The Angelic Sword
By Phil Scovell
George was on the other end of the phone and having an
anxiety attack. I asked him what he was feeling.
"I feel terrified and I can't figure out why. I'm so scared,
I'm shaking almost uncontrollably."
He wasn't exaggerating. I could literally hear it in his
voice and I could hear the phone in his hand shaking. I knew
exactly the symptoms he described because I had experienced them
myself. "Do you want to pray to find out what is behind the
fear?" I asked.
"Yes, please," he said almost desperately. "I need to know
what's wrong."
We prayed.
A silence lasting about 20 seconds fell between us. Then he
said, his voice steadier than before, "It's about death."
"What about it?" I questioned.
"My death. I'm afraid of dying but I'm a Christian," he
said; confusion in his voice.
I prayed again and asked the Lord to lead us to where this
fear was rooted.
"It's in the horror movie," he said confidence now in his
voice.
"Which horror movie?" I asked; knowing he had seen many such
movies.
"The one we have been to before," and he described the scene
that had frightened him the most. An ugly tall man was walking up
some long stairs; his heavy booted feet clunking loudly as he
came. The door crashes open and he is pushing a casket in front
of him coming closer and closer to a woman laying in bed who is
not dead. Her terrifying fear was evident. The ugly man had come
for her and she wasn't dead yet. The casket was for her and she
wasn't dead.
"I'm shaking so badly," he reported, "right now that I can
hardly hold on to the phone."
I prayed and asked the Lord to show him the truth about the
death scene he was remembering in vivid detail.
"This is the main place my fear of death is coming from," he
reported. "I don't know how I know this but this is the place."
"Lord," I prayed out loud, "what is behind the fear of death
he is feeling?"
George said, "Two demons that look like penguins appeared on
either side of the big ugly man's shoulders. They are trying to
tell me I'm going to die like this."
"Is that true, Lord Jesus?" I asked.
"No," he said he heard a strong voice say.
"Do these demons have a right to be hear?" I asked.
"Jesus said, no, they have no right to be here," he replied
after a few seconds.
"What shall we do with them, Lord Jesus?" I asked.
George began laughing.
I asked him what was so funny.
"A huge angel just appeared in the room. He is all white,
has wings, and is twice the size of any man. He has a disgusted
look on his face like he isn't too happy about the circumstances
he sees."
More prayer.
"The Lord said to get rid of them," he reported, "and the big
angel just pulled out a long shiny glittering sword."
I began to pray, asking the Lord to give the angel the go
ahead, but stopped in mid sentence. I clearly felt the Holy
Spirit speaking in my thoughts. "No, you tell him what you want
him to do with the demons." I chose different wording, on the
fly, as it were, and continued. "In the name of the True Lord
Jesus Christ, I command the holy angel of the Lord to cut the
enemies in half."
George laughed. "I never would have believed it if I hadn't
seen it myself," he said.
"What did you see?" I asked.
"The angel swung his huge sword and the two penguin looking
demons were chopped in half," he reported.
"What are the demons doing now?" I questioned.
"They are running, in four parts, out of the room. "Hey,"
George said, "I'm not shaking in more."
Is there anything left in the room?"
"No, everything is gone but the angel." he reported.
"Is there any more fear left? How do you feel in the memory
of this scary movie?" I asked.
"Everything is peaceful. It feels like the room, me
included, is filled up with peace. I have no fear any more about
this thing."
During this short prayer time, George reported he was
confused. I asked him why he felt confused and he reported that
what he was seeing was a movie. "How could these things," he
wanted to know, "be happening in a movie?"
I said, "Because you are looking at your memory of the movie
and not the movie itself."
About this point, somebody may be asking how it is that
demons ended up in this guy's memory of a horror film. It isn't
difficult to explain and even easier to understand. The movie
created fear; lots of it. We are commanded by Scripture, "Neither
give place to the devil," (Ephesians 4:27). The fear generated by
the horror flick also created fertile ground in which the Enemy
could function and he did.
Still not convinced?
Let's say a young woman was standing at the kitchen sink and
pealing potatoes for the evening meal. She was all alone in the
house. As she hums contently to herself, a man steps up behind
her and puts his arms around her. She smiles because she thinks
it is her husband. As the man pulls the knife from her hand and
holds it to her throat, fear explodes into her mind because she
realizes it is way to early in the afternoon for her husband to be
home.
Without even finishing this story, let me ask this question.
Isn't this a golden opportunity for the enemy to take advantage of
this woman's fear? "Yes, but," you say, "this really happened.
Your friend, George, watching the horror movie, was only watching
something that was a fantasy; it never really happened."
Ok, let me ask you another question then. How many different
types of fear can you identify? Maybe I should ask first, are
there different types of fear? That answer is simple. Yes, there
are many different types of fear. If we can agree on that, then
let me ask my next question. Can you name any type of fear that,
if given the opportunity, the Enemy wouldn't try and take
advantage? You see, it makes no difference to the Enemy. If
there is an opportunity, he wants to exploit it.
Let's take this just one step further. What if the current
fear triggers an obscure, or even forgotten event, where similar
fear was experienced? That doesn't happen? Sorry, I pray with
people daily who have had such experiences and it does happen.
What to do about it is the real question.
In this testimony, the Lord used an angel to bring victory to
the man's fear. If we have the authority of the Lord Jesus Christ
to command demons, do we have authority over the angels, too?
Bless the LORD, ye his angels, that excel in strength, that do
his commandments, hearkening unto the voice of his word. Bless ye
the LORD, all ye his hosts; ye ministers of
his, that do his pleasure. (Psalm 103:20-21).
Speaking of angels, the writer of Hebrews says:
Are they not all ministering spirits, sent forth to minister for
them who shall be heirs of salvation? (Hebrews 1:14).
I could, of course, expand into dozens of other verses on
authority, the heritage we have in Christ, the identity we have in
Christ, and the authority we have to use His Word but this would
be a book and not a testimony. The truth is, we do have such
authority and in this case, the angel appeared to carry out the
commands of one of the Lord's servants so George could be set
free.
Now, how about you? Are you free from all fear? If not,
call me.
Safe Place Fellowship
Phil Scovell
Denver Colorado USA
Mountain Time Zone
Phone: 303-507-5175
www.SafePlaceFellowship.comm
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