In the Valley of Good and Evil.

Christine DiGiacomo
22 hours ago
6 min read

podcast: https://www.pastorwoman.net/podcast/episode/2d85bf5c/in-the-valley-of-good-and-evil-no-54-acts

This is a little longer than normal, but it kinda' had to be...

In the Spring of 2000, I picked up a book that captivated me, and singlehandedly changed my life. Set in the hood in the borough of Brooklyn, New York, the author wrote about people and lifestyles I had not encountered (yet)--those heavily influenced by demonic activity. Heck, I had been raised 'in the church', why hadn't I heard of people who were oppressed/possessed by demons--I mean, not just in the Bible, right? And why was this a regular challenge at the Brooklyn Tabernacle? Because so many walk through their doors originating from the Caribbean islands where there is black magic, voodoo, Santeria and other occult practices. Nothing I knew anything about in my white bread upbringing.

But the reason the book, Fresh Wind, Fresh Fire1 impacted me so dramatically was not because it talked about evil, but rather because I saw how radical/how supernatural a life devoted to God and committed to prayer can be! Honestly, I was riveted. Not at all a 'how to' book on prayer, Jim Cymbala told the stories of how God answered the prayers of regular people, just like me--some were stories of miraculous healing, others total life change--people set free from addiction and mental illnesses who had been locked in a prison of their minds. And yeah, well, though I certainly prayed before I read it, after I read it? I became a woman of prayer. And, six months after reading it, I saw God do the miraculous in my home, answering this mother's fervent prayers.

After our miracle, I remember telling God, 'I do not know why we received your healing mercy, but I will be forever grateful; and if I am asked to go and pray for others who need healing, I will go.' And. I. was. asked...so I went, and have continued to answer the call for more than 25 years now. These days, many of my healing prayers take place on FaceTime calls, sometimes across thousands of miles with people I have never met. And yes, in total humility, God is doing the miraculous--something he specializes in!

Looking back to those early years, it was not long until one of those calls was not so straightforward. What in the world was causing the strange behavior in the young wife and mother who was 'going crazy, hearing voices?' (as she and her husband both described) When I met her for coffee to discuss, and pray with her, she stood up and started 'channeling' Barbie--I knew then that the devil was at work.

A few years later, I was sharing Christ with a Long Beach gangbanger/drug dealer in Long Beach's Lincoln Park, when I was told, 'you better get out of here--the devil's in this park.'2 (Thank you, Pastor Cymbala for prepping me)

Another day in Long Beach, just before I opened the Word, a young black woman with wild eyes came tearing down into the big ol' basement hall and I heard her say, 'hey where's the pastor woman? I need her ... I need her now.' (Yikes, as I type this, my palms are sweating (unusual for me), just recalling these things--she was sweating profusely as she said, 'please ma'am, you gotta pray for me--pray the devil goes out of me and leaves me alone!' I was ready. And yes, I prayed...

I could go on, but I believe you get the point. There is a devil, (though some do not want to acknowledge that); he has demons and they are active, BUT that is no reason to fear. As disciples of Jesus Christ, we have the Holy Spirit of God in us--that means power! Our beloved Paul wrote to the Romans,

"The same Spirit that raised Jesus from the dead lives in you."!3

And greater is he that is in you than he that is in the world! John wrote.4

Now back to Ephesus in Acts 19, where Paul was passionately and creatively teaching about salvation in Jesus Christ -- daily, for two long years! God was on the move!

[didn't see the last Morning Briefing?

The NFL, God on the Move, and you: https://conta.cc/4tBR1XP]

>>Listen to me - when God is at work, drawing people to himself, the devil will not be far away, working to deter, dissuade and straight out deceive those who are seeking God. Count on it.

Luke describes the goings on:

God was performing extraordinary miracles by the hands of Paul, so that handkerchiefs or aprons were even carried from his body to the sick, and the diseases left them and the evil spirits went out. But also some of the Jewish exorcists, who went from place to place, attempted to use the name of the Lord Jesus over those who had the evil spirits, saying, “I order you in the name of Jesus whom Paul preaches!” Now there were seven sons of Sceva, a Jewish chief priest, doing this. But the evil spirit responded and said to them, “I recognize Jesus, and I know of Paul, but who are you?” And the man in whom was the evil spirit, pounced on them and subdued all of them and overpowered them, so that they fled out of that house naked and wounded. This became known to all who lived in Ephesus, both Jews and Greeks; and fear fell upon them all and the name of the Lord Jesus was being magnified. Also many of those who had believed kept coming, confessing and disclosing their practices. And many of those who practiced magic brought their books together and began burning them in the sight of everyone; and they added up the prices of the books and found it to be fifty thousand pieces of silver. So the word of the Lord was growing and prevailing mightily. Acts 19.11-20

Check it: God used for GOOD what the devil meant for evil.

It is actually a little comical because those dudes were trying to cut in on Paul's action 'hey you, evil spirits, by the name of Paul's Jesus, we command you to. . ." At the time, it was not uncommon for a team of vocational 'exorcists' to recite a list of names for power and authority, so they used Jesus' name to match Paul's authority. It had disastrous consequences. Think of it--they used God's name (Jesus) in vain, in the truest sense of the word, and did not have any idea the havoc they wreaked upon themselves until it was too late.

We can learn from the actions of the Ephesians in response because:

->when they heard and recognized the truth of Jesus Christ, they believed

->then they confessed their sins to God and one another

->then they destroyed (burned) the things that kept them connected to evil

Several years after this event, Paul wrote in a letter back to those he loved in Ephesus,

saying, "we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the cosmic powers over this present darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places."5 And who better to tell us to be on guard than the one who, denied his Jesus, Peter, who wrote, "Be sober-minded; be watchful. Your adversary the devil prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour."6

Today, the guises of evil can often be quite subtle: curiosity cracks open the door, and compromise because of 'tolerance' suddenly causes us to wink at sin. Look at our culture if you do not think that is a true statement. The evil one lurks around trying to find an entry point, through which he might reap destruction.

Be aware --- prudent... wise and discerning as there is much deception afoot today; messages with enough right sounding elements to entice, with the goal is to mislead individuals. . . to cause them to question what they know to be true of God and pull them from the greatest love that can ever be known. Many have come to think spiritual skepticism seems good, right, noble and evolved--when in reality, it often leads to disillusionment, greater confusion, and all lack of meaning.

Recognize the power in the name of our Lord Jesus...power to bless, to heal, to protect and banish evil. . . but not to bandy about lightly. The name of the Lord is a strong tower; the righteous run to it and are safe.7 So, one last thing: let's say you are aware of evil, might be destructive thoughts whispered in the night -- invoke that name, 'In the name of Jesus Christ, Satan, be gone.' I will say it again: if you are a Christian, "The same Spirit that raised Jesus from the dead lives in you"!

Greater is he that is in you than he that is in the world!

And then I felt that nudge to remind you what our Lord's brother said,

Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you.8 Amen.

Choose today to live in the valley of GOOD, and turn your back on the valley of evil.

Song: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f1dh3t2F5oE&list=RDf1dh3t2F5oE&start_radio=1

Be strong in the Lord,9

Christine

no. 54, Acts

1 - Fresh Wind, Fresh Fire Jim Cymbala, https://www.christianbook.com/fresh-wind-fire-jim-cymbala/9780310350606/pd/350601?event=ESRCN

2 - I did not leave...I was on a mission from God

3 - Romans 8.11

4 - 1 John 4.4