You shouldn’t imagine demons everywhere, but you shouldn’t ignore them either! The Bible is clear: we are in a spiritual war. So, what about you? Are you in denial of the spiritual realm, on the defensive, or in attack mode?

We can get so wrapped up in the hassles of everyday life that we forget to consider what is going on in the spiritual realm. Discouragement can be a simple emotion in the face of life’s challenges, but it can also be the result of negative thoughts whispered by our enemy (2 Corinthians 4:4). Illness can be the result of our bad habits, just as it can be a vicious attack from our spiritual adversary (Acts 10:38). So we shouldn’t see demons everywhere (it’s not always their fault!), but we should also remember that we do have an adversary looking to destroy us.

When speaking of the spiritual world, the apostle Paul used war terminology. “Put on the whole armor of God, that you may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil. For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this age, against spiritual hosts of wickedness in the heavenly places” (Ephesians 6:11-12 NKJV) ). We often look for different ways to deal with our problems but rarely do we prepare a spiritual strategy for our circumstances. If we have a financial problem, we look at banking solutions or creditors. But why not talk to God first to establish a strategy of prayer and declaration of the Word in the face of these same problems! The same goes for our romantic relationships. We may be partly responsible for our situation, but there may also be spiritual bonds that need to be broken. We can make a plan to connect with more potential partners, but we can also make a spiritual plan to open up our opportunities or build our future marriage on a good foundation.

We often have the instinct to turn to God and pray when circumstances are difficult and out of our control. Prayer and intercession are often used as a defense against the enemy. Jesus is indeed our Savior, our advocate, the one who fixes our mistakes. But why not take the lead? Instead of seeing prayer and God’s Word as a lifeline, why not decide to go into attack mode ?! The best defense is offense, they say, right?

We’re not talking about going around looking for demons to rough them up. The best way to undermine the powers of darkness is to work to grow the Kingdom of God. I have a small personal testimony on this subject: an old lady I knew felt distracted during her time of prayer. She couldn’t pray as usual and felt like the enemy was setting her up. Her reaction was perfect. She got up from her place of prayer and said: “Okay, okay, I won’t pray… I’m going to praise and worship instead!” It is easy to imagine the defeated face of the enemy who believed it had achieved victory by preventing her from praying, but who had to admit defeat when she decided to retaliate with praise. You experience opposition in your time of Bible study; go out to evangelize! You feel tempted by your old vices; go share your testimony in a Christian gathering. The best way to fight your dark thoughts is to realize where they are coming from and fight the source instead of the thoughts themselves.

The Bible is not just a buoy, it is a sword. So let’s go! Now is the time to get into attack mode, and make the Kingdom of God grow.