For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places. – Ephesians 6:12

I remember when I first became a follower of Jesus reading Frank Peretti’s books “This Present Darkness,” and “Piercing the Darkness.”  It immediately taught me that faith in God is serious.  There exists a spiritual realm of angels and demons whose sole purpose is to thwart or protect God’s people as they follow Him.

I recently listened to a sermon online.  The pastor was talking about Job and how Satan himself presided over the attempted systematic annihilation of Job.  He needed God’s permission with everything, but Satan’s plan was to prove that God would be cursed by this man.  Instead of taking the opportunity to encourage the congregation to stand no matter what, this pastor simply said that he didn’t want to be the one Satan asks God to consider.  He wants to remain underneath the radar of the most faithful Christians, so he isn’t the one Satan comes after on this kind of level.  I thought of Christians like Jim Elliott.  After reading “Shadow of the Almighty,” I don’t think he is in heaven now wishing he had lived a life that would have made him less of a target for Satan.

I was wondering if there was or ever will be a movie based on the book.  It appears that Frank was constantly under spiritual attack as he wrote these two books.  It also appears that someone offered him lots of money for the rights to make a movie and he took it . . . thinking that they could do what he couldn’t.  Instead, the ones who bought the rights simply wanted to keep the film from ever being made as it would expose the spirit realm to which most Americans are very little aware.  Before you take this paragraph as fact, it does come from some unidentified sources, but it certainly sounds plausible.

So, I read the book again.  Once again, it made me realize that there are demons who specialize in human weakness.  Lust, envy, and complacency are just a few of the demons who know how to specifically target their prey . . . praying Christians.  I’ve been wondering why it is so hard to pray.  I’ve been wondering why it has been such a fight lately.  I’ve been wondering why there just seems to be a dark fog that is either surrounding me or that I’m walking into consistently.  There really is a “This Present Darkness.” 

I say all that to say this:  Let’s find some time to pray out loud today.  Take a prayer walk and speak to God audibly.  Go to your prayer closet and pray out loud.  We give the devil too much credit in thinking that he can hear our thoughts.  He is not the opposite of God.  In no way is he on the same playing field as the Creator of the Universe.  At best, he is the opposite of one of the archangels in the heavenly host.  He was created, so the best he can do is take what God has made beautiful and make it ugly.

Unfortunately, that is what he does.

Lord, I truly bow my heart to You this morning.  Shine Your great light on this present darkness.  Make the demons flee as You are exalted and magnified.  May Christians rebuke evil in Your Great Name and by the power of Your blood that was shed on the cross for the forgiveness of our sins.  The best lesson that I’ve learned is that You are very real and there is no one who saves, no one who loves, and no one who leads, guides, and protects like You.  Cleanse us of our unrighteousness.  Let Your light so shine among men that others see the good deeds we do today and glorify YOU . . . Our Father in Heaven.  Amen