When Demons Crave Attention, and We Keep Our Gaze on Yahweh, and They Run Crying Back to Hell

We were in church, and the man was just writhing all over the floor.  Every wiry muscle was tensed and stringy under his taut skin, and his face grimaced in rage and pain.  He was baring his teeth, growling and screeching.  Did I mention we were in church?

I was standing in front of a microphone up front with the rest of the band, pouring out my heart, helping to lead our time of praise and edification. 

It was really weird.  I know the demonic is real and am not surprised by how weird they are, but it's so seldom that they raise such a ridiculous ruckus in our services that it sort of surprised me.

But here's one thing I love about my apostle.  Just listen to how he handled it.

Sometimes with spirit-filled believers where there tends to be a degree of revelation about and familiarity with spiritual warfare, there can be a tendency for everyone to hone in on that thing and go after it ferociously till it's gone.  It's an opportunity for us to demonstrate our God's might and victory and how He abides in us.  It's an opportunity for us to test out what we believe.  But it's also an opportunity for the demonic to create a scene and be a giant, dramatic distraction:  "Pay attention to ME!!"

But in this case, instead of allowing it to create that giant, dramatic distraction, my apostle very calmly, and with kingly resolve, summoned a couple of pastors and leaders in the church and instructed them to remove the man to a church office just a few yards away and handle the demon privately. 

The Calm Voice of Authority

He could have gone right down into the fray and commanded that thing then and there.  He's certainly dealt with the demonic plenty of times.  But what he did and said instead have spoken to me all these years later.

First, he trusted the job to some of the other men.  He didn't treat the demon like a formidable enemy that needed him to drop everything and go after it, because it isn't.  But he did see those men as mighty, capable sons of God, because they are.  He knew he could just say the word and move on.

Second, here's what he said:  "I have a specific word to deliver today and specific instructions of what's on Yahweh's heart and what He wants ministered here.  I will not allow some ridiculous demon to come in and get us off course.  We'll handle it privately so we can get on with Kingdom business out here."

So the men hauled the demonized man to the office and worked on his behalf.  I say "hauled" not because they were callous about it, but with all his protestations and flailing, it was quite the ordeal.  Once back there, they told the demon to get lost, and it did.  They set out to free that man of the onslaught of oppression, and they did.

Meanwhile, we moved on with church and gained ground and rejoiced. 

Holy Spirit asked,

"Why are you singing to them?"

Apostle sometimes tells us a story about his days under his own apostle in Panama City, FL, where he was the youth and children's pastor.  One day during a powerful youth service, they were singing passionately a song, telling demons and dark spirits that they were pushing them back.  Everyone was all fired up and really into it when Apostle heard Holy Spirit say, "Why are you singing to them?"

And he thought for a second and realized that was a very good question.  So now he is very careful to teach us not to get our gaze so far off on what the devil is doing when all we need to do is keep our gaze steadily fixed on the very real work our God is doing.  Beating darkness is only accomplished through shining a light.

I will probably be writing more about my apostle and the apostolic in days to come, because I love him and it's really important.  Even in spiritual warfare, which is odd and exciting and just like stories in the Bible, he is steady and listening for Yahweh's direction in that moment, rather than behaving defensively as a reaction.  Some of us can get so giddy with our authority in God that we then get giddy to wield it, which is not totally wrong, but then we might lose focus and become enamored with the demonic, always trying to discern what they're doing so we can head them off.

But who really cares what they're doing?  They're lawless, clueless, and scared.  If Yahweh wants to tell you what's going on with them so that you have direction or discernment, then listen.  But one thing I love about my apostle is demonstrated in this little post of mine. 

He cares what Yahweh's doing.  That's always been and always will be all that counts for anything, and it has given me life-sustaining perspective and strength in the highs and lows and strangeness and normalcy of this wondrous, crazy privilege of life.