Dr. Larry Dossey has written a well-researched book on the power of prayer to kill or harm entitled "Be Careful What You Ask for." Tribal shamans effectively use curses to kill. But I think I've recently encountered an effective diabolical curse that destroyed an evangelical spiritual warfare group of 12. A Christian cult leader didn't gain a sympathetic ear for his teaching in a nearby church. So he threatened to curse that church. The pastor told me he wasn't worried about this because his church had God's protection. Then a cult member started showing up in that church, taking camera pictures of the sanctuary and the people. This freaked out the people and they asked him to desist. Eventually, scandal and a spirit of division erupted in that church, so that this pastor was forced to resign and all but 2 of the 12 members in that prayer group not only left that church, but stopped attending any church! The 2 survivors are currently members of our weekly interdenominational prayer group of 7 and filled me in the demonic details of the demise of their former spiritual warfare group. I have never met more godly believers than these 2.
I am sobered by the unanswered question of how Satan could so decisively defeat godly Christians who were only trying to serve Him and the needs of disturbed souls. On one occasion, a member was celebrating the fact that the group was protected from Satan and that no evil spirit could overcome a prayer-soaked believer. But when he got into his car, he was temporarily possessed and began foaming at the mouth and thrashing around violently in his car! This group had effectively performed some exorcisms. I suspect that pride subtly found its way into some members of their group in a way that left them vulnerable to supernatural attack. I guess one moral of the story is this: to effectively combat supernatural evil one must recognize that personal merit has nothing to do with success. One must be totally rely on God's protective power with true humility.
Fortunately, our new prayer group has witnessed several marvelous miracles and other answers to prayer, but not in recent months. I worry that subtle changes in attitude can sabotage the effectiveness of the most godly prayer group. I pray for spiritual discernment.
your post made me think of : Acts 23:12-16 And when it was day, certain of the Jews banded together, and
bound themselves under a curse, saying that they would neither eat nor drink till they had killed Paul. [13] And they were more than forty which had made this conspiracy. [14] And they came to the chief priests and elders, and said,
We have bound ourselves under a great curse, that we will eat nothing until we have slain Paul. [15] Now therefore ye with the council signify to the chief captain that he bring him down unto you to morrow, as though ye would enquire something more perfectly concerning him: and we, or ever he come near, are ready to kill him. [16] And when Paul's sister's son heard of
their lying in wait, he went and entered into the castle, and told Paul.
Lying in wait is repeated again later “laid in wait” in the passage. “Lie in wait” usually speaks of satan. “Lying in wait to deceive” Ephesians 4:14 That we henceforth be no more children, tossed to and fro, and carried about with every wind of doctrine, by the sleight of men, and cunning craftiness, whereby they
lie in wait to deceive;
overcome those of God? perceived with eyes but we also know those above did not overcome Paul. No more than those who nailed Jesus to the cross crying for blood overcome Christ. Same as disease in the body does not overcome the inward man but that which is inward overcomes that which is outward. Point is, you do not know they failed just by what you see and perceive as a failure. never have read how all the disciples died but have heard it wasn’t pretty...we can not then say they failed and were all overcome because here we are as the message of Christ spread as said it would.
