Demons

I want to start with discussing some of the symptoms of demonization. Demonization means a demon has gained legal rights to a person and they have taken up residence in their body (mind, will, emotions, flesh areas). Deliverance is necessary when a demon has gained legal rights to a person’s life through personal or generational sin, word curses, inner vows, and/or ungodly soul ties. Deliverance removes the legal rights of the demons and then the demons are verbally cast out in the name of Jesus.

Symptoms of Demonization

One of the main things to look for is if the symptoms are intrusive and make the person feel like they are not totally in control of their thoughts and/or actions. It is almost like they have a magnet that draws them toward the sin/issue/symptom. Look for patterns in their life as well as patterns in their families of origin.

Enticement Toward Sin: Demons persuade us to do evil things and the persuasion is often through verbal thoughts planted in the mind. We may be arguing back and forth in our mind why we should avoid the sin, but the other voice says things like, “Surely one time won’t hurt, it is just a little bit, this is really not that bad, God really doesn’t care if you only have a little sin in your life.” It is like the sin we are being enticed with has a neon sign above it and is pulling us right toward it. We want to stay away, but everywhere we look that sin is right in our face. We try to use all our will power to avoid the sin, but we always seem to fall right back into it. We may have victory for small periods of time, but we end up right back where we started. It is a vicious cycle that we just cannot seem to break no matter how hard we try.

Harassment: Demons study us and our weaknesses and then prey upon them. We may hear and see awful things in our mind that we do not want to hear and see. Many times, the harassment is nonstop and relentless. It can include negative voices telling us how bad we are, how ugly we are, and how no one can love us. The harassment is relentless and no matter what we try, it just will not stop. We try to change the “negative self-talk,” but it is relentless and it refuses to stop.

Torture: They often cause physical and mental torment to the point of feeling like, or fearing, we are going to go insane or die. We may even hear voices telling us we are losing our mind or that others are watching us because they know we are losing it. It can even get to the point of causing paranoia, fear, and extreme anxiety.

Compelling and Compulsions: Many times, demons present as symptoms of obsessive-compulsive disorder. I am not saying all diagnosis of OCD are demonic in nature, but they definitely could be. The compulsions easily become all-consuming and create major bondages. This area can also include behaviors that lead to negative self-soothing addictions such as smoking, drugs, alcohol, perfectionism, social media, self-mutilation, and food.

Enslavement: We no longer feel like our bodies are our own. We feel like there is something driving our behavior and it is trying to take over our body and mind. We are not on autopilot, but we feel the need to fight to remain in control. We may even feel like giving up because no matter how hard we try, we cannot get our thought life under control which can lead to guilt, shame, condemnation, hopelessness, depression, and despair. We may feel like we are not a good Christian or that God is mad at us because of the sinful thoughts that are always active in our mind. We may also feel like we cannot control our actions connected to specific behaviors and sin. This can cause us to give up even trying to avoid the sin, thoughts, and behaviors. We may fall for the lie that we are helpless, and it is just the way we are. Some examples include negative attitudes, addiction, sexual identity issues, etc.

Addictions: Addictions can include many different things such as food, alcohol, illegal drugs, legal drugs, social media, careers, our looks, money, status, possessions, risk taking, gambling, sex, pornography, etc. Whatever area the addiction presents, it will take on a life of its own and distract us from the things of God. It will end up being our focus and take most of our energy and time. It becomes all-consuming and gradually changes who we are to the point of not even being able to recognize the person we have turned into.

Defilement: They create vulgar and horrific thoughts and imaginations. An example of this would be driving down the road minding our own business and all of a sudden we get vulgar sexual thoughts. We were not trying to get them, we did not want them, but suddenly there they are. Or all of a sudden we get a thought that we are going to die, or our family member is going to die. Thoughts that are intrusive and come out of nowhere are often demonic in nature. They may also create pictures in our head like a movie playing. The key point is we are blindsided by them, and it was nothing we were even thinking about or that we would want to think about. It is often the exact opposite. We hate the thoughts but feel powerless to make them stop.

Deception: Demons distort the truth of God and lie about God and His people. We can also get caught up in false teachings and false religions because of a spirit of deception. It can even act like a block and no matter how hard we try we cannot understand the Word of God. It can feel like there is a wall between the things of God and us. Another way this demon works is by bringing the wrong people into our lives and making us think they are from God. I have seen this happen so many times when people are dating. They are sure God sent the person, but it is so clearly a demon who sent them. I have also seen the enemy send a married person to someone, and they become convinced God sent them. God will never do something that is in contradiction to His Word and to feel differently is clearly some form of deception.

Mental and Emotional Breakdowns: Demons can cause mental illness and all the symptoms of that illness. I am not saying mental illness is always 100% demonic in nature, but it should never be dismissed until it has been explored. They can create symptoms such as depression, suicidal thoughts, anxiety, fear, obsessive thoughts, compulsions, hearing voices, paranoia, lack of focus, cognition issues, brain fog, lack of memory recall, lack of ability to see reality, low body image, distortions in thought, low self-esteem, self-harming behaviors, identity issues, etc. They may even play past traumas over and over in our mind to keep us in a constant state of pain, hurt, regret, shame, panic, fear, rejection, abandonment, and dread.

Barrenness, Impotency, Miscarriages, and Female Complications: Demons want to kill, steal, and destroy us and our families. These types of issues are often a result of a generational curse, especially if you can see patterns in the individual’s family and not just a single incident. This would be an area of ongoing, persistent issues. Again, I am not saying these symptoms are always demonic in nature, but it should be explored, especially if the issues are persistent, and a pattern is easily recognized without a medical cause.

Failure: An example of this would be experiencing hinderances over and over. We start to get ahead in life, but just when we are close to breakthrough it all falls apart. We try and try but nothing seems to work in the areas of jobs, finances, relationships, business ventures, hobbies, or other areas of life. We may even have a dream and all the skills to make the dream happen, but we just cannot make it materialize no matter how hard we try.

Poverty: No matter what we do, we cannot get ahead. The money we have never seems to stretch like it should and no matter how much we make it is never enough. This is often a pattern we see in families because of a generational curse. This can also present as something seemingly trying to suck the very life out of every area of our lives such as: relationships, finances, family, home, and jobs. Every area can feel dead, as if it has no life or hope in it.

Cannot Hear God’s Voice or Feel His Presence: We may feel like no matter what we do we just cannot get as close to God as we want. We pray and we feel like our prayers are not heard or like there is a block between God and us. We may be surrounded by people who are feeling His presence, but we just cannot seem to break through an unseen wall. We may begin to feel isolated and like He does not care about us or listen to our prayers. It can lead to feelings of rejection and abandonment.

Crisis: It can be like we are a magnet for chaos and crisis; we are constantly going from one issue to another. This may have even started in early childhood. We are in a constant state of trauma and/or crisis from which we cannot break free. Situations could include car wrecks, accidents, sicknesses, loss of jobs, abuse, toxic relationships, broken relationships, deaths of loved ones, loss of stability, other losses, etc.

Untimely or Unnatural Deaths: This would be a family pattern to look for. It could be a generational curse operating and there could possibly be a covenant with the spirit of death over the family.

Chronic or Hereditary Diseases: This could also be the result of a generational curse and/or from a covenant made with specific demons. Patterns to look for would be diseases and conditions that affect several members of the same family in the same way. It is not always from a demon or generational curse, but it would be worth exploring to find the root cause.

History of Abuse and Trauma: Many times, demons will use trauma as an open door to our lives. Suffering abuse or trauma is not the sin that opens the door, but our reaction to the abuse can often create legal rights. For example, it is very common for a spirit of fear to move in after trauma. The demon starts to speak lies to us, we believe the lie, we accept the lie, we begin to live the lie, and then the door is opened wide for the demon. We must remember that the enemy will always look for and use any means possible to create a legal right in our lives. When we are at our lowest, we can guarantee there is a demon watching and ready to manipulate the situation to his advantage. This can lead to feeling like we cannot break free from the effects of the trauma, and we may get stuck in a victimhood mentality. It can become so ingrained in us that we even identify ourselves as a victim and feel powerless to change. This can lead to self-pity, shame, co-dependency, addictions, and low self-worth.

Compulsive Desire to Blaspheme God, His Word, and/or Preachers: This could include sitting in church and hearing awful things about the pastor, and church members, in our minds. We may not even be able to concentrate on the message because all we can do is cut down the preacher, or other church members in our thoughts. The thoughts include personal attacks that are cutting, mocking, and critical in nature. We try to make the thoughts stop, but they just will not go away. We may even feel like they do not fit our personality, but we accept them as ours because they are so constant. This type of demon could also make it difficult at times to read the Bible because every time we try, we have negative thoughts about the words we are trying to read. We may not seem to be able to see the truth of God’s Word and the truth of who He is. We may hear awful things in our minds about God and His Word that come in the form of mocking, doubt, and anger.

Hostility or Fear of People in Ministry: This is especially true for people in the deliverance ministry. This includes having feelings of hate toward them and having no idea why. We may also get near certain people and feel negative feelings toward them because the Spirit of God in them stirs the demons in us. We may even experience feelings of anxiety and may find it difficult to spend time learning about deliverance through books, videos, and conversations. We may easily get distracted or the negative feelings may feel too hard to push through. When trying to learn about deliverance, we may get extremely fearful and even hear voices that tell us it is not real or that we should avoid learning more. We can also experience physical reactions such as extreme fatigue, headaches, nausea, and mental distractions.

Revulsion Against the Bible: We may have a hard time reading the Word or even holding a Bible and we may also feel uncomfortable when we hear others read the Word. We may know that we should be reading it, but we just cannot bring ourselves to do it. We may even have negative thoughts when we hear others reading the Bible. We may have no idea where these feelings come from, but no matter what, we just cannot change the feelings or make them stop. It may even go so far as creating feelings of anxiety, fear, headaches, or nausea when we try to read the Word or hear it being read.

Compulsive Thoughts of Suicide or Murder: We may hear things like: “No one loves you. Everyone would be better if you were gone. Life is too hard. God does not love you.” It may be a fight to stay alive because the thoughts are so overwhelming. We may even find ourselves thinking of ways to commit suicide even though we really do not want to be thinking about it. It is almost as if the plans in our mind are not our own. Or we may not really want to die, we may just not want to live anymore because the torment is so bad. We may also get thoughts of hurting others and have daydreams of hurting or even killing those who have hurt us, rejected us, disrespected us, or misused us. The thoughts can be very violent and graphic in nature and full of vengeance. We may even feel justified in our feelings because of the pain they have caused us. We may have thoughts and hear voices that tell us we are justified because we have been hurt so badly or the voices may constantly remind us how much the person has hurt and wronged us.

Deep Feelings of Bitterness/Hate Toward People: This could include critical thoughts and attitudes toward people for no reason. We could be easily angered and ready to fight when we feel like we have been slighted. It could also include having these feelings because something happened, and we just cannot seem to get past the feelings. We may even want to let the negative feelings go, but they just will not go away no matter how hard we try to move on. We could be easily offended and have difficulty forgiving and getting over the offense. We could also feel the need to tell others and have them pick up the offense with us. We could feel justified in our actions based on our feelings.           

Compulsive Thoughts: These are thoughts that will not stop, that are out of control, and lead to us feeling out of control. We try to stop them, but they will not go away, and they are intrusive and disturbing to the point of interfering with our quality of life.

Desire to Tear Others Down: This includes speaking negative, critical words about others and often leads to gossip. It would also include getting a sense of satisfaction when we hear others tearing them down as well. Envy and strife could also go along with these feelings. We may feel the need to point out the faults of others while ignoring or being blinded to our own. We never have anything good to say about others and we do not enjoy hearing others spoken of in a positive manner. We belittle others to feel better about ourselves.

Manipulating Others: We may not even realize we are doing this, but we must think about how we get the things we want from others and how we treat the people around us. We can often feel justified in our actions if we have used manipulation for an extended period of time to get our needs met. We may just think it is part of who we are or we may not even recognize it for what it really is. However, if our go-to is manipulation, a demon could be the root cause. This demon can also cause us to fall into being manipulated, dominated, and controlled by others and not even recognize what is going on. It is very sneaky and often masquerades itself as something else, making it very difficult to see it for what it really is.

Terrifying Feeling of Guilt (even after confession to God): God convicts us to draw us to Him, but demons condemn us to drive us away from God. They will put thoughts in our head such as, “God cannot forgive that sin, He will not forgive you, you are hopeless, you are too messed up for God, and you need to clean yourself up before you approach God.” The end goal is to make us run from God in shame and not turn to Him. God will never drive us away from Himself, so if what we are feeling and hearing is making us want to run from Him, we can be sure the thoughts and feelings are not coming from Him.

Physical Symptoms: This could include pain, physical illness, mental illness, confusion, sleep issues, weight gain, weight loss, fatigue, malnourishment, and eating issues. We may even go to doctor after doctor and yet have no diagnosis or treatment because they cannot figure out what is going on. Matthew 9:32; Matthew 12:22; Matthew 17:14–18.

Deep Depression: Everything can be going great in our lives, but a cloud of darkness surrounds us, and we cannot break free. It can feel like we are being drowned in a pit of despair and we just cannot see the light. The depression can feel like it is strangling us to the point of physical pain, and we may not see any way out. Thoughts of suicide may also be present.

Violent Rage or Anger: This would include blackout rages, where we lose the ability to control ourselves and our temper. It also includes getting angry over the smallest things, exploding for no reason, and also struggling with aggression either verbally and/or physically. We may not even remember the things we say or do when we lose control. This would also include incidents of road rage.

Terrifying Doubt of Salvation: We may hear voices and thoughts telling us we are not really saved, even when we know we are, and they may tell us we have committed the unpardonable sin and our situation is hopeless because we no longer have the ability to be saved. We may get gripped by fear that we are going to die and go to hell. We may also get stuck in legalism and doing good works because we are trying to earn our way to Heaven. We never feel peace in our walk with the Lord and we never feel like we can relax because we are always in doubt of whether we are going to Heaven.

Uncontrollable/Irrational Panic Attacks, Anxiety, Fear, and/or Phobias: This list is very long, so I will not even attempt to list them all. Fear and anxiety are huge tactics of the enemy, and they often create torment in this manner. As with many of the other symptoms, they are not always caused by demons. There are many medical conditions that can cause anxiety, so medical and demonic causes should be explored, and neither should be overlooked. There can also be a combination of both at play.

Horrific Dreams, Nightmares, and/or Night Terrors: The dreams can seem very real and we may wake up feeling like we cannot move, or we may continue to see the images from the dreams once we are awake. We may also feel like we are being held down by an unseen force and wake up with unexplained bruises or scratches. Many explanations of night terrors sound demonic in nature in my opinion.

Abnormal or Perverted Sexual Desires: Sometimes the demons will cause flashes of sexual acts in our mind, like a movie playing. Fetishes are usually, if not always, driven by demons. Any sexual desires that are unbiblical in nature very likely have a demonic influence at the root.

Challenging God’s Word: Even when we know it is true, we just do not fully trust it or have the ability to believe it. We want to, but something inside us makes us doubt what we are reading or hearing. We may say that we believe the words, but in our heart we really do not. We may also have a hard time believing in the promises we read in His Word and about His goodness. It can also lead to doubt about how we are called to live and what is actually sin. We may begin to get a twisted view of God that causes us to wander from Him.

Sleep or Eating Disorders with no Medical Cause: We may have difficulty sleeping or sleep too much. The eating issues could include the inability to eat, overeating, food addiction, and eating disorders. The demons can also cause malnourishment and block nutrients even when we do eat.

Rebellion and Hatred for Authority: This would include the inability to submit to God or other forms of authority. It can also cause us to feel angry when we are being corrected and make us unteachable. We may feel justified in our lack of submission and feel like we do not have the ability to change.

Fascination/Drawing Toward the Occult: For example—Halloween, haunted houses, ghosts, psychics, tarot cards, horoscope, witchcraft, vampires, werewolves, magic, angel cards, New Age practices, energy healing, seances, astrology, zodiac signs, Wiccan, other false religions, etc. We may have a strong curiosity that draws us to the occult, and we may view it as innocent fun. We may also be drawn to books, movies, or games that include the above items and not understand that it is demons attracting us to these things.

Criminal Activity: The activity could include stealing, drug use, violence, gangs, vandalism, threats, etc.

Extreme Low Self-Image/Self-Hatred: Even when trying to work on our feelings and emotions, we just cannot love ourselves or see ourselves the way God sees us. We feel different and less than everyone else. We feel like others cannot love us and that we have nothing to offer. We may even feel like others can see how worthless we really are, and it can cause us to withdraw when we are in a group. We feel like we are flawed so deeply that others can see the flaws and do not like us because of them. This can cause us to miss our calling from God because we do not feel like we have anything to offer Him or others.

Confusion in Thinking: This could include brain fog, the inability to concentrate and remember things. It could also affect memory recall for words, Scripture, and past events in our lives. It can also make critical thinking difficult and can easily interfere with our level of cognitive functioning which can lead to frustration and embarrassment.

Perceptual Distortions: Examples for the distortions are perceiving anger in others when it is not there, seeing only judgment in the Word of God, twisting the words of others, and creating misunderstandings. Anxiety can also cause the same symptoms and the anxiety can be demonic in nature or from a mental/medical issue.

Violent Thoughts: The thoughts could be directed toward ourselves or others, even people we love. The thoughts could be very troubling, but we cannot make them stop.

Desire to do Right but the Inability to Follow Through: We may feel like everything in us is trying to do right, but we just cannot do it, even when we try our hardest. There are certain areas where we just cannot get and/or maintain freedom. The pull to return to the sin is just too strong. We may lay it down for a while, but no matter what we do, we always seem to pick it right back up again. This can lead to feeling hopeless and like no matter what we do we cannot change so we give up and do not even try anymore.

Sudden Personality and/or Attitude Changes: This may be labeled as severe mental illness, but it could be demonic in nature. We may suffer from drastic mood swings that come out of nowhere for no apparent reason and are sudden and very dramatic even to the point of making us feel like we are out of control.

A Dark Countenance: This would include a steely or hollow look in the eyes and/or an inability to make eye contact. There are times we can look people in the eyes and see the demons looking back at us. This can also include drastic changes in eye color.

Lying, Exaggerating, or Compulsively Stealing: When we do these things, we are often left wondering why. We may want to stop but just cannot seem to control ourselves, or it could be the exact opposite and we do not even realize we are doing it.

Compulsive Sexual Sins: Masturbation, sexual perversions, fetishes, pre-marital sex, homosexuality, sexual abuse, pedophilia, pornography addiction, and any other form of sexual addictions would fall in this category.

Sexual Dreams: We may have recurring sexual dreams that feel very real, and the feelings linger even after we wake up.

Irrational Laughter or Crying: Emotional outburst for no apparent reason can be demonic in nature.

Compulsion to Hurt Self or Others: Demons will often push people to physically hurt themselves and/or others. This would include self-harming behaviors such as cutting, allowing others to physically abuse us, and other self-multination behaviors. It can also include a cycle of self-sabotaging our lives any time things start to go right.

Suddenly Speaking a Language not Previously Know: I am not referring to the Holy Spirit and speaking in tongues. This would be a foreign language that we are not familiar with and it would feel very different than when the Holy Spirit is operating through us. This one is hard to explain, but when you hear demons speak in a different language, it makes the hair on the back of your neck stand up and you immediately know it is not from God. Many times, it can be ancient languages or ones that are specific to our ethnic bloodlines.

Reactions to the Name and Blood of Jesus Christ: Demons will often manifest when we start speaking the name of Jesus and/or pleading the blood of Jesus over our lives. They do not like His name or His blood to be mentioned. They can cause us to feel anxious, get a headache, and nauseated when His name and blood are mentioned.

Extreme Restlessness, Especially in a Spiritual Environment: This includes the inability to sit still and/or concentrate. For example, we may feel restless every time we go to church. We get up and go to the bathroom several times because we just cannot sit still. We may also start thinking about a million different things when the minister gets up to preach. Everything but the message may start going through our mind.

Uncontrollable Cutting and Mocking Tongue, Critical of Others, Negative Attitudes: We may consistently see the world from a negative perspective and have difficulty seeing anything good. We may also always talk about, and focus on, the negative things in others and the world around us instead of seeing the positive aspects. Our tone may be harsh and biting along with the words we are speaking. We may just consider ourselves realists, but in reality we are negative to the core.

Vulgar Language and Actions: We may hear curse words in our mind, and they may be words we would never verbalize but we cannot make them stop in our head. They come out of nowhere and they are not even the way we normally talk. This can lead to feelings of shame and guilt.

Loss of Time, Blackouts: This happened to me for short periods of time because I gave some of the demons so much control. I did this because I was told they were part of my personality and that I should let them express themselves due to the diagnosis of Dissociate Identity Disorder. While trying to integrate, I would let them “express” themselves through me having no idea they were really demons. If we give demons an inch, they will take a mile regardless of our intentions. We may say and do things that we just vaguely remember. It is like watching ourselves from the outside, almost like when we are watching the television. We are there, but not fully. It can often be labeled as dissociation or losing touch with reality.

Extreme Sleepiness Around Spiritual Things: This would include falling asleep in church and when trying to pray or read the Bible. This would not be a one incident type of situation, instead it would be a pattern that we can look back on and easily recognize. We have the ability to watch TV for hours, but the second we try to read the Bible or pray we struggle to stay awake.

Attacks on Identity: The enemy always tries to twist who God created us to be. This can be in the area of gender, sexual orientation, low self-esteem, calling, career, personality, character traits, etc.

Voices are Heard in the Mind: The voices often mock, intimidate, accuse, threaten, or attempt to bargain. They never say anything good or tell us to do anything helpful.

Voices that Refer to Themselves in the Third Person: If we are hearing voices that are referring to themselves as we/us, it is more than likely demons speaking to us. For example, “We will not leave, we are your friends, we help you, we protect you, you need us, etc.”

Supernatural Experiences: Examples of these experiences include movement or disappearance of objects, seeing shadows or people moving around in our home, feeling a dark presence, hearing voices, or smelling particular smells that do not belong. We may also see what looks like a deceased family member or close friend and they may even speak to us at times. That is called a familiar spirit and it is a demon pretending to be the ghost/spirit of the person. They may even know a lot of information about us, and the deceased loved one, but that is because they have been watching the loved one and us for many years. This area could even include a child’s imaginary friend. The child may describe what they are seeing and hearing, but we may easily think it is just a game and dismiss it, but we must really pay attention and make sure it is not a demon interacting with the child. There are no age limits on demons tormenting us and it often starts in childhood. From their perspective, the earlier they can get us in bondage, the better.

Pain without Justifiable Explanation: We may feel our hair being pulled, we may get pinched, smacked, or we may even get unexplained bruises. We can also have unexplained headaches, stomachaches, and pain in other areas of our body.

Sudden Temporary Interference with Bodily Functions: An example would include an inability to speak or hear, severe headache, and/or temporary paralysis.

Pride: We may hear inner voices telling us how great we are, how smart we are, and how we are above or better than others. The voices will never point to Jesus, but instead always point right back to our perceived greatness. They may also make us feel sad when others do not see how great we are and how much we have accomplished. The demons can also send others into our lives to puff us up with flattery.

This list is not all inclusive and even if you have some of these you may not be demonized. If you think that is what you are dealing with you should spend time in prayer asking God to give you discernment. Many times, as soon as you start learning about deliverance, God begins to reveal exactly what you need for your life. If you have consistently tried prayer, fasting, discipline, speaking the Word of God over your life and have used the weapons of warfare and it only helps a little and it comes right back (it just will not break) it is very likely you are in need of deliverance.

Medical conditions should also be considered and ruled out. There are several conditions that can cause some of the above symptoms. For example, lack of certain vitamins/nutrients, toxicity, thyroid disease, hormonal imbalance, dementia, and many more can be the root cause. There can also be a combination of root causes which means you will need to address each one to walk in total freedom and healing.

Next, I want to talk about situations that are spiritual warfare, but not demonization. This type of warfare is demonic in nature, but it is an outward fight. It is not happening because the demons have a legal right to our lives, but it is the warfare we face in our lives because the demons want to kill, steal, and destroy our us. John 10:10. We are born into spiritual warfare, and it does not end until we get to heaven.

When we are facing spiritual warfare we have to use our weapons of warfare and when we do the attacks should break. We will still go through seasons of battles but our weapons of warfare are effective. The weapons of warfare are the Word of God, verbally commanding the attacks to stop in the name of Jesus, prayer, praise and worship, wearing the full armor of God, our faith, the name of Jesus, and the blood of Jesus.

Lastly, I want to discuss flesh issues. The flesh is our old carnal, sinful nature. It is lazy, sinful, wants what it wants when it wants it, and it will always pull us away from the things of God because it hates discipline. We deal with the flesh through discipline, crucifying it, surrender to the Lord and fasting.

Luke 9:23 And He was saying to them all, “If anyone wishes to follow Me [as My disciple], he must deny himself [set aside selfish interests], and take up his cross daily [expressing a willingness to endure whatever may come] and follow Me [believing in Me, conforming to My example in living and, if need be, suffering or perhaps dying because of faith in Me].

Colossians 3:5 So put to death and deprive of power the evil longings of your earthly body [with its sensual, self-centered instincts] immorality, impurity, sinful passion, evil desire, and greed, which is [a kind of] idolatry [because it replaces your devotion to God].

Galatians 5:24 And those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the sinful nature together with its passions and appetites.

Many times we are dealing with more than one root cause of our issues. For example, we may be demonized, dealing with spiritual warfare, and also need to bring our flesh under submission. When we are dealing with more than one issue we must respond with discipline, crucifying the flesh, surrender to God, spiritual warfare, and deliverance.  

We cannot cast out the flesh and we cannot discipline a demon. It is important to get to the root cause of the issues so we know how to respond effectively.

Link to the video teaching: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SnRhYae3gEg&t=4s

Blessings,

Nichole Henson, Fullness of Joy Ministry