when we read passages like in mark 3:11-12, we can see that there is plainly a lot going on that we do not see. it’s not a matter of needing more evidence. it’s not a matter of unmasking old mr. mcgreggor, the amusement park owner. it’s much more mysterious than that. and you know what? i am okay with that now. i have said before that i am the kind of person that really likes to have answers. i don’t like being stumped if it can really be helped. but this is one area where i am content to wait to find everything out.

this just makes me ask more questions, rather than giving answers. it is obvious that Jesus is in charge at all times. and people’s silly ideas of there being some sort of equality between God and the devil, some sort of dualistic balance, is ridiculous. satan’s impotence is obvious in passages like this…we don’t want to sell his efforts short, because he really has messed things up in his own ways, but we cannot give him too much credit either.

but these passages do make me wonder how many people today actually have something more serious than a chemical imbalance going on? how much demon activity is still out there, and why don’t we acknowledge it for what it is? are we afraid of looking like religious kooks if we point out the activity of the enemy? it is easier to write it off sometimes and say that someone just needs intensive therapy and a prescription, but that doesn’t solve any problems does it?

So, what else?

I also wonder what level of awareness spirits have who are in the act of possessing someone. do they get a little lost in the individual’s personality, or are they in complete control?

what is the sensory experience of angel like? is it essentially like ours, but tuned differently for greater sensitivity in certain areas, and less in others?

and there’s a lot more that i just won’t get into right now. but suffice it to say, i do not have the answers, and i am totally okay with it… i am comfortable knowing that God is in control, and that we can rely on Him to look out for us when we don’t realize we need watched over.

like gehazi, elisha’s servant, we do not see everything that goes on around us. sometimes we have to ask God to open our eyes to see. when it appears that the enemy has us surrounded, when it looks like there’s nowhere to go, God is here with us with more power and concern for us than we can fathom. there is nothing the enemy can do that will overwhelm Him. there is nothing on earth that concerns God more than the welfare of His children, His faithful ones. and so, in the midst of passages like mark 3:11-12, i will leave the mystery to its Creator. He can choose to explain it, or not… it isn’t a salvation issue in my mind, but a matter of curiosity about the unseen.

so i say, Father, when the time is right, and You deem me ready, open my eyes as much as you see fit. i want whatever you think i am ready to see, and i am content to trust in You either way. i do not need to see the supernatural with my own eyes in order to believe that You are at work. You have made that plain and obvious up until this point. thank-You for Your many graces and mercy you extend to us who are so limited in our understanding, and so prone to distraction from You.

Lord, have mercy.

Christ, have mercy.

Spirit, have mercy.

amen.