What seems heavenly may be a snare from the devil!
It was decided the other week that I would begin writing for the ministry again. I had expected this to go smoothly, as I used to write on a consistent basis last year. After going a good amount of time without much in the way of significant attacks from the enemy, I had not expected him to assail me.
I was dead wrong in that expectation.
My last article spoke about the spirit of the antichrist, an evil spirit who acts as the antithesis to the Spirit of Christ that dwells within born again children of God. I have noticed that when something good happens in my life, often by the grace of God, that the enemy is right around the corner to try and down me after experiencing victory and peace in the Lord.
The Enemy Poses as God in Dreams
The same night where I had correspondence with Pastor Pam on what to write about, I readied for bed. Yet a strange happening occurred. I sat in bed when it seemed like things around me got foggy and dim, as in, existence itself got dark and blurry. It was spiritual in nature and I found it strange, then went to sleep where I dreamt.
I used to be in the Marine Corps. I have had dreams before where military life is used as symbolism, both by God and the devil. In the first dream, I found myself on the first floor of a school, roaming the halls, as if I was skipping class. Up on the second floor, I could hear one of my old sergeants, Sergeant Moore, speaking.
“I’m worried about George’s progress in class,” she said.
I remember Sergeant Moore. She was one of my best sergeants. I could hear how much she cared in her voice, which was consistent with her character as she had always gone out of her way to check on me when we served together. She was a woman who was brave, kind, intelligent, strong-willed and unintimidated by any circumstance. Sergeant Moore represented a reliable and loving leader in the spirit.
I walked up the stairs and went to attend her class after hearing her and saw her in the hallway. She sneered at me.
“Well, look who decided to show up after skipping class!” Her voice bellowed this time and was mighty as she mocked me.
I found myself in the classroom taking a test, where I hid the answers and had a second test on top of it, cheating and hiding my answers.
She shouted, “And he was doing so well, too!” I could feel the disappointment in her voice.
I woke up and interpreted the dream as Sergeant Moore representing God telling me that I was not applying myself to learning in the spirit, because classrooms represent spiritual growth in dreams.
The next night, I experienced the same dimness around me. I slept and found myself in a warehouse, a similar work environment that I have experienced in the natural realm. As I was working, a manager came up to me, stirred with anger so great that steam was fuming out of his head. He was telling me about all he did for his workers and every step he took to optimize their working conditions, and that I was messing it all up.
I woke up and interpreted the dream as similar to the first one, though with this one suggesting that I was being used to frustrate the work of the ministry.
I slept again the next night and found myself in a bus with a few passengers on a draw bridge. The bus crept up to right before the bridge split open, then backed up. Then, it roared forward and sent us diving off the bridge into the core of the earth, splitting open and sending us to hell. A city where instead of oxygen in the air, there were instead flames and lava.
I awoke and was cautious. These dreams had come in straight succession and I wondered if they were designed to create urgency in me. I went about my life.
As I went about my business, I peered into the spirit. And I saw a shadowy demon who has stalked me throughout my life, breathing and glaring at me. I would sometimes see a huge bull, ugly and in a position as if he was standing right next to me.
The Difference Between God & Satan
I took all these experiences to Pastor Pam and it was revealed that they were dreams designed to get me to fear and make me ineffectual.
Because my fear is not of the devil or any of his wiles, but of the Lord. The thought of God being disappointed, angry or thinking that I was a roadblock to His work was what I really feared and the enemy used it against me.
Since I had thought the first two dreams were from God, it actually stressed me out and made me doubt myself in a serious way because I did not want to do anything that would be displeasing to God.
Seeing the demon was an intimidation tactic, sending a message posing the question of, ‘if you can see me so easily, are you truly right with God?’ The whole week had been a barrage of assaults launched by the devil against me during a pivotal time where I wanted to sit down, lock in and do work for the Lord Jesus Christ.
Beyond that, the evidence that it was from the enemy was that the dreams were condemning in nature. I can tell you from experience that the Lord will lovingly correct His children for their betterment in a gentle, tender way that is sometimes even humorous.
I’ve learned that when analyzing a spiritual occurrence, that one’s emotions must be looked at. Are you feeling condemned, accused or even shamed? That’s the devil. God chastises those He loves for the nourishment of their soul and spirit, to make them more Christlike. Satan accuses those he hates.
As I said, when God moves, the enemy will often be right around the corner to counteract. This links back to my writing about the spirit of the antichrist versus the Spirit of God and how they interact with the children of God. I was fortunate to have Pastor Pam counsel me on these things, and it was good that I brought them to her. Revealing subjects that may be difficult to face is pivotal and key to spiritual growth and progress in counseling.
Discerning good from evil is a skill that takes time to develop, even a lifetime, but things worked out for the good of the Lord. I was reassured to stay the path of righteousness and service to God.
Exodus Internet Church is about gaining knowledge to discern what is from God versus what is from the devil according to the individual and their own unique experiences. If you find yourself seeking spiritual growth in Christ, give EIC a call at 888-818-1117 or email rescueonfb@icloud.com.