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Demons on a Leash
from Answers Magazine
by C Dickason on May 27, 2009; last featured October 27, 2009
Demons are alive and active today, but we can rest in the reality of our Father’s gracious and powerful control.
Haunted houses, ghosts, demons—our Western culture can’t seem to get enough of the spirit world. The latest Gallup poll indicates that 42% of Americans believe in demon possession, 37% believe in haunted houses, and 32% believe in ghosts. (Not just Americans are enthralled—40% of the British believe in haunted houses, too.)
Though interest in the paranormal is widespread, the majority of people are skeptical. They discount all spirit activity, going so far as to deny the existence of Satan and demons. Atheists stated this view succinctly in a sign they planted next to a manger scene last Christmas at the capitol building in Olympia, Washington:
“There are no gods, no devils, no angels, no heaven or hell. There is only our natural world.” What is the Christian position?
Clearly, outright denial of Satan and demons is not the answer. That view rejects the revelation in the Bible and the phenomena witnessed clearly and broadly in many lands and societies. The first- and second-world countries, not just third-world countries, experience demonic powers, whether knowingly or unknowingly.
As the former chairman of the theology department at Moody Bible Institute and author of Demon Possession & the Christian, I have carefully studied such topics. Demons are real and need to be taken seriously, even if many claims about evil spirits are fabricated or exaggerated.
Unless we have a biblical view of God, mankind, and the spirit world, we will not have the perspective to understand the evil that plagues our world.
Biblical Perspective on Satan’s Role
How does the Bible throw light on this problem?
Finish article HERE
Once I was prescribed Celexa to help me through my weepy period of menopause. Looking back I wish I had just relied on God to get me through this emotional roller-coaster ride. Instead, the drug opened my mind up to the paranormal world with visions and “words.” In essense I become a channeler. Being a Christian, I thought God was using me in a special way by the guidance I thought I was receiving. Instead I was listening to the enemy.
Today it is easy to come across those who say they are receiving visions and words from the Lord on a daily basis. I was there once and it is very seducing, but it is usually deception.
Deception by divination will usually lead to pride and paranoid delusion. Because of the nature of the evil one, and the grace of God, warning signs will come. If unheeded, this road leads to destruction.
Coming back to biblical teachings involved throwing myself on the mercy of God for my pride and rebellion. I had to pray that all abilities not from God be completely removed. And they were!
Here is an interesting comment from Bob Dewaay:
Divination is forbidden not because it does not work, but because it does. It works to put people in touch with spiritual forces and secret knowledge. … The evil spirits who dispense this information intend to keep people from coming to God through Messiah. They also seek to deceive Christians into thinking that what has been provided through Christ is insufficient. They are very good at what they do.
Prescribed psychotropic drugs are not the only danger. This is only one way that a person can open themselves to deception. There are many ways. There is the impartation of false anointings, drugs, alcohol, eastern meditation, repetition of word, hypnosis, visualization (very occult) , and the seduction of today’s hypnotic music. The church is being bombarded with all these deceptions and spiritual influences and they must be rejected instead of being accepted.
Please also be warned that the terms paranormal and metaphysical both mean….occult.
Okay now for the feature article:
How should a Christian respond to evidence of paranormal activity?”
Answer: The word paranormal can be defined as “the occurrence, or perception of, an event without scientific explanation, or other purportedly supernatural phenomena.” Paranormal activity is an encompassing term that includes not only ghosts and hauntings and demonic activity, but also includes other unexplainable phenomena such as unidentified flying objects (UFOs), and extrasensory perception (ESP), to name just a few. With the proliferation of movies and television shows that in one way or another sensationalize paranormal activity, it is clear that many are indeed fascinated with this realm. In fact, a 2007 low-budget movie titled Paranormal Activity went on to become one of the most profitable movies of all time. How then, should Christians respond when we read about supposed hauntings and other paranormal occurrences?
A common misconception is that disembodied spirits can remain on earth or perhaps come back to “haunt” or otherwise interact with us. However, nothing in the Bible supports this belief. Rather, “man is destined to die once, and after that to face judgment” (Hebrews 9:27). But the Bible does make it clear that there are spirit beings—angels and demons—which operate in the heavenly realm. The angels serve God. They are ministering spirits who are sent by God “to serve those who will inherit salvation” (Hebrews 1:14). Demons, on the other hand, are fallen angels under the control of Satan, and they roam the earth looking to destroy God’s children (1 Peter 5:8). They are cunning and wise and keenly aware of our weaknesses and our propensity to desire that which will satisfy our fleshly desires. Worst of all, they can masquerade as “angels of light” or as “servants of righteousness” (2 Corinthians 11:14-15). Regarding the immensity of Satan’s earthly “operation,” the apostle John reminds us that the “whole world” is under his control (1 John 5:19).
Now, some of the paranormal activity we read about today could very well be hoaxes perpetuated on a public that is all too eager to believe. In some cases, well-meaning people could be innocently mistaken as to what they think they might have seen or experienced. There is probably a logical explanation for much of what gets passed off as “paranormal activity.” However, if there is genuine evil spiritual activity occurring, it would have to be the work of demons. Either way, however, when Christians read or hear of such activity we should not be intrigued by it or drawn to it; rather we should use it as a solid reminder of the spiritual battle that is the Christian life and the one against whom we struggle. “Our struggle is not against flesh and blood,” but, rather it is against the “powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms” (Ephesians 6:12 emphasis added).
Many people are no doubt intrigued by tales of ghosts and hauntings. Yet, if getting angry can give the devil a “foothold” into our lives (Ephesians 4:27), how much more so would a fascination with the “dark forces” of this world that he controls? Jesus Christ came to earth to destroy the devil’s work (1 John 3:8), and it took His death to accomplish it. Our response to paranormal activity, at least as it pertains to any sort of demonic activity, is to be reminded of the evil which ultimately led to our Savior’s great sacrifice. Beyond that, Christians should avoid any and all contact with the paranormal.
http://www.gotquestions.org/paranormal-activity.html
*note *
I selected the photo because this is what I saw in a dream when I denounced and rejected what I was receiving. Satan was exposed and he left and so did the oppression.
How to get drunk without drinking – via Derren Brown
The anointing that Brown gives this young man, is the same anointing that many are receiving in our churches today.
Derren Brown – The so called Messiah Part 3 0f 8.
In Part 1 Brown is headed for the US where he is basicallly unknown and he going to approach people with “paranormal belief systems” to see if he can convince them that he is the real deal. He says that he uses magic, suggestion, psychology, misdirection, and showmanship when he is performing. He is going to slay people in the spirit and “convert” them.
There are those who have claimed to be “drunk in the spirit”, or feeling out of control because of the overpowering of the Holy Spirit. But in these videos these people are being “slain” and “intoxicated” by a well-known medium, who admits to be conducting an experiment and posing as someone religious. Brown is an atheist.
Derren Brown – The so called Messiah Part 4 0f 8
These two videos are very interesting to watch in tandem. It is actually difficult to tell if Bentley really knees this man in stomach. I have watched it over and over and I do see his leg lifted, but I am wondering if a different power was transferred to this man to knock him down. A power like the one Derren Brown calls on.
Next watch Derren Brown deliver his “One inch punch.” The effects on the two men are very similar. Remember that Brown is an atheist and does not believe in God.
Why should you be watching these videos clips? For one thing they show that a spiritualist, can recreate the experiences that are happening in our churches. Why is this? Simple ….the spirit is the same spirit. A deceiving spirit.
Our churches are being invaded by false, masquerading spirits and we need to educate ourselves about the paranormal/occult world so we can recognize them. Unfortuneately, the deceiver Satan make these experiences pleasant.
From his website:
Derren Brown: Mind Control, with Derren Brown’ quite literally aired. It was an immediate success, and gained Derren a cool, underground kudos which he described as “not enough”.
Mind Controls 2 and 3 followed, then a series, then a brief spell in prison, and then in October 2003 Derren caused an international furore with ‘Derren Brown Plays Russian Roulette Live’. This secured his notoriety with the public and his big apartment in London. “Bristol can shove itself”, he said.
The Seance followed soon after, which was Derren’s first look at the area of spiritualism and paranormal phenomena, and the first show where his intelligent scepticism could be expressed. Derren says of the show, “By now I was properly famous and could pretty much buy whatever I wanted”. Further specials have followed, including ‘Messiah’, which took him undercover to the US to see if leaders in paranormal belief systems would wrongly endorse him as the real thing.
I am unsure that Brian Flynn knows the extent of the service he provided when he wrote, “Running against the Wind.” The information he shares about Mind Control and TM are really invaluable. He was taught how to access information from the netherworld. The spirits he contacted gave him real life information about the people he was dealing with. The power from the supernatural world is there and available. But Christians are clearly not supposed to delve into this world and access demon power.
At the beginning of this article I quoted Brown about how his magic is done. But there is much more than meets the eye here. Brown is deeply entrenched in the paranormal world and has attained demonic talents. Others videos on his site demonstrate his ability to convince the bereaved he was communicating with the dead, and he can definitely astral project.
It is no wonder he doesn’t truly explain the source of his abilities because he may not know….or is not telling. But as we compare the demonic abilities against similar abilities being demonstrated in the church, we must sit up and take notice.
http://www.letusreason.org/Default.htm
Mike Oppenheimer of:
Let Us Reason Ministries
MY TESTIMONY
I was brought up Jewish, went to Shabbat quite faithfully each Friday and celebrated the holydays at the temple and with family. Our family like many others, gathered together on the high holy days in observance. I attended Hebrew school twice a week and learned the language and eventually was Bar Mitzvahed and confirmed. While attending classes I asked a lot of questions about God the Rabbi could not answer. Though I continued each year, mainly to please my parents, I became less interested in the traditional religion of my parents and feeling hindered in my spiritual development, leaped head first into my own brand of freestyle spirituality after graduation.
By my own search in reading and attending lectures and gatherings I got involved in the New Age Movement, became a vegetarian and for 15 years practiced yoga and meditation. I ended up using psychedelic drugs for a time (LSD, mescaline etc.), as part of my regular religious observances and smoking “pakalolo” (pot) became part of my normal lifestyle. During these times I also experimented with various religions and the occult. I felt they each contained some part of the truth of the one “true” religion, just as Rosicrucianism teaches all religions are petals on the same flower.
I studied about the Ancient Masters of the East, learning about Buddhism and Zen I picked up on a number of the practices. I had a number of spiritual experiences which at the time I was sure were from God and leading me to a greater knowledge of myself and Him. I discovered and believed in the Ascended Masters that were guiding our world into a greater evolutionary path. I was involved with UFO’s and channeled messages. I was sure I was on the right spiritual path because of the various signs things just fell into place. At the same time I also read the Bible (even the New Testament), not denying my Jewish roots. I began reading over 50 books a year, having an insatiable spiritual appetite, but God was working on my exit out of this spiritual bondage.
I had also started to surf before beginning my spiritual pilgrimage. I fell in love with the sport and began traveling, surfing and entering contests. Surfing became my livelihood after I learned to shape surfboards for a living. I became the NY champion for a number of years and eventually the eastern surfing champion for two years. Hawaii proved to be an irresistible attraction due to its fantastic surf. I moved permanently to Hawaii with my girlfriend Kathy in the mid 70’s. This gave me more freedom to pursue both my first love of surfing and my freelance spirituality. We thought we were becoming enlightened. Reading books about the Ascended Masters involvement and “learning” about Earth’s past history on Lemuria and Atlantis. We desired to become servants of the New age movement, convinced that if we all united we could usher in an age of spiritual cooperation and enlightenment that so many were talking about. After nine years my searching came to a head when my girlfriend Kathy and I started to pursue our spiritual hunger more seriously and became involved in the “I Am Movement” (the Saint Germaine Society of the Ballard’s). Through calling on angels and powers unknown to us and by “decreeing” and using the Violet Consuming Flame to eradicate past life karma, we were learning to become active in the New Age Movement. At the time, Kathy was practicing affirmations, mantras, studying herbology, polarity therapy, kinesiology and learning about the supposed spiritual energies of the body. She also was a manager of a health store on the Island of Oahu.
At the same time, the Lord started moving ahead with His rescue plan and during one week we had two friends over who had recently became Christians. One was also a surfer that I knew from New York. We talked about end-time events for hours. Since I was familiar with, as I had been reading the Bible for years, and was especially fascinated about the end of the age. (At that time we both thought Christians were very narrow minded about their view of the Bible, God and the world. Kathy and I used to laugh about how the New Age was coming in without Christians even being aware of it, and were still trying to live in the old traditions and were not going to be part of it). Later that week my friends invited us to a seminar that just so happened to be on the New Age Movement with speakers Dave Hunt, Johanna Michaelson and Hal Lindsey. Talk about timing! It was also during that same week that I heard an audible voice say, “I am the Lord your God, you shall not want.” I recognized this was from Psalm 23 from my Jewish upbringing and had never experienced anything like it. Inside I knew this was the God I was searching for but still did not know. It was only later I would understand why this voice was outside and not from inside me.
I attended the Christian conference on Bible prophecy and the New Age Movement that week while Kathy stayed home doing her New Age affirmations. She wasn’t feeling well that day and unknowingly had really been going through a spiritual battle all that week. At the conference, I was shocked to hear the other side of the story. The information I heard seemed incredible. The speakers knew all about the occult techniques Kathy and I were following and practicing, and about the New Age Movement’s master plans. I spoke to Dave Hunt briefly during a break and he answered a number of important questions. One was why Jesus said, “why you have forsaken me?” Though I was reading the Bible all these years I could not understand the gospel contained in it. I was blinded by the viewpoints ingrained from the New Age influences. I was also challenged by Dave on the occult practices in which I was personally involved practicing. He was aware of the “I am societies” practices. One question he asked was, “If you’re God did you create the universe? I had never thought this through. If I’m trying to become god through all these New Age techniques, how could this be possible, when God was always all knowing and all powerful (according to the Scriptures and what I had heard through their speaking that night). It was through this question that a chain of events led to the Lord really ministering the truth to my heart and mind. When the conference resumed Johanna spoke and I was relating to a lot she had experienced, especially in regards to the Ascended Master “Jesus”. Then she spoke about another Jesus – the true Jesus of the Bible, which came as a total shock. I never thought there could be false Jesus’ parading around as the real one. They were only Jesus by name but not the One who is God come in the flesh. It all made sense. When she prayed my heart was pierced, I knew I had heard the truth, but the question was; what would I do about it?
All the way home I wrestled with the realization that I had wasted the past 15 years believing and doing the wrong things. (Prior to this I thought Christians were very narrow minded but now I had to reconsider that I was too open-minded and had bought into a lie.) I asked my friends who took me to the meeting numerous questions that were running through my mind. Being new Christians, they could answer only a few of them. They just kept saying to me, “we know the Bible is God’s Word and Jesus is the truth.”
Kathy was waiting up for me when I got home. It was late and she was actually scared that I would come home a Christian from the meeting! As I came in a peace came in the house and on her, as I sat her down and shared about how the Christians viewed the last days and how it wasn’t anything like what we were being taught in the New Age Movement. It was then that the Holy Spirit revealed to Kathy that not only were we following the wrong Jesus (2 Cor.11:4), but that we were worshiping Satan, and that he is a real being. Then the fear of God fell upon us and for the first time we got down on our knees and prayed to the true living God to forgive us for the occult beliefs we had been deceived into practicing. The Lord got the last laugh, but it was a pleasant one of victory.
The next morning we both went to a Christian church and the pastor got to the pulpit and said that he was told to change the sermon. He spoke on sin, Satan and Jesus Christ, we thought our friends had tipped him off but it was the Lord. We heard the gospel explained and dedicated our lives to the Lord, repenting and asking Christ to forgive us. Thank the Lord He intervened. We were saved together in the year 1986. It was later that week I found out that it was on the 20th anniversary of my confirmation day when God spoke that previous week to me Psalm 23. The last thing I read in front of the congregation in the temple 20 years before had been Proverbs 4:1-2 “Hear my children, the instruction of a Father, and give attention to know understanding. For I have given you good doctrine, forsake not my law.” Unfortunately, I did forsake His Law, for 20 years- but God brought me and my soon-to-be wife back. Five weeks after our spiritual birth Kathy and I were married and today have a 15 year old son who has been learning and become very interested in the debate of creation versus evolution among other interests.
Immediately, I began to study the Bible and learn apologetics in order to give answers to those who ask why we believe in Christ and why Jesus is God in the flesh. Since 1988 I have continued teaching on the cults and aberrant world views including how the cults deny grace and opt for works to be accepted by God. These include the Jehovah’s Witnesses, Mormonism, and also the occult (New Age world view) which is now very present inside the Church.
By the grace of God I have had the privilege to have taught at Hope Chapels, Calvary Chapels, Church of Christ, Youth With A Mission, United Methodist Church, Grace Brethren, Assembly of God and various other Hawaii congregations. I have also had the opportunity to share in small group studies around the Island and have been involved in a number of debates. The Lord has currently provided us with the opportunity to host a TV program and had live call-in broadcast called “Let Us Reason” on a local Christian station as well as featured on several other live radio broadcasts in Hawaii. I am currently a missionary for Witness Inc., the world’s largest counter cult ministry reaching out to Jehovah’s Witnesses.
In 1994 Let Us Reason Ministries was founded as an up-to-date apologetic resource center to instill both confidence and a desire to lead others to Christ. This is done by helping equip believers with both Biblical, and logical answers for their Christian faith. I have learned many things along the way that need to be passed on to others to encourage as well as equip them in their witnessing. It’s my hope that this ministry will be able to prompt believers to personally meet and evangelize people who are in cults and false religions as well as discern and call attention to false doctrine within the Church.
Mike Oppenheimer
(used with permission from Let us Reason)
Here is another testimony that you might like to read.
kim
https://kimolsen.wordpress.com/2007/12/25/a-testimony-of-a-former-new-ager/
and another
https://kimolsen.wordpress.com/2007/09/13/the-toronto-deception-by-former-tacf-pastor-paul-gowdy/
Prophesying and preaching the Gospel at a Psychic Fair
A group of IHOP–KC evangelists went to a psychic fair in Kansas City recently. They set up a table and began prophesying God’s destiny over approximately 100 people involved in New Age religion and witchcraft. God broke in and did amazing things. Since the weekend of the fair, people from the fair have contacted the evangelism team wanting to know where they can meet with them to recieve ministry, and several have been saved since. It was an exciting weekend, where the Lord moved and people were born again, including one of the mediums working the fair. Click below to read and listen to the testimonies. http://www.ihop.org/group/group.aspx?id=1000003885
Please read this article that I found on the IHOP website. There is so much wrong here that I can not begin to fathom it. Remember that the New Age Jesus is not the same as our Lord Jesus Christ. Satan comes as an angel of light and professes love and peace. I have highlighted many of the red flags in red….my comments in blue. I would like to add that it sounds as though some good came out of this, but hard to say.
***UPDATE*** IHOP has pulled this article from their website so the above link no longer works, but it is preserved here on my blog.
A Weekend with the Witches
By Ken DeBenedictis
I’ve been having these conversations with fellow believers about the “New Age
Movement” for years now. I know, I know… it’s evil. It’s deceptive. Witchcraft.
Demons. Cooties.. Look out their gonna get you..blah, blah, blah. I have to admit that the
very fact that it causes so much nervousness and controversy amongst the prophetic Body
of Christ makes me want to set my coordinates and head straight in. So when the
opportunity came for some friends and I to go to a Psychic Fair, I couldn’t have been
happier.
My friend, Erika had noticed an ad on a billboard announcing the fair and felt a tug from
the Lord to explore the idea of being involved. She gave me a call and the two of us
began to search out the contacts on the website that she read off the billboard. I gave the
organization a call and had a real interesting conversation with one of the head
organizers. He asked me who I was what I was wanting. I simply told him that we were a
network of friends called the “Mystics of Yeshua” ( this is deceptive) and that we wanted to be involved as
venders. He began to interview me and wanted to know just what kind of “vendors” we
were. Wisdom began to speak through me (to deceive another person?) and I explained that we work as a group of
interconnected “readers” and “seers” who channel Yeshua’s energy into people. We also
do aura cleansing. He seemed to like that answer and began to ask further about the
cleansing. I said that if people coming to us had any negative energy that they wanted to
get rid of, the pure light from Yeshua would remove any dark energy that they might be
carrying. I figured the answer was satisfactory, because the next thing out of his mouth
was him telling me we could have a section of the “reading room” and share it with the
other psychics and mediums.
“How much do you charge?” he asked.
“Uuhm…nothing”, I replied. “We believe that if you give this kind of service away free
of charge, it comes back to you somehow”.
He said he knew what I was talking about and put me on hold.
We exchanged information and were told the process of how to apply. Apparently the
registration was already past and this was a “unique situation” for the organization.
Nonetheless, within minutes I was told that we could have two tables and we could pretty
much set up the way we wanted. I thanked him very much for the opportunity and knew
right then that Yeshua was on the move.
Within two days we had assembled a team of eleven people through cell phones and
emails and gathered together at a coffee shop to get everyone on the same page. Our first
rule of thumb was no Christianese or church-language of any kind. (sounds like Willow Creek) If we were going to
get through to anyone in this environment, we had to speak THEIR language, not try to
make them understand ours. Speaking “energy” was a key and walking with Wisdom was
essential to this mission. In order to follow Him in this strategy, we truly had to be sheep
in wolves clothing.
Erika, Liz and myself arrived at the Community College where it was to be held and
strolled in past the crystal tables, wolf skins, and witchcraft how-to books. A hypnotic
toned base flute was playing in the background, as was the lingering smell of Nepalese
incense. It couldn’t have been more ideal. We found a stocked pond full of fish and we
were the only ones at this derby! We met the director of the fair and she told us that she
had been expecting us. We signed the code of ethics statement, which to my surprise
impressed me with their integrity more so than some of the prophetic ministries I have
been to. (?) We walked in with our gear to a wide-open expo center. There were stalls of
tarot card readers, psychics and mediums all around the edges of it with rows of chairs
for people to wait in the middle. I couldn’t help but think of some of the prophecy teams
that I have ministered with at prophetic conferences. Surprisingly, it was very similar in
appearance until I looked to my right to notice an albino woman’s eyes roll back in her
head as she read her cards for a nice young couple. Not exactly lining up with
1Corinthians 14:3, but it seemed to flow with the spirit of the thing. We proceeded over
to our area and by the director’s recommendation and grabbed two stalls next to each
other at a corner so that “our energies could stay together”. We politely thanked her for
her help and suggestions and began to set up shop. I looked over at Erika who was now
hugging one of the witches, and realized we had just entered into a large door of God’s
grace. It was truly remarkable how cooperative everyone was being and how much love
seemed to be exuding from us. The Lord was opening doors one right after the other.
It didn’t take long to get started. We put up our sign, anointed ourselves with oil and
prayed in tongues for a few minutes. When the time was right, Yeshua’s Spirit began to
lead people over one by one. Our first customers was a grandmother, mother, daughter
trio who sat there intently listening as Erika began to speak Word’s of Love into their
hungry hearts. It truly flowed like a river and within seconds woman number one was in
tears. We couldn’t believe how easy it was. Before long, a steady flow of people began to
come. We started getting in the groove pretty quick. We’d introduce ourselves, explain
what “Yeshua” meant, informed them that one person would be the “channel” while the
other would be the “oracle”. That there was no need for fear because it’s the same spirit
that’s working through both of us. We told them it would be pure love and light that they
would feel and to be open to receive it. Time quickly went by under this anointing and we
all felt the power of the Spirit upon us. I looked over at Liz who was now having a good
time with the folks, as she had her hands in the air trying to catch the next wave of Love
Energy. The wide-eyed couple across from her was whispering, “Yes, we feel it! Yes we
feel it”. It was quite a scene. The Lord was loving it. By now we were beginning to create
quite a buzz at the expo center and people began to ask about us to the people in charge
of the fair.
Like any good leadership group would do, they sent an inquiry.
“What is Yeshua?” a woman would ask.
We’d explain it in its most basic terms until; they decided that they too wanted a reading.
We knew we were being tested and gave them a quick prophetic word in the most loving
way we knew how. I didn’t think it was much, but apparently she did because within a
half hour we learned the registration people were sending people over to us. According to
them and a lot of the other readers, our energy was the “hottest”.
By the second day, we were in our flow. We now had three booths given to us and up to
five people ministering. My friend Doug who had stall number two had told me he had
never prophesied the way he was that day. His last customer had been prophesied over,
fell into conviction, (wow, this is actually good) accepted Yeshua, and was baptized in the Spirit in one shot. Many
were having similar experiences. I was finding that the majority of the people we were
talking to and “reading” were from denominational backgrounds and had never
considered this kind of thing coming from the “church”. It was truly amazing to learn just
how many people had been hurt by careless and uninformed pastors. I felt like for many
former Christians, this was their turning point. Many times, after “channeling” love
energy for a while, I would prophecy in the first person as if the Father was speaking to
His daughter or son. I’d begin to tell them about how I (or He) had made them, their
calling and their importance to Me (Him). How the Father had been there through any
specific hurt, wound or trauma in their lives and wanted to heal and wash them. That He
had now sent a prophet into their lives in a Psychic Fair to reach them in a personal way.
It was like an arrow being shot into their hearts. Tears of relief and joy rolled down the
cheeks of person after person. At one point, I looked over at all of our tables and noticed
every person was weeping.
One of those I spoke with reminded me of a female Bob Jones. I discerned she was a
psychic reader and began to prophesy accordingly. She gazed into my eyes intently as I
was speaking and then glared an evil glare. I stopped to look into her and told her that we
had a little negative energy problem and said that I would be not talking to her, but to it.
After sending Mr. Negative away in the name of Yeshua, the woman thanked me and I
continued to explain that her gift was a gift from Yeshua and that she had abused it. (this gift was not from Jesus!) That
instead of using it for the King of Kings, she had been using it to serve herself and the
spirit of Baal. Her eyes rolled back and she grinned a demon smile. But then the strangest
thing happened, as she seemed to come to her senses and looked at me as if for help.
Tears welled up in her eyes and she said that it had become so hard. She truly knew that
God had spoken to her and wanted to change. I told her that a prophet’s life was a hard
one and then we both started to weep as the Holy Spirit began to rest on us. I told her that
that the King was returning and sides were being taken. Who was she going to serve? I
looked into her eyes and I knew that for her to give this up meant that the demons would
kill her.( i have never heard this before) She grabbed my hand and thanked me and got up and left. I couldn’t believe
what the enemy was doing. It enraged me. There were so many of the Lord’s end-time
prophets stuck in the trap of sorcery and witchcraft. It made me all the more determined
to go in and pull out these trapped prophets.
Later that afternoon, Erica and I were approached by an older woman who had been a
reader/psychic in one of the other booths. She was about to go home for the day, but said
that something had made her come over to talk to us. My friend Liz had already
connected with her once and I knew that the Spirit had been working on her. She sat
down and Erika just bathed her in love and acceptance. I was ready to speak and the
Spirit began to swirl around my head. I know when this happens, it’s time to let ‘er rip. I
opened my mouth and began to speak the Word of the Lord to her. For some reason I
bypassed the “energy” language and spoke of Christ the King. How He was coming back
and that she was being called as a prophet to this nation. That she was loved and that the
Lord wanted her back home. Tears were streaming down her face as she wept in
repentance. She went on to say that as a Baptist, she was hurt by a pastor and never
returned. That someone had prophesied that her husband would lay hands on people and
see them get well. It had never been realized. I explained that the Lord had forgiven her
and was calling her to serve Him. Today. Right now. She nodded in agreement and the
Lord told me to anoint her with oil right there. I told her that I was accountable to God if
I did this and wanted a real commitment. I wasn’t playin’. I signaled for LeeAnna who
was sitting at the table next to us, to help us. She came over and the three of us baptized
this dear woman in the Holy Spirit for everyone to see. I continued to prophecy over her
life and spoke of how God had had spoken to her at thirteen years of age about so and so
and this and that. After we had finished, her eyes as big as saucers, she said that no one
but God would know what I had just said. (or the demons) She went on to explain that she had given her
life to the Lord at thirteen and He was reminding her of that. The swirl of the Spirit was
all over everyone. She cried, we prayed, and she said that she had been dreading the car
ride home, but now she couldn’t wait to talk with the Lord. She got up drunk in the Holy
Spirit and went home to do some “house cleaning”. The next morning at the fair, I arrived
to the expo to see the directors of the fair taking her belongings and her name badge out
of her booth. Joan had retired from her practice. She was now a prophet to Yeshua.
There were many other stories of salvations and tears. There were miraculous words of
knowledge and battles in the spirit. I even had a conversation in tongues with a witch. It
was pretty awesome. All in all, we all felt the Lord’s heart for people following the New
Age movement and how He is building teams like ours to go and plunder the enemy’s
camp. It just goes to show you that where the darkness is darkest, the brightness of His
light shines that much brighter. Let’s not miss these opportunities to shine.
The people who walked in darkness have seen a great Light; those who dwelt in the
land of the shadow of death, upon them a Light has shined. You have multiplied the
nation and increased it’s joy; they rejoice before You according to the joy of
harvest, as men rejoice when they divide the spoil.
Isaiah 9:2-3
I have two books by Ray Yungen, “A Time Of Departing” and “For Many Shall Come In My Name”. Both of these books are packed with information regarding the universal spirituality which is “preparing the world for the end of the age”.
What caught my interest in this article is the mention of Marcus Borg. I have studied him previously because of his involvement in a seminary board which demotes Jesus to a historical spiritual man.
In September this year, a local Episcopal church about 2 miles from my home, advertised in our local newspaper, a study group based on the book “The Meaning of Jesus” by Marcus Borg. “It explains ways to relate to Jesus in a new way.” This alone made me shudder. Also they promoted “prayer and meditation in the Celtic tradition”.
I read about apostate churches all over the country but when it happens so close to home, I weep inside because of the reality of it all.
kim
Filling the Vacuum with Mysticism
Source: Ray Yungen
by Ray Yungen
Why are the mainstream denominations so open to meditative and holistic practices? David R. Griffen, professor of theology at a United Methodist college in Clairmont, California, states:
A spiritual vacuum exists in organized religion that might he filled by theologies that draw–for better or worse–from what is called parapsychology, paranormal studies, psychic phenomena and, somewhat pejoratively, the “New Age” movement.1
New Agers have become very much aware of this “spiritual vacuum” and have directed their efforts toward filling it. Metaphysical leader James Fadiman makes the following observation:
The traditional religious world is just beginning to make changes, but it’s a slow process–denomination by denomination. When religious institutions begin to lose members year after year, they eventually become aware that they’re not meeting people’s needs. Before long they’re scurrying around looking for innovative programs and improvements.2
Even atheists have observed this trend. Science-fiction writer Richard E. Geis comments in his personal journal that:
The mainstream Christians are lip-service religions in the main, convenience religions, social religions, and they are the ones most subject to erosion and defections and infiltration and subversion. A large and successful effort seems to have been made by the occultists’ New Age planners to dilute and alter the message of most of the mainstream Christian religions.3
This is made evident by a quote which appeared in a newspaper interview with the owner of a New Age bookstore. She reveals:
A lot of people come in who are very Christian. They are looking, by whatever means, to move closer to God on an individual basis.4
This shows that a great number of people who consider themselves to be Christians have a rather dull and dreary attitude toward their faith. They are looking for something to fill the void. One of the foremost individuals who has attempted to fill this void with the New Age is Marcus Borg, professor and author of many widely read books. In one of them, The God We Never Knew, he lays out very concisely how he went from being a traditional Christian to a “mature” Christian. He relates:
I learned from my professors and the readings they assigned that Jesus almost certainly was not born of a virgin, did not think of himself as the Son of God, and did not see his purpose as dying for the sins of the world…. By the time I was thirty, like Humpty Dumpty, my childhood faith had fallen into pieces. My life since has led to a quite different understanding of what the Christian tradition says about God.5
Like multitudes of liberal Christians who believe as he does, Borg turned to mysticism to fill the spiritual vacuum that his way of thinking inevitably leads to. Borg reveals:
I learned about the use of mantras as a means of giving the mind something to focus and refocus on as it sinks into silence.6
This is a recurring theme in all his books, including his very influential book, The Heart of Christianity. Even though Marcus Borg would certainly not call himself a New Ager, his practices and views on God would be in line with traditional New Age thought (i.e., God is in everything and each person is a receptacle of the Divine, which is accessed through meditation).
Borg is a key example of what I am trying to convey. He is not some Hindu guru or counter-culture type personality. He represents the mainstream for millions of people in liberal churches. But his spiritual platform is pure New Age as he makes clear when he expounds:
The sacred is not “somewhere else” spatially distant from us. Rather, we live within God … God has always been in relationship to us, journeying with us, and yearning to be known by us. Yet we commonly do not know this or experience this…. We commonly do not perceive the world of Spirit.7
This perception is, of course, as I have shown [in Yungen’s book], the outcome of mantra-induced silence.
The following is another barometer of Christian tolerance to New Age ideas. The late psychologist M. Scott Peck wrote a phenomenal best seller on psychology and spiritual growth titled The Road Less Traveled. The book contains insights and suggestions for dealing with life’s problems, which is why it has generated the interest it has. But the book also incorporates the central theme of the Ancient Wisdom:
God wants us to become himself (or Herself or Itself). We are growing toward godhood. God is the goal of evolution. It is God who is the source of the evolutionary force and God who is the destination. This is what we mean when we say that He is the Alpha and the Omega, the beginning and the end….
It is one thing to believe in a nice old God who will take good care of us from a lofty position of power which we ourselves could never begin to attain. It is quite another to believe in a God who has it in mind for us precisely that we should attain His position, His power, His wisdom, His identity.8
Madame Blavatsky and Alice Bailey [New Age occultists] could not have said it any better. Peck revealed where he was coming from when he said, “But (The Road) is a sound New Age book, not a flaky one.”9 This book, which was on the New York Times best seller list for over 400 weeks, has been incredibly popular in Christian circles for years. Peck himself said the book sells best in the Bible Belt.
What is happening to mainstream Christianity is the same thing that is happening to business, health, education, counseling, and other areas of society. Christendom is being cultivated for a role in the New Age….
This ultimately points to a global religion based on meditation and mystical experience. New Age writer David Spangler explains it the following way:
There will be several religious and spiritual disciplines as there are today, each serving different sensibilities and affinities, each enriched by and enriching the particular cultural soil in which it is rooted. However, there will also be a planetary spirituality that will celebrate the sacredness of the whole humanity in appropriate festivals, rituals, and sacraments. There will be a more widespread understanding and experience of the holistic nature of reality, resulting in a shared outlook that today would be called mystical. Mysticism has always overflowed the bounds of particular religious traditions, and in the new world this would be even more true.10
The rise of centering prayer is causing many churches to become agents of transformation. Those who practice it tend to embrace [a] one-world-religion idea. One of the main proponents of centering prayer had this revelation:
It is my sense, from having meditated with persons from many different traditions, that in the silence we experience a deep unity. When we go beyond the portals of the rational mind into the experience, there is only one God to be experienced…. I think it has been the common experience of all persons of good will that when we sit together Centering we experience a solidarity that seems to cut through all our philosophical and theological differences.11
In this context, we may compare all the world’s religions to a dairy herd. Each cow may look different on the outside, but the milk would all be the same. The different religious groups would maintain their own separate identities, but a universal spiritual practice would bind them together–not so much a one-world church as a one-world spirituality.
Episcopal priest and New Age leader Matthew Fox explains what he calls “deep ecumenism”:
Without mysticism there will be no “deep ecumenism,” no unleashing of the power of wisdom from all the world’s religious traditions. Without this I am convinced there will never be global peace or justice since the human race needs spiritual depths and disciplines, celebrations and rituals, to awaken its better selves. The promise of ecumenism, the coming together of religions, has been thwarted because world religions have not been relating at the level of mysticism.12
Fox believes that all world religions will eventually be bound together by the “Cosmic Christ”13 principle, which is another term for the higher self.
As incredible as this may sound, it appears to be happening now. The New Age is embedded in American religious culture far deeper and broader than many people imagine. If your concept of the New Age is simply astrology, tarot cards, or reincarnation, then you could easily miss the real New Age as it pulses through the religious current. If mystical prayer continues its advance, then we could one day see, perhaps sooner than we expect, many Christian churches becoming conduits of New Age thought to their membership.
….. a Ministerial Association will host Kitsap County clergy, chaplains and spiritual leaders in a second annual retreat day Oct. 16th at Firway House Retreat….The retreat will be from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. with the theme “Thank God You’re Here!” The day includes holy leisure, celebration of call and humor. A rustic outdoor labyrinth is available on site for prayer, play and pondering.…..
My local newspaper seems to be fodder for many articles lately and then readily delegated to the dumpster for toxic removal. (IMHO). This weeks surprise in the RELIGION section was the above ministerial retreat complete with labyrinth and all the expected goodies for….pondering?
So now it seems I have to research labyrinths since they are coming to a neighboring town so that our local spiritual leaders can do their Buddhist meditations for “holy leisure”.
I found this at http://www.Cephas-library.com.
Most of the practicing New Age occult world has known and still does, that the introduction of the labyrinth prayer walk is a victory for their cause, bringing the unsuspecting Christians into agreement with the overall plan of the Aquarian Age, where those participating in this practice could be captured or ensnared into the ways of Satan. (‘The Labyrinth: The Occult Has Truly Gone Mainstream’ can be found at http://www.cephas-library.com/na/new_age_labyrinth.html )
Even though the labyrinth is a Western concept, it shares some similarities with Asian monastic and spiritual practices. The patterns of the labyrinth are similar in design and conception to the mandalas of South Asian Buddhism, which are physical representations of the spiritual realm designed to aid in meditation. Labyrinths blend their visual symbolism with the process of walking, which is similar to the Japanese Zen practice of kinhin, literally “walking meditation,” where all of the attention is focused on the process of each step, one foot in front of the other, and the breath is controlled and regulated. Both of these techniques are used in Buddhist meditation, which combines the elements of calming and insight into the single goal of samadhi, or “awareness.””
From what I am reading from different sites the labyrinth is an ancient symbol of wholeness with a purposeful path to a journey to our own center and back. It creates a sacred place to “That Which is Within.” This journey to center of our deepest self broadens our understanding of who your are.
Why would a Christian be involved in such an activity? We have already learned that to go “within” is an occult eastern mystical practice using meditation and controlled breathing patterns. To go “within” is to search for one’s own divinity. Again I have to ask why a Christian would even think twice about getting involved in the metaphysical.
“In walking the Chartres style labyrinth the walker meanders through each of the four quadrants several times before reaching the goal. An expectancy is created as to when the center will be reached. At the center is a rosette design which has a rich symbolic value including that of enlightenment. The four arms of the cross are readily visible and provide significant Christian symbolism.”
Can you see the readily visible four arms of the cross in this labyrinth? Oh yeah…maybe there…no…there…I give… I guess they are referring to the gaps between the four quadrants but to suggest that this is a Christian symbol is ridiculous. The above passage from lessons4living explains that reaching the center has a symbolic message of enlightenment.
Enlightenment is a New Age term for all-knowing or being as God. This is an anti-Christian message found over and over again in spiritual mysticism. The labyrinth is no exception.
Here is a picture of a Labyrinth right inside of a Presbyterian church in Maryland. I simply do not understand. Do the congregations of today no longer have any discernment whatsoever? Do they not realize that this is an unholy blend of eastern mysticism and Christianity? Do Christians absent-mindedly swallow everything that is introduced by their leaders as “spiritual”?
The use of such a method as a labyrinth… is merely another method of meditation which is a way of emptying the mind. We have learned that the use of meditation is the doorway between worlds and the key to the metaphysical.
Contact with the higher self – inner self- or the search for divinity is the ultimate goal of occultism. Any terms in New Age circles such as enlightenment, Christ Consciousness, breath prayers, new gospel, centering prayers, contemplative prayer are suspect and to be avoided by the Christian.
Christianity is being invaded by eastern mysticism. Christians are allowing themselves to be taught how to achieve altered states of consciousness in order to enhance their lives. This is deceit. The bible teaches that were are not to be involved in such practices.
Below is part of an article from Steve Muse of Eastern Regional Watch
The Labyrinth: A Walk to Life or a Walk to Death?
Is it a coincidence that within the last 20 years an ancient practice that had been abandoned by the “Church” has once again been introduced within its very walls that is impacting thousands? Why now is it being welcomed with open arms with such great enthusiasm by an unsuspecting church populace? This is another of many deceptions that have risen up within the body of Christ to bring delusion upon those who do not love the truth of God’s word. What affect will this ancient practice have upon we the believers in Christ?
Across the country and throughout the nations a practice is being revived within the church, which has been dormant for centuries. In effect, an ancient tool has been “unearthed” or re-discovered and people have begun to experiment in the practice of walking the labyrinth. This is a practice that seems to bring a sense of spiritual well being for those participating in it but in reality it has trapped and is snaring many in darkness because of the labyrinth’s Occult origins.
Most of the practicing New Age occult world has known and still does, that the introduction of the labyrinth prayer walk is a victory for their cause, bringing the unsuspecting Christians into agreement with the overall plan of the Aquarian Age, where those participating in this practice could be captured or ensnared into the ways of Satan. ttp://www.cephas-library.com/na/new_age_labyrinth.
After researching the many websites on today’s use of the labyrinth, most agree that the labyrinth is a tool or device created to bring one into a higher spiritual realm through the use of meditation whether your are a practicing Zen Buddhist, a Hindu, a Muslim, a New Age Occultist, a Satanist, an atheist or even a “Christian.” My question now as it was at the beginning of this article is what is this labyrinth all about and how will it affect the believer in Christ?
If someone were to hand you an Ouija Board, telling you that it had been thoroughly redeemed and that other Christians were successfully using this board to bring them to a greater experience of God, would you also begin to entertain the thought of using this well known Occult method to seek God? Would you then use this Occult device, knowing full well that this is a tool or rather a gateway and portal to bring you into communication with “higher” spiritual entities (demons and familiar spirits). The labyrinth is much the same as the Ouija Board in its intent and purpose, to open one up to the influences of the demons of darkness, to supposedly gain wisdom and knowledge of the mysteries of life. Then why even begin to experiment or experience the sacred walk of the labyrinth?
In Deuteronomy 12:1-14 and again in Exodus 34:10-17, God commands us clearly not to participate in anything that has ever been used in pagan ritual for worship or for any other use, for that matter. The labyrinth has been from the very beginning a demonic temple, a Kundalini energy source, a tool of divination, a gateway and a portal to communicating with other spirits and was incorporated into the Roman Catholic experience at a time when there was little understanding of the Bible and little or no discernment.
People are drawn to the labyrinth by the subtle seductions of the spirit world trying to convince us that anyone can get to know “God” through some kind of spiritual experience. If this were the case then we have all been duped as Christians. If I knew that I could have a “God” experience just by walking the labyrinth then all that God did through the sacrifice that Jesus gave on the cross is really unnecessary to bring us into relationship with the Father, I just have to have an “experience” and all will be well.
Many believe that the labyrinth is the beginning of a “spiritual journey” opening up relationships with the ancient masters who will in turn offer the knowledge and wisdom of the ages to all who will take the first step or “the initiation” to enlightenment. Most Christians know or should know that the ancient masters are really familiar spirits or seducing demons and the initiation is a bonding with the powers of hell itself. Is this really a walk to life or a deception that will lure us onto a path to death?
http://www.erwm.com/TheLabyrinth.htm Here is the link for the entire above article from Eastern Regional Watch Ministries.
Researching labyrinths has been interesting. There are about 1954 currently in the United States. 793 of these are located within churches. YES…. IN THE CHURCHES OR ON THE CHURCH GROUNDS. I randomly scanned about 300 of these and here is the number of each denomination that has installed a labyrinth on their premise.
Baptist – 3
Church of Christ – 9
Lutheran – 17
Presbyterian – 24
Catholic – 28
Unity – 13
Unitarian – 16
United Methodist – 39
Undefined- 63
Episcopal – 88
These numbers are only representative of the total… but they show which churches are allowing contemplative spirituality into their ministries. The Undefined churches had a general name like Hope Church, The Foothills Church, etc. so they were impossible to designate. The remaining number of labyrinths (1161) not on church properties….were located in health/medical facilities, spas, retreats, private residences, parks, etc……I discovered that a local retreat about 10 miles from my home has 3 seasonal outdoor labyrinths.
http://wwll.veriditas.labyrinthsociety.org/locate-a-labyrinth (link now broken) Here is the site I used to find where the labyrinths are located. I invite you to take a look for yourself.
*updated* link http://labyrinthlocator.com/
All of this eastern mysticism found in the church today is making me very cranky, sad, and burdened. I weep inside when I wonder what the Lord must think when He looks down at His own children, walking the traditional path of the lost and pagan.
kim
DiscernIt 
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