11/24/25 I have reflected on times in my life, where I knew I was not assaulted from an external source that was human, but rather a spirit. A demon, or a devil, of some sort would plague my mind, and it was at that time I would have done well to reflect on Psalms 91:4-5: “You will not fear the terror by night, nor the arrow that flies by day, nor the pestilence that stalks in the darkness, nor the plague that strikes at midday”. Here is some writing of a book I’m working through that helps to articulate some of the ideas surrounding a somewhat obscure passage in Matthew. Jesus teaches his disciples the reason that they could not cast out of a devil, though they had been trying to, was that the devil in question could only be cast out with prayer and fasting.

It goes without saying, that this reading is good for those who seriously believe that we struggle against principalities, powers, and spiritual forces of evil. Prayer is powerful and effective when prayed effectually by a righteous person (James 5:16); and we are not righteous, except that the blood of Jesus makes us that way.

Passage from 2nd Dwelling:

  1. Teresa (of Avila) had a view that the second dwelling place consists of various stages within it. A Christian moving on from faith into more discipleship can show proof of their separation unto God, even though there are still many entanglements of the world they are caught in. They know they should say “No” to ungodliness, but they still don’t always avoid situations where they would need to be absent. Busyness, anxieties of life, distractions, all can cloud the view of where their real citizenship lies: in Heaven. “It (the grace of God that brings salvation) teaches us to say “No” to ungodliness and worldly passions and to live self-controlled, upright and godly lives in this present age” (Titus 2:12). Sometimes the soul will avoid danger, though. The times they don’t avoid the danger, God is still proven merciful. Isn’t He a patient God?! Even at this stage where the saint is starting to see God’s hand in their lives, the growing soul still has a need for resolve in not turning back daily, momentarily even, from next steps with the Lord. Because the process of entering can be a rocky one, there are, it seems, bursts of seasons of higher concentration and more of an intense need to pay attention to His Presence. These renewals can come and go, and it looks differently for everyone. So, we must show grace to one another. Some seasons transform us, where certain patterns are laid out and lessons are learned that help to guard for what is to come. These souls know they are lucky to get away from the venomous creatures that accompany evil pleasures. Entering may mean fighting with an embarrassing sin, something that seems to cause rebellion in you, although you wouldn’t have initially intended such vulnerability would occur when you first saw Christ, and accepted Him as Lord. This is how it occurred for me, where I had been fighting against something that either I was tempted with or against, and had to pray through the season against a deeply rooted sin. I had to struggle against that sin, or a demon, or a strange temptation, or all three. I speculate that this could have had to do with a seasonal oppressive spirit, that is driven out by prayer and fasting, because there are some of those. Other saints have written about this. Like when Jesus was teaching the disciples, who were active in ministry, the reason why they could not drive out a certain demon, themselves. I think Jesus could have been referring to a higher-power demon that must be “starved” out. “And he said unto them, This kind can come forth by nothing, but by prayer and fasting” (Mark 9:29 KJV).

Teresa mentions that for her, there seems to be some amount of ease here at the beginning of the second entry. The soul sees that it can advance to more maturity and that it’s advantageous for them to do so. The spirit is emboldened, when it realizes that its sufferings are not in vain, and that even among taking many wrong steps, God honors the faithfulness in the strength that was available. After much travailing, now the warrior can stand on her own feet. “Who are you to judge someone else’s servant? To their own master, servants stand or fall. And they will stand, for the Lord is able to make them stand” (Romans 14:4). The person on this trek becomes more aware over time of the dangers that would deter them, as those dangers do become more numerous.

This is the platform set up by the Lord – to those who obey, God will respond! Acts 5:32: “The Holy Spirit, whom God has given to those who obey them.”  As you obey, God gives you more of His Spirit. Your ears begin to perk up like a flower blooming. Finding the “Lord’s callings” as Teresa says, brings separation and detachment from the world naturally. Your close-knit friends (in the faith) will probably become smaller in number and all-the-more more dear to you – the other pilgrims on the journey. It’s very vital at this point that you differentiate between those who promote faith and those who promote discord in you.