Facing The Demonic
Don Hawley
All:
Ordinarily some months transpire between my prophetic dreams, but such was not the case this time. The latest dreams were only a week apart. This is what I experienced.
PROPHETIC DREAM
Given the Night of December 8, 2003
The Dream
Just before awakening the night of December 8, I dreamt of a very large house in an upscale neighborhood. The exterior was painted a tan color. I seemed to be one of a rather large group of people invited to a social occasion.
This house was known in the area for strange happenings. The owner, our host, was a well-known writer and foreign traveler. It seemed as if every shelf, coffee table, and counter top was graced by various knickknacks that our host had gathered during his worldwide travels.
I was in a room alone, when a small curio jumped off the shelf and attached itself to my left hand. It stuck tenaciously and emitted a kind of buzzing sound. Somehow I knew that this object had been cursed by a demonic entity, so I began invoking the name of Jesus.
As I called upon the name of Christ, the object clinging to my hand kept decreasing in size. But as I entered a room occupied by the rest of the guests, the curio was still buzzing away. Everyone’s attention was drawn to my predicament, and they observed as the curio disappeared into nothingness.
Suddenly the entire home came under demonic attack. There was activity on every side. Many items jumped off shelves for no apparent reason. A door flew open without warning and hit a woman in the back. Some knickknacks just disappeared, and one went through a wall without leaving any mark. This demonic action increased in volume until it was extremely intense.
The other guests had seen what happened to me in my confrontation with the first object to go animate. They too began invoking the name of the Lord, shouting “Go, in the name of Jesus!” to the moving objects. It was an all-out battle with a stubborn enemy, but the forces of darkness could not prevail. Little by little they retreated until every item with an evil aura was forced from the house.
The guests were exhilarated with their conquest, and someone suggested a victory march. The entire troupe proceeded out the door and down the street, shouting their praise to a God who had given them such complete victory over a powerful enemy.
The Interpretation
It is important to note that this house, that turned out to be demonized, was in a nice, upscale neighborhood. Too often we think of such infestations as being found only in foreign nations noted for paganism. An example would be India, where during my travels I saw ample evidence of how pervasive the occult world is in that area.
We need to understand that the devil and his host can work just as effectively in upscale neighborhoods here in North America. Sometimes the approach may be more subtle with civilized trappings, but the results are just as deadly. Perceptive people must be aware that there is plenty of paganism at work in our own country.
The fact that this large home was painted tan perhaps was meant to take me back a number of years to a personal experience. Just after I graduated from high school, my family took their first vacation to the West Coast. In San Jose, California, we visited an amazing, rambling house with perhaps more rooms than any other private home in the United States. At that time, at least, it was painted a tan color.
I won’t take time to describe this strange domicile in detail, but I’m sure some of you know about the noted Winchester House of Mystery. This spooky edifice is a conglomerate of weird architecture, ranging from the beautiful to the ugly. Nothing about it makes much sense.
The important fact is that this jumble of rooms was built over a period of many years, and the builders took their instructions from a lady who was in touch with the spirit world. It was the spirits who dictated the floor plans, and they promised that as long as she kept building—day and night—she would never die. Some of the carpenters spent their entire working life in her employment.
Of course she did die, in spite of faithfully taking her cues from the spirit world. Evil spirits are lying spirits, just like their father the devil. Those who travel down the spirit trail are putting their eternal life in jeopardy.
The Human Participants
I had the impression that the guests didn’t represent any particular group, but were a cross section of citizens. Our host wasn’t a certain individual, but a made-up person to teach a lesson. Highly likeable and articulate people may have dangerous associations to share with the uninitiated. This man had traveled frequently in parts of the world where witchcraft and occult happenings are rampant. He seemed to have been highly fascinated by the strange and bizarre, so much so that his entire home was decorated by curios from such lands. That is not rare. It’s impossible to visit the homes of some former missionaries and not know where they served. No matter where one looks one sees items from the mission field. I’m not suggesting there is anything amiss about such collections, but our host seemed to have been somewhat mesmerized by the strange and out of the ordinary.
Objects from Areas Infested With Spiritism
Can such collections prove to be dangerous? Sometimes an object collected in an area steeped in Spiritism can possess occult properties; godly insight needs to be employed.
Years ago while hiking a trail near the border of Tibet I came across a Tibetan lady who had her wares spread out on a colorful blanket. My eyes were drawn to a beautiful silver Tibetan prayer wheel. A lead weight on a chain made it easy to keep the wheel spinning on its spindle, and inside were Buddhist prayers written on rice paper. The idea is that every time the wheel makes one revelation, all the prayers have ascended to the gods. Very efficient. I believe the beautiful wheel had been formed of real coin silver, and it was highly ornate. Although I didn’t bring many artifacts home from the mission field, this was one of my favorites.
As we studied more about how the devil uses the occult to work against the divine, my wife Anita became uneasy about my prayer wheel. I hadn’t had any negative vibrations, but felt I should respect my wife’s feelings. It wasn’t easy to get rid of such an attractive item, and I was tempted to sell it or give it way. Of course, I realized that if it posed a danger to my home, it would also pose a danger in someone else’s as well. Finally I put my prayer wheel in an ordinary brown paper sack, and deposited it in the trash.
The Attack of the Curio
In my dream I was startled when one of the curios jumped off a shelf and attached itself firmly to my hand. I knew immediately that it represented an intrusion from the spirit world, and began invoking the name of Jesus. My response may have been triggered by a prophetic dream I had on November 16, 1997. That dream was quite lengthy, but I will reiterate only one portion that relates to our present discussion. I quote:
“Finally I was ready to resume a ministry, but guarding the door was a huge tiger. Actually the beast was beautiful to behold—except for the head. If we walk with the Lord he will give us a discerning spirit, permitting us to detect the most subtle counterfeit. The vicious tomcats (earlier in the dream) were bad enough, but this big feline was the leader of all the forces of evil. Satan can be an impressive adversary, but we need not fear him unless we approach in our own strength. I knew what would make him shiver and shake; the wonderful name of Jesus. The devil lost it all on Calvary, and the blood can best him every time.
“I just kept invoking the name ‘Jesus!’, and every time I did so the enemy shrank a little more. Rather than an attractive tiger, he how appeared as hideous as he really is. He and his kingdom are chaos; all mismatched and unlovely. I kept using my Christian prerogative of hammering him with the name ‘Jesus’ until he was little more than an ugly bug under my feet. The last time I saw him he was scurrying away in terror. There is a huge final battle looming ahead, but when the smoke clears a terrified and totally defeated devil will be chased off to extinction. It is time for the righteous to be bold as a lion in Jesus’ name.”
The Attack Widens
By the time the “bug” disappeared the entire group was able to witness its demise. As they were considering what this all meant, the entire home came under attack. The totality and intensity of this all-out assault represents the worldwide war soon to be unleashed by all the forces of darkness. It will surpass anything that evil army has been able to field in the past.
My dream reminds us that as Satan makes his last great thrust, he will be facing the entire might of the Army of the Lord. Led by our great Commander in Chief, Jesus Christ, and under the generalship of mighty angels, Christians will boldly go on the attack. Invoking the powerful name of Jesus, they cannot fail. Although doomed, the devil will lead his significant forces in suicidal charges.
Victory of the Righteous
The “victory march” of my dream pales into insignificance compared to the victory march of the ages, as the conquering Army of the Lord sweeps upward through the vast halls of space into the New Jerusalem.
“For the Lord himself will come down from heaven with a commanding shout, with the call of the archangel, and with the trumpet call of God. First, all the Christians who have died will rise from their graves. Then, together with them, we who are still alive and remain on the earth will be caught up in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air and remain with him forever. So comfort and encourage each other with these words.” 1 Thess. 4:16-18.
The plan of God from the beginning was that planet earth would be inhabited solely with happy, holy, and healthy people. The devil has successfully diverted that plan, but eventually Almighty God will have his way. The prophet Isaiah was allowed to see through time to that great day.
“Look! I am creating new heavens and a new earth—so wonderful that no one will even think about the old ones anymore. Be glad; rejoice forever in my creation!” Is. 65:17, 18.
Maranatha!
Don Hawley