed with the subject and start searching it out and then an unhealthy obsession starts to build. I know there is a difference between actually practicing evil and watching it, that surely does not mean that watching satanic or evil toned movies/TV poses no danger. God’s Word indicates that demons or satan have the ability to read our thoughts. Thus, to find out what we are thinking and to detect any spiritual weakness in us, demonic spirits have to watch us very closely for our actions and that does include our choice of entertainment. When a Believers behavior indicates that he or she tend to veer toward movies or books that center on evil, possession , magic spells, acts of demon possession, or similar demonistic subjects, it's truly sending a message to these demonic spirits. In effect, he is alerting them to his weak spot! In response, the demons could intensify their contact with that Christian in order to take advantage of the weakness the believer has revealed. Galatians 6:7.
I found the following comment on the random Yahoo chat question: "From different accounts in the bible, we can see what the demons did to people. They mislead many people as brought out in Rev 12:9. Some of the things they mislead people into thinking is ok are found at Deuteronomy 18: 10-12. If these things are things that the demons use to mislead us, and if God hates these things, then it would mean we need to stay away from things like that. Including movies and TV that glorifies it or promotes it. Also I would advise you to research the origin of Halloween. Its definitely not something that Jehovah, or Jesus came up with, nor something they would celebrate. Since Satan and his demons are to be destroyed, we wouldn't wanna have anything to do with them. That means we wouldn't want to support them in anyway, by reading demonic books, or watching those types of movies or anything that has to deal with the demons. So your mom is right. You wouldn't want them in your house. Here's some other bible accounts u can look at to see what they do to people, Mark 5:1-17, Mark 9: 14-29, Acts 16:16-18."
The next comment, I also found on a random Yahoo chat question: "Demons can use virtually anything with which to oppress you, including what you watch. It's not a matter of black magic or anything truly mysterious or mystical; it's a simple matter of filling your mind with things that are not glorifying to God. Anything that feeds your worst desires or fears is not of God and can be a tool in Satan's hands.
I no longer watch these kinds of movies because I'm trying to fill my mind with the things of Christ, but I saw both of them some years ago, and I can't think of anything in them that would do you any good. Both are filled with the imagery of fear, and, as the Word of God says, God has not given us the "spirit of fear". So if God has not given us that spirit, then where does it come from? It can only come from the enemy.
Don't give place to him willingly. Fill your mind with what is good, and you won't give Satan ammunition against you.
"Finally, brethren, whatever things are true, whatever things are noble, whatever things are just, whatever things are pure, whatever things are lovely, whatever things are of good report, if there is any virtue and if there is anything praiseworthy—meditate on these things." - Philippians 4:8
"For God has not given us a spirit of fear, but of power and of love and of a sound mind." -
Some of these comments I found from 2010 some from 2008 so you can clearly see what I'm trying to say is that this has been something that was brought up several times even years ago... Do some believe it has validity? Yes, but many do not. It just depends on who you ask.
The obsession to understand and to know more about the “unknown” can be found throughout the the Bible. King Manasseh of Judah sacrificed his son to the god Molech (2 Kings. 21:6). Also, Pharaoh’s court magicians used their sorcery during the 10 plagues of Egypt (Ex. 7).prophets of Baal attempted to reach their god through bloodletting (1st Kings 18:28). Israel’s King Saul visited a witch at Endor in an attempt to summon the dead. (1 Samuel 28:7).
I found this following comment on a random talk page regarding the Twilight movies:
"There's a huge amount of danger in this movie," Godfrey continues. "There's also just the excitement of a teenager doing things that are verboten. These are things that people connect to. And not just girls; I think that guys will discover it's dangerous, there's action, there's a thriller element to it, and then, ultimately, that it's cool to be a vampire."
TV shows and movies about vampires aren’t a new thing in the entertainment industry. However, the Twilight characters have really just pushed this trend into a big phenomenon in recent years and Believers should take notice. Its popularity TRULY calls for the need to pay attention to what their kids are reading and watching. Is a book burning session the answer? No. It will Just make you look stupid and you will come off as one of those crazy people that give Christians a bad name.. Instead, take this opportunity to share the truth. Explain this is not real world and is for entertainment purposes and can inadvertently open demonic doors. Just be open and honest about this. It isn't going away and will most likely just become much more prevalent in the years to come. I'm seeing a dangerous pattern.
Written By Jennifer L Auld
I wrote a blog before it was sometime last year or maybe the year before regarding all the TV shows and movies that are about pure evil that are bombarding our TVs and our local movie theaters. The problem is impressionable minds see this and I don't just mean children or teenagers. I'm talking about adults as well and then they go out and try to mimic what they see on TV or they become obsessed with the subject and start searching it out and then an unhealthy obsession starts to build. I know there is a difference between actually practicing evil and watching it, that surely does not mean that watching satanic or evil toned movies/TV poses no danger. God’s Word indicates that demons or satan have the ability to read our thoughts. Thus, to find out what we are thinking and to detect any spiritual weakness in us, demonic spirits have to watch us very closely for our actions and that does include our choice of entertainment. When a Believers behavior indicates that he or she tend to veer toward movies or books that center on evil, possession , magic spells, acts of demon possession, or similar demonistic subjects, it's truly sending a message to these demonic spirits. In effect, he is alerting them to his weak spot! In response, the demons could intensify their contact with that Christian in order to take advantage of the weakness the believer has revealed. Galatians 6:7.
I found the following comment on the random Yahoo chat question: "From different accounts in the bible, we can see what the demons did to people. They mislead many people as brought out in Rev 12:9. Some of the things they mislead people into thinking is ok are found at Deuteronomy 18: 10-12. If these things are things that the demons use to mislead us, and if God hates these things, then it would mean we need to stay away from things like that. Including movies and TV that glorifies it or promotes it. Also I would advise you to research the origin of Halloween. Its definitely not something that Jehovah, or Jesus came up with, nor something they would celebrate. Since Satan and his demons are to be destroyed, we wouldn't wanna have anything to do with them. That means we wouldn't want to support them in anyway, by reading demonic books, or watching those types of movies or anything that has to deal with the demons. So your mom is right. You wouldn't want them in your house. Here's some other bible accounts u can look at to see what they do to people, Mark 5:1-17, Mark 9: 14-29, Acts 16:16-18."
The next comment, I also found on a random Yahoo chat question: "Demons can use virtually anything with which to oppress you, including what you watch. It's not a matter of black magic or anything truly mysterious or mystical; it's a simple matter of filling your mind with things that are not glorifying to God. Anything that feeds your worst desires or fears is not of God and can be a tool in Satan's hands.
I no longer watch these kinds of movies because I'm trying to fill my mind with the things of Christ, but I saw both of them some years ago, and I can't think of anything in them that would do you any good. Both are filled with the imagery of fear, and, as the Word of God says, God has not given us the "spirit of fear". So if God has not given us that spirit, then where does it come from? It can only come from the enemy.
Don't give place to him willingly. Fill your mind with what is good, and you won't give Satan ammunition against you.
"Finally, brethren, whatever things are true, whatever things are noble, whatever things are just, whatever things are pure, whatever things are lovely, whatever things are of good report, if there is any virtue and if there is anything praiseworthy—meditate on these things." - Philippians 4:8
"For God has not given us a spirit of fear, but of power and of love and of a sound mind." -
Some of these comments I found from 2010 some from 2008 so you can clearly see what I'm trying to say is that this has been something that was brought up several times even years ago... Do some believe it has validity? Yes, but many do not. It just depends on who you ask.
The obsession to understand and to know more about the “unknown” can be found throughout the the Bible. King Manasseh of Judah sacrificed his son to the god Molech (2 Kings. 21:6). Also, Pharaoh’s court magicians used their sorcery during the 10 plagues of Egypt (Ex. 7).prophets of Baal attempted to reach their god through bloodletting (1st Kings 18:28). Israel’s King Saul visited a witch at Endor in an attempt to summon the dead. (1 Samuel 28:7).
I found this following comment on a random talk page regarding the Twilight movies:
"There's a huge amount of danger in this movie," Godfrey continues. "There's also just the excitement of a teenager doing things that are verboten. These are things that people connect to. And not just girls; I think that guys will discover it's dangerous, there's action, there's a thriller element to it, and then, ultimately, that it's cool to be a vampire."
TV shows and movies about vampires aren’t a new thing in the entertainment industry. However, the Twilight characters have really just pushed this trend into a big phenomenon in recent years and Believers should take notice. Its popularity TRULY calls for the need to pay attention to what their kids are reading and watching. Is a book burning session the answer? No. It will Just make you look stupid and you will come off as one of those crazy people that give Christians a bad name.. Instead, take this opportunity to share the truth. Explain this is not real world and is for entertainment purposes and can inadvertently open demonic doors. Just be open and honest about this. It isn't going away and will most likely just become much more prevalent in the years to come. I'm seeing a dangerous pattern.
Written By Jennifer L Auld
Thursday, April 9, 2015
River Monsters and Darkness
By Reverend Mark Hunnemann
Dr. Jeremy Wade is a biologist and extreme fisherman. For thirty years he has searched for fresh water monsters--often trying to unravel deaths associated with some mysterious aquatic entity. It is one of my favorite TV shows!! This man certainly knows how to fish, and I am sure some of you are avid fisherman, as I am fascinated with peculiar aquatic life.
But the reason I mention this show is because it inadvertently gives fairly regular pictures into indigenous religions.What some would call "traditional religions".There are two simple facts I wish to accent.
First, like many other TV shows, River Monsters [on Animal Planet] gives eloquent testimony to how widespread traditional religions are.Jeremy Wade takes his viewers on a weekly trip across the globe, to some of the most inhospitable places on the planet.The craziest has got to be the Congo River!!
Among other beliefs, Traditional religions are teeming with spirits--non-human jungle spirits, as well as human spirits....a dark and frightening world of spirits that need to be appeased in order to stay alive. The rivers are often feared instead of enjoyed. Here is my main point--there are BILLIONS of humans now alive who embrace some form of traditional religion which is rife with spirits. Did you catch that quantity? There is no way to gauge how many, but spirit/ancestor worship is in virtually every culture/continent in some form or fashion.
Numerous River Monsters episodes give insight into how ubiquitous this belief is.
What our culture is experiencing is simply the default belief system when the biblical God is rejected. Hence, fascination with the paranormal is exploding.
Second, this TV show is also revealing the demonic nature of traditional religions. Next time I hope to elaborate on the specifics of traditional religions, but for now, even a fishing show (albeit extreme) reveals the working of the demonic.
I could cite several examples but let me mention just one. Electric eels are extremely dangerous.....500+ volts. They can kill horses in the river. However, Jeremy Wade heard of a tribe which caught them by hand! Naturally, he was incredulous....until he was introduced to the shaman who said he had the power to protect those in his tribe. Sure enough, one young guy fetched a large electric eel from the river and was holding it in his hands, while the eel was vibrating in an attempt to kill him. He just smiled while it trembled. I know demonic power when I see it, and that was demonic power...being glorified on prime time TV.
Wherever you look, signs and wonders of the worst kind are being manifested. God help us to be discerning even while enjoying His lovely and often wild nature.
God is the Creator of heaven and earth, and all it contains.
"Seeing Ghosts through God's Eyes" (also in a Kindle edition)...please consider purchasing my book which uses science, logic, and the bible to analyze the true source of power behind paranormal activity.
Dr. Jeremy Wade is a biologist and extreme fisherman. For thirty years he has searched for fresh water monsters--often trying to unravel deaths associated with some mysterious aquatic entity. It is one of my favorite TV shows!! This man certainly knows how to fish, and I am sure some of you are avid fisherman, as I am fascinated with peculiar aquatic life.
But the reason I mention this show is because it inadvertently gives fairly regular pictures into indigenous religions.What some would call "traditional religions".There are two simple facts I wish to accent.
First, like many other TV shows, River Monsters [on Animal Planet] gives eloquent testimony to how widespread traditional religions are.Jeremy Wade takes his viewers on a weekly trip across the globe, to some of the most inhospitable places on the planet.The craziest has got to be the Congo River!!
Among other beliefs, Traditional religions are teeming with spirits--non-human jungle spirits, as well as human spirits....a dark and frightening world of spirits that need to be appeased in order to stay alive. The rivers are often feared instead of enjoyed. Here is my main point--there are BILLIONS of humans now alive who embrace some form of traditional religion which is rife with spirits. Did you catch that quantity? There is no way to gauge how many, but spirit/ancestor worship is in virtually every culture/continent in some form or fashion.
Numerous River Monsters episodes give insight into how ubiquitous this belief is.
What our culture is experiencing is simply the default belief system when the biblical God is rejected. Hence, fascination with the paranormal is exploding.
Second, this TV show is also revealing the demonic nature of traditional religions. Next time I hope to elaborate on the specifics of traditional religions, but for now, even a fishing show (albeit extreme) reveals the working of the demonic.
I could cite several examples but let me mention just one. Electric eels are extremely dangerous.....500+ volts. They can kill horses in the river. However, Jeremy Wade heard of a tribe which caught them by hand! Naturally, he was incredulous....until he was introduced to the shaman who said he had the power to protect those in his tribe. Sure enough, one young guy fetched a large electric eel from the river and was holding it in his hands, while the eel was vibrating in an attempt to kill him. He just smiled while it trembled. I know demonic power when I see it, and that was demonic power...being glorified on prime time TV.
Wherever you look, signs and wonders of the worst kind are being manifested. God help us to be discerning even while enjoying His lovely and often wild nature.
God is the Creator of heaven and earth, and all it contains.
"Seeing Ghosts through God's Eyes" (also in a Kindle edition)...please consider purchasing my book which uses science, logic, and the bible to analyze the true source of power behind paranormal activity.
Monday, April 6, 2015
His Holiness the Dalai Lama Talks to the Japan Doctors Association
“It’s a great honour for me to address such a gathering of people from the field of medicine, because, while almost every human activity can contribute to people’s welfare, doctors and nurses are often able to give people new life. When someone comes to a hospital they don’t come for a picnic, but because they are seeking help for some sort of trouble. And you doctors and nurses are often able to give them a new lease of life.”
He mentioned that there are a variety of medical systems in the world some with origins several thousand years old. Tibetan history records an international conference being held in Lhasa in the 8th century under the auspices of the Tibetan Emperor. It was attended by representatives of the Yunani system from Persia and Afghanistan, of Ayurveda from India and of the Chinese and Tibetan systems. The modern Tibetan medical system seems to have emerged from this event.
His Holiness noted that some ailments respond best to allopathic treatment, but for others Ayurvedic, Tibetan and Chinese treatments may be more effective. He wondered whether a conference of physicians experienced in these different systems today might contribute to human progress.
Despite the earlier formal introduction, His Holiness said he’d like to introduce himself.
“As I said before, I consider myself to be one of the 7 billion human beings alive today. We are physically, mentally and emotionally the same. We all want to live a happy life. While we don’t wish for them we face problems, many of which we have created for ourselves. Why? because we take a narrow rather than a holistic view and because we lack a sense of the oneness of the human family. We are social animals. We all have the potential to develop love and compassion for each other, but we are self-centred. We see others in terms of ‘us’ and ‘them’, taking secondary differences of faith, nationality or race as an excuse. Instead, we need to promote a sense of the oneness of the 7 billion human beings.
“In the past we may have been more or less self-sufficient, but today we are interdependent. Now, the destruction of our neighbours means our destruction too. If we make the interests of the 7 billion human beings our concern, our own interests will naturally be fulfilled.”
His Holiness pointed out that when someone comes to a hospital in search of help, we don’t ask them their faith, nationality or other background, we regard them as human beings in need of help, as patients in need of treatment. He said that we all have this potential to develop unbiased love and concern for other human beings and trying to make people aware of it is his first commitment.
He mentioned that he is also a Buddhist monk who believes that all religious traditions convey a message of love, tolerance and self-discipline. As such they all have the potential to serve humanity. They may adopt different philosophical positions, but even these are directed towards the promotion of love. Therefore, he said, his second commitment is to encouraging inter-religious harmony, something needed more than ever now that increasing numbers of people are killing others in the name of religion.
His Holiness said that his third commitment derives from his being a Tibetan.
“We Tibetans have our own language and system of writing. It happens that today Tibetan is the most accurate language for explaining the Buddhist traditions taught at the great Nalanda University in India. These included philosophy and logic, beside knowledge of the mind and emotions. It’s on the basis of my studies in these traditions that I have been able to engage in conversations with modern scientists over the last 30 years or so. And one result has been that today, many scientists are interested in what the ancient Indian texts have to teach about the mind.”
The first question from the audience asked how we can deal with difficulties we will face in the future. In his reply His Holiness acknowledged that since 1 billion among the 7 billion human beings alive today assert that they adhere to no religious faith, we need to look for new ways to promote a sense of love and affection. All of us, even those who eventually become terrorists, grow up under our mother’s care and affection. But as we grow our natural sense of affection seems to decline. He suggested following the Indian example of taking a secular approach to ethics. This is an approach that respects religious traditions and even the views of those who have no faith, without depending on any of them. He told his listeners that curriculums are being developed with a view to introducing ethics with a secular, universal appeal into our general education systems.
Another physician wanted to know how to cope with emotions and how to decide ethically challenging questions. His Holiness told him that to reduce destructive emotions we need to strengthen constructive emotions. For example, to counter anger we cultivate love and compassion. Reason and common sense will help, but an additional result of developing compassion is an increase in inner strength.
With regard to challenging questions of medical ethics, the important factor is motivation. His Holiness said that he has teased his own doctors about surgery being a form of violence, but we accept it because the motivation is good. He suggested that while it is generally better to avoid abortion, there are occasions when it is the better course of action. He recommended exercising not only compassion in such cases, but wisdom and plain common sense too.
When a psychiatrist asked for advice to prevent suicide, His Holiness quoted a Tibetan master who remarked that the circumstances of some people’s lives are such that it may sometimes be better if their lives are short. He remarked that what makes our human life precious is our marvellous brain. We have an ability to cultivate compassion in a way no other beings can do and this is why suicide seems such a loss.
He pointed out that modern urban life is lonelier than, for example, life in an Indian village. In the village a suicidal person would likely find more community support and understanding. He recalled a conference he attended about 15 years ago in San Francisco that discussed crime amongst youth. The unanimous consensus was that a root cause was a general lack of affection in society. Perhaps the same applies to the incidence of suicide. He suggested that unfulfilled desire, competition and stress may be contributory factors too.
Senior doctors sought His Holiness’s advice about the impending crisis over the imbalance in numbers of elderly retired over young working members of society. He told them of a project he’d heard about in Sweden in which the elderly have a role looking after children. It results in mutual benefit. The children learn from the older people’s experience while their parents are working, and the stimulus the young provide to the old offsets the mental decline that would otherwise take place.
Coming back to the importance of secular ethics, His Holiness mentioned that it is important to teach young people at school that violence is a fruitless approach to solving problems. The use of violence and force inevitably entails unanticipated consequences and rarely a solution. It would be much better if children grew up accustomed to the idea that the proper way to resolve problems is through dialogue, through reaching a mutually agreeable solution.
Finally, His Holiness quoted the Tibetan saying about the well-qualified doctor whose treatment is less effective because he’s aloof compared to the less-qualified doctor whose treatment is more successful because he is warm-hearted. He cited his own experience of feeling more confident and likely to recover quickly when doctors and nurses engage with warm-heartedness, as opposed to those who make him feel like they are just repairing a machine.
“But,” he added, “just as we say we don’t teach the alphabet to the Buddha, you are the doctors and I’m sure this is something you already know.”
There were words of thanks and His Holiness offered all the participants on the stage a silk scarf. Outside, in the forecourt, His Holiness and the President of the JDA planted a tree to commemorate his visit.
Saturday, April 4, 2015
Do Not Act On Emotions That Effect Our Mind, The Enemy Is Counting On It.
We need to be enlightened by the Holy Spirit dwelling on it. Our feelings cannot be counted on especially when we are going to something or if you're mad or angry or depressed or worried. If you're not enjoying your life then you're missing God's best for you. The pressure and problems of every day life is enough to defeat us. I know what I'm saying is much easier said than done believe me I know more than you think I do. Like I said whenever there is a holiday that glorifies Christ (Easter for example) satan hates it with a passion, he cannot stand it. Personally in my life right now I have two very sick relatives very close to me and one who died recently. All of this so close together thrown upon my sister and I. I know what hurt is. I know what pain is. I know what it's like to want to die but I'm here to tell you that Jesus Christ does not want that for us. Ignore these tormenting emotions they are demonic in every way. As I said, Every time there's a holiday that glorifies Christ satan absolutely without a doubt cannot stand it. You may know as a Christian or a believer sometimes more negative things seem to happen on holidays that glorify Christ which it could be a coincidence...I'm simply relaying what I've been told by people over the years and from my personal research. We must resist the Devil. He only comes to steal, and destroy.
Satan is the original liar. He is the “father” of lies. Satan told the first lie in recorded history to Eve, in the Garden of Eden. After planting seeds of doubt in Eve’s mind with a question (Genesis 3:1)he directly contradicts God’s Word by telling her, “You will not certainly die” (Genesis 3:4). With that lie, Satan led Eve to her death; Adam followed, and so have we all.
The many accounts of evil spirits in Scripture affirm the reality of powerful spiritual forces of wickedness. Evil spirits(also known as demons or devils) are depraved and quite familiar with human weaknesses and desires. They know it very well. Some are more vile than others. Spirits speak to all of us to inject ungodly beliefs into us. These are thoughts that steer us away from our identity in Jesus Christ. For some people these supernatural voices are far more destructive and can cause harm to the individual hearing them. For some individuals, hearing these thoughts can be just utter torment trying to convince them to commit suicide or to kill another. Oppression and Depression mimic each other in many ways. At times many are written off as highly depressed, now that evil can stay for life with no fear of being casted out.
When God tells us to forgive our enemies, it is not to do them a favor it is to do us a favor. We give that person free rent in our mind by allowing what they did to us constantly stay with us and torment us and I am one that has trouble with this myself. I can forgive but I can't forget which really means I haven't forgiven. Having bitterness and anger in your heart once again that negativity can attract unwanted spirits. I've once heard someone say "if we keep what God tells us to give the devil is going to take it." As long as we stay insecure and not move past we will only live with turmoil. No confidence at all. Our emotions will surely take over. Demons are attracted to this and will target you quicker than you can imagine. Our mind is the enemies battlefield friends. It's our weakness they go after. We must not let the past or what anybody has done to us continue to linger in us in a bad way. God will deal with them God will deal with everyone of us for the things that we've done that we know better. And I personally believe some people get dealt with while they're still on earth.
I've said many times satan goes after our mind. It's our number one weakness at times in my humble opinion. One way Satan gains control of the mind is when we place our trust in what many Christians mistakenly call the Holy Spirit. What I mean is "God told me to do this. . ." However, what God told them to do is completely contrary to God’s word. Jesus said in John 8:47 "He who is of God hears the words of God." God never, ever, ever leads us contrary to the Word of God. So when we receive anything we think is the Holy Spirit, the first question we must ask is "Does God’s word agree with what I believe is the Holy Spirit speaking to me?" Paul wrote in 2 Corinthians 11:14 "And no wonder for Satan transforms himself into an angel of light." We should start each day by saying to God "We cannot do anything without you Lord, please be with us and guide us through every decision and choice we make." There are many demons assigned to torment us by satan just as Jesus assigns angels to look after us . We have demons running amok trying to destroy all humans before the appointed time. Yes they know very well the second coming of Jesus Christ will in fact take place. They already know they are defeated but they will still try to drag as many souls to hell with them or make our life hell in hopes we may take our own life or just live so miserable and depressed we end up making ourselves sick. They hate our guts and want nothing but death for us. And when we are not in control of our emotions and we make certain decisions and choices this is what the enemy is counting on.
We know that we are made up of body, soul and spirit. Again the soul in itself is made up of mind, will and emotions. Becoming a believer means we must have surrendered our will to the Lordship of Jesus Christ our savior. But the mind and emotions, we might not have fully surrendered to our Lord. In these circumstances either knowingly or unknowingly we are allowing the devil room to come into our lives and our homes and have a field day! Torment beyond imagining.
Many people are fooled by "familiar spirits" that come in the form of a dead love one or maybe someone who passed away for lived in that particular home at a time. That way they never truly get dealt with because people think it is a ghost a human spirit that has not yet crossed over. The Bible is full of information about familiar spirits. This allows us to study their wiles in the Bible and find out how they work. They may appear under different names; but their works, manifestations, and their deceptive ways are found both in the Old and New Testaments. We must, therefore, be alert and be prepared because Scripture warns us that these deceiving spirits and false manifestations will be found among God’s people in the last days. Familiar spirits operate under their master, Satan. They influence people to create hate and hurt. Basically raise hell and torment us relentlessly. They spew lies and make a person believe such horrible things of others and ourselves. To knowingly open oneself to the work of demons is an evil act: "Let no one be found among you who sacrifices his son or daughter in the fire, who practices divination or sorcery." To knowingly open yourself up to these demons and their tasks is considered a sin.
Written By Jennifer Lori Auld
Satan is the original liar. He is the “father” of lies. Satan told the first lie in recorded history to Eve, in the Garden of Eden. After planting seeds of doubt in Eve’s mind with a question (Genesis 3:1)he directly contradicts God’s Word by telling her, “You will not certainly die” (Genesis 3:4). With that lie, Satan led Eve to her death; Adam followed, and so have we all.
The many accounts of evil spirits in Scripture affirm the reality of powerful spiritual forces of wickedness. Evil spirits(also known as demons or devils) are depraved and quite familiar with human weaknesses and desires. They know it very well. Some are more vile than others. Spirits speak to all of us to inject ungodly beliefs into us. These are thoughts that steer us away from our identity in Jesus Christ. For some people these supernatural voices are far more destructive and can cause harm to the individual hearing them. For some individuals, hearing these thoughts can be just utter torment trying to convince them to commit suicide or to kill another. Oppression and Depression mimic each other in many ways. At times many are written off as highly depressed, now that evil can stay for life with no fear of being casted out.
When God tells us to forgive our enemies, it is not to do them a favor it is to do us a favor. We give that person free rent in our mind by allowing what they did to us constantly stay with us and torment us and I am one that has trouble with this myself. I can forgive but I can't forget which really means I haven't forgiven. Having bitterness and anger in your heart once again that negativity can attract unwanted spirits. I've once heard someone say "if we keep what God tells us to give the devil is going to take it." As long as we stay insecure and not move past we will only live with turmoil. No confidence at all. Our emotions will surely take over. Demons are attracted to this and will target you quicker than you can imagine. Our mind is the enemies battlefield friends. It's our weakness they go after. We must not let the past or what anybody has done to us continue to linger in us in a bad way. God will deal with them God will deal with everyone of us for the things that we've done that we know better. And I personally believe some people get dealt with while they're still on earth.
I've said many times satan goes after our mind. It's our number one weakness at times in my humble opinion. One way Satan gains control of the mind is when we place our trust in what many Christians mistakenly call the Holy Spirit. What I mean is "God told me to do this. . ." However, what God told them to do is completely contrary to God’s word. Jesus said in John 8:47 "He who is of God hears the words of God." God never, ever, ever leads us contrary to the Word of God. So when we receive anything we think is the Holy Spirit, the first question we must ask is "Does God’s word agree with what I believe is the Holy Spirit speaking to me?" Paul wrote in 2 Corinthians 11:14 "And no wonder for Satan transforms himself into an angel of light." We should start each day by saying to God "We cannot do anything without you Lord, please be with us and guide us through every decision and choice we make." There are many demons assigned to torment us by satan just as Jesus assigns angels to look after us . We have demons running amok trying to destroy all humans before the appointed time. Yes they know very well the second coming of Jesus Christ will in fact take place. They already know they are defeated but they will still try to drag as many souls to hell with them or make our life hell in hopes we may take our own life or just live so miserable and depressed we end up making ourselves sick. They hate our guts and want nothing but death for us. And when we are not in control of our emotions and we make certain decisions and choices this is what the enemy is counting on.
We know that we are made up of body, soul and spirit. Again the soul in itself is made up of mind, will and emotions. Becoming a believer means we must have surrendered our will to the Lordship of Jesus Christ our savior. But the mind and emotions, we might not have fully surrendered to our Lord. In these circumstances either knowingly or unknowingly we are allowing the devil room to come into our lives and our homes and have a field day! Torment beyond imagining.
Many people are fooled by "familiar spirits" that come in the form of a dead love one or maybe someone who passed away for lived in that particular home at a time. That way they never truly get dealt with because people think it is a ghost a human spirit that has not yet crossed over. The Bible is full of information about familiar spirits. This allows us to study their wiles in the Bible and find out how they work. They may appear under different names; but their works, manifestations, and their deceptive ways are found both in the Old and New Testaments. We must, therefore, be alert and be prepared because Scripture warns us that these deceiving spirits and false manifestations will be found among God’s people in the last days. Familiar spirits operate under their master, Satan. They influence people to create hate and hurt. Basically raise hell and torment us relentlessly. They spew lies and make a person believe such horrible things of others and ourselves. To knowingly open oneself to the work of demons is an evil act: "Let no one be found among you who sacrifices his son or daughter in the fire, who practices divination or sorcery." To knowingly open yourself up to these demons and their tasks is considered a sin.
Written By Jennifer Lori Auld
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