I’m working on a teaching for an upcoming group on the topic of Halloween. I was trying to think about all the different information that might be helpful to survivors who are just starting out on their healing journey and how to pair that with information for those who are farther along in their healing. Every time I sit with the Lord about what He wants in the teaching, I feel like He is saying, “Don’t make it more complicated than it has to be. Focus on Me and what My Word says about safety and authority.”
I saw a picture of Satan along with some of his demons, and they were hunched over, shaking in fear around what looked like a giant footstool. It was as if the footstool represented the separation of authority. Above the footstool was Jesus, sitting at the right hand of the Father. Everything was bright and beautiful and radiating love. It was as if heaven was above the footstool, the footstool was sitting on the earth, and then the enemy was at the very bottom of the footstool, perhaps standing on the earth, but surrounded by his realm of darkness, deception, and filth that he has spread upon the earth. I’m not sure if they were fully standing on the earth or more in what would be considered Hades, but what stood out to me in the vision was that Satan and the demons with him looked only about a foot tall, if that. They didn’t reach anywhere near even the middle of the stool. There was no power struggle between them and Jesus. Satan was powerless and terrified at the feet of Jesus.
Hebrews 10:12–13 tells us that after Jesus offered one sacrifice for sins forever, He sat down at the right hand of God, waiting until His enemies are made His footstool.
Ephesians 1:20–22 says that God raised Christ from the dead and seated Him at His right hand in the heavenly places, “far above all principality, and power, and might, and dominion,” and that He put all things under His feet.
The cult could do a lot more to us when we were children because the adults who were in authority over us allowed them to do it. What I feel like God wants survivors to get a revelation of now is the power of their individual will.
There is strength in knowing who you are in Jesus. There is a shifting of realms when you are in Him. We have to come out of the pit, come out of the gates of hell, come out of the bondage, and come out of agreement with the belief that the occult can control us and there is nothing Jesus can do about it.
We don’t consciously say that, but deep down we can still believe that they are going to do whatever they want to do because that’s how it’s always been. That is a lie from the pit of hell. They need us to rely on that old belief system. They are depending on our fear and our lack of trust to keep us bound to them. Jesus said in John 8:36, “If the Son therefore shall make you free, ye shall be free indeed.”
Colossians 1:13 says that God has delivered us from the power of darkness and translated us into the kingdom of His dear Son.
Healing doesn’t always make things easier, but it does get different. Healing helps us recognize our identity in Christ and Him as the final authority. The more we heal, the more the darkness diminishes and has less and less ability to affect us.
The Bible tells us in Proverbs 18:21 that death and life are in the power of the tongue. Our parts really need us to be speaking life over them in this season.
We get to engage our will and question what we have always been taught to believe and search out the Bible for truth. We can choose to apply the scripture that we read as truth. We can ask Him to replace the programming scripts with His word. We have the opportunity to put on the full armor of God and call on Him to help us.
Ephesians 6:10–11 says:
“Finally, my brethren, be strong in the Lord, and in the power of his might. Put on the whole armor of God, that ye may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil.”
We are not being told to surrender to fear. We are being told to stand in the strength of the Lord.
Ask Him to replace the programming scripts with His truth and to help you see yourself as He sees you. We need to be praying for our parts every day. Remind them of the truth, introduce them to Jesus, and teach them that they don’t have to do those things anymore. We don’t have to wait for a session or a prayer minister to do those things for us. When we choose Christ, we have His power within us to stand against the enemy.
James 4:7 says, “Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you.”
And 1 John 4:4 says, “Greater is he that is in you, than he that is in the world.”
That is not to say things are not scary or hard, because sometimes they are. But God promises us that when we call out to Him, He will hear us and He will help us.
Psalm 34:17 says, “The righteous cry, and the Lord heareth, and delivereth them out of all their troubles.”
And Psalm 50:15 says, “And call upon me in the day of trouble: I will deliver thee, and thou shalt glorify me.”
It’s all about the will. Engage your will, seek Him out, and don’t stop until you find Him.
Jeremiah 29:13 says, “And ye shall seek me, and find me, when ye shall search for me with all your heart.”
Speak the Scriptures that apply to your situation until they become as real as the air you breathe.
Romans 12:2 tells us to be transformed by the renewing of our mind. For survivors, renewing our mind includes allowing God to confront the old scripts, threats, lies, and belief systems that were planted in us and replacing them with His truth. When we move from head knowledge to heart knowledge of how much He loves us and how much He is fighting for us, it’s game over for the enemy.
Seeking Him is doing the work. Comforting the parts that are triggered and activated right now is doing the work. Inviting Jesus into those places to shine His light and bring healing is doing the work.
Early in my healing, I used to imagine myself climbing up on Jesus’ lap and letting Him hold me while we talked. I would take my parts to Him and let them sit with Him. He would hold them while they cried and told Him their story, and they always felt so much better afterward. It’s a really good way to start healing attachment wounds too. If you hate how it feels to always need to be hugged, to always feel starved for affection, this is a really helpful exercise to help balance that out with healthy touch without the desperation consuming us. Over time I learned that I didn’t need a hug as often and when I did get a hug, I carried the meaning of it with me a lot longer. Eventually, hugs became what they are intended to be instead of a lifeline that left me hurting all the time because I didn’t have what I needed. Today, I can hug someone because I want to offer that support to them and I can do the same for my parts which has been super healing. It all started with taking a step of faith and letting Jesus hug us.
The enemy used our God-given imagination against us. Don’t let him continue to do that by keeping you from reaching out to have encounters with Jesus. It’s okay to picture Him giving you a hug or pushing you on a swing or whatever it is that you or your little parts need. It’s all about building relationship with Him, and the more you get to know Him, the less control the cult will have over you.
His light will always expose the darkness. It will never be the other way around.
John 1:5 says, “And the light shineth in darkness; and the darkness comprehended it not.”
And Ephesians 5:13 says that all things that are exposed are made manifest by the light.
He is our hiding place and our refuge.
Psalm 32:7 says, “Thou art my hiding place; thou shalt preserve me from trouble; thou shalt compass me about with songs of deliverance.”
Psalm 91:2 says, “I will say of the Lord, He is my refuge and my fortress: my God; in him will I trust.”
He is a strong tower that we can run to and be safe.
Proverbs 18:10 says, “The name of the Lord is a strong tower: the righteous runneth into it, and is safe.”
So, while understanding what the cult does and all the things we need to watch out for is important, don’t let those things become so important that they take the place of your quality time with Him. Keep Him in the center of it all. Do everything together with Him. He wants to be our best friend, and He makes a pretty amazing bodyguard. So, every time fear creeps in or doubts come, remind yourself that you don’t live there anymore.
2 Timothy 1:7 says, “For God hath not given us the spirit of fear; but of power, and of love, and of a sound mind.”
You are a child of the King of Kings and Lord of Lords. The demonic spirits tormenting you and putting thoughts in your head are fearful and powerless when standing at the feet of Jesus.
Luke 10:19 says, “Behold, I give unto you power… over all the power of the enemy.”
And Colossians 2:15 tells us that Jesus spoiled principalities and powers and made a show of them openly, triumphing over them.
I feel like I’m all over the place with my writing tonight and probably repeating myself. It’s just kind of pouring out of me so maybe it’s something specific that He is wanting to say to someone tonight. Just know that God loves you so much and He’s got you!