The question often comes up as to how a person can discern if there are demonic influences in their life. That is the goal of today’s post to expose some of the possible signs of demonic influence in your life.
Before we get to the list I need to make a disclaimer. Not everything bad in your life is caused by demons. Some ignore the devil and come up with natural causes for everything that happens in their lives. Others see a demon behind every single event in their life. Everything bad is the devil giving them a rough time.
If you’re the first type of person, I want to encourage you to consider that the enemy is at work in your life. He loves to work in silence and out of sight, so you never confront him and cast him out of your life.
If you're the second person, I want to encourage you to look at your life and see if some of the things that are causing trouble in your life are due to giving in to your flesh or through willful sin against the Lord.
This list is not even close to exhaustive, but it will get you thinking about the various ways the enemy could be impacting your life. So let’s look at some of the telltale signs.
Chaos and Constant Crises
Is chaos a constant companion in your life? Is your life filled with one continuous crisis after another? Are you just waiting for the next bad thing to happen in your life? Then it’s quite possible that the enemy’s at work and you need to stand up against his activity in your life.
You may think that this is just the way my life has always been. I don’t know any other way of life. But Jesus has come to give you a life of peace in your heart and mind. Chaos is of the enemy. Peace and stability are from the Lord.
Confusion
Is your mind constantly filled with confusion? You don’t know what to do so you procrastinate. You’re constantly struggling with thoughts and going back and forth on what you should do? Your mind is never quiet and peaceful. It’s always filled with contradictory thoughts and possibilities.
The Bible speaks of having a sound mind, the mind of Christ, a renewed mind. God is not the author of confusion. He brings clarity and understanding and leads us in the paths of righteousness.
Emotional Upheaval
Are your emotions out of control? Are you experiencing strong feelings that affect your ability to function on a daily basis? Are you constantly trying to stuff and control your emotions so you don't have to deal with them? Are you viewing others and life through your various emotions?
Do you struggle with feelings of resentment, anger, fear, hatred, rejection, self-pity, jealousy, depression, worry, inferiority, helplessness, hopelessness, despair, or insecurity? Do you make choices based on these feelings rather than the word of God?
The enemy wants to come into your life and reinforce these emotions and hold you in bondage. Jesus has come to set you free from being controlled by your emotions. As you repent and turn to the Lord He can begin to heal your emotions and establish His peace in your heart.
Chronic Accidents
Have you been “clumsy” all of your life? Are you constantly hurting yourself and ending up in the emergency room. Do you have accidents all the time? Are these accidents of every kind imaginable from small to great? Are you the only one that always seems to get hurt?
That used to be me. I’ve had a multitude of accidents and situations that only affected my right side. I had surgery on my right foot. I broke my right ankle playing softball. I broke my right leg riding a bike and another time playing baseball. As a teen, I was goofing around on one of the horses you put a quarter in to ride and its hoof hit my right knee and I had to go to the ER to remove water from my knee. Three times I hurt my right knee in skiing accidents and had to have a cast or a leg brace and wrap. I crushed my right knuckle when I hit something in a burst of anger. I broke my right thumb skiing. I broke my right arm falling off the top of a slide at the playground. I shattered my right elbow, dislocated my right shoulder, and damaged my right ribs in a fall off of some scaffolding.
When I finally recognized the pattern in my life, I broke off any generational sins connected to the accidents and rebuked all spirits behind these accidents and they ceased.
Mental/Psychological Issues
Are you constantly feeling overwhelmed? Do you have strong feelings of guilt and shame and feel condemned? Do you isolate yourself from others? Are you hearing voices that telling you to do things you know are wrong? Are you being tormented in your mind and having nightmares?
Do you struggle with compulsions, obsessions, mental disorders, eating disorders, nervous breakdowns, anxiety attacks, panic attacks, or ADD/ADHD? Are you dealing with indecision and procrastination and feeling stuck?
The enemy can easily come and enhance your struggle in these areas. Jesus can come into your mind and bring His peace and restoration. One person who was tormented was the Gadarene demoniac. He was tormented by demons that caused him to cut himself with stones, run around naked, and live in a graveyard away from society. Jesus cast out the demons and he was instantly in his right mind.
Sexual Sins
Sexual sins of all types open the door for demonic influence. Any kind of extramarital sex, unlawful, or unnatural sex will allow him access into your life. The role of demons is to fan into flame the lusts and desires in order to bring you to a point of addiction and bondage.
If you’re involved or have been involved in any of the following (and others I won’t mention), chances are that the enemy will have a foothold in that area of your life. This can take place whether what happened was willing or against your will.
Some of the many sexual areas of sin are masturbation, lust, fornication, adultery, incest. pornography, homosexuality, bestiality prostitution, rape, sadism, immorality, sensuality, lewdness, voyeurism, exposure, filthy talk, crude jesting, and many other things like these.
Chronic or Inherited Sickness
Any form of sickness can be caused by demonic power. Here are some of the various illnesses that the Bible shows were connected to demons. Jesus cast out a demon and the people were healed. Deafness, Dumbness, Woman bent over for 18 years. Epilepsy. Blindness. So we should never totally rule out the possibility of demons affecting sickness in our bodies.
Are you constantly sick? Do you go from one sickness to another? Do you have annual bouts with sickness? Do you say, “Flu season is coming, I wonder when I will get it”?
If there is constant sickness or disease in your life or your family, then it is time to seek the Lord to see if there is a demonic reason behind what is taking place in your life. It’s the chronic nature that brings things under suspicion.
The great news is that Jesus is your healer. Just as He healed all those who came to Him, you can expect Him to work His healing in your life.
Addictions
There are many types of addictions in this world. Some of the more common are drugs, alcohol, cigarettes, food, sex, shopping, eating, gambling, video games, fantasy, and others like them. The enemy works to keep you in bondage and bring you more and more under his control.
Addictions are never about the drug, the drink, the purchase, or the food. It’s an attempt to temporarily cover up the pain in your life. The enemy wants to keep your focus on yourself and your addiction rather than on Jesus who can heal your broken heart and break the power of addiction in your life.
Self-Destructive Behaviors
Are you physically harming yourself by scratching, cutting, burning, biting, choking, self-hitting, piercing, or hair-pulling? Are you filled with self-hatred and loathing for yourself? Are you bingeing, purging, or starving yourself? Do you feel you deserve to be harmed for the things you’re feeling or the things you’ve done?
The enemy comes to steal, kill, and destroy. He will gladly support and confirm your thinking as to why you should harm yourself. But Jesus came to give you life and set you free from this type of behavior.
Occult Involvement
Any involvement in the occult automatically opens the door for demonic activity in your life. This is true whether you did it “for fun” or with more purpose. The occult is the realm of the devil and his deceptive demons. Look at the following list and see if you have been involved in them or something like them.
Astral travel, astrology, auras, automatic handwriting, black magic, clairvoyance, curses, deja vu, demon worship, Dungeons and Dragons, ESP, fire walking, followed a guru, fortune tellers, heathen temples, horoscopes, hypnosis, incantations, levitation, mediums, mind control, numerology, paganism, palm reading, personal mantra, potions, powwow, psychic sight, reiki, satan worship, seances, self-hypnosis, sorcery, spells, spirit guide, tarot cards, tea leaves, therapeutic touch, transcendental meditation, voodoo, white magic, Wicca, witchcraft, yoga.
False Religions, Cults, and Secret Societies
If you have had any involvement in any of the following religions or cults then there is demonic involvement in your life. Any religion or group that is not proclaiming the truth of Jesus Christ as the Son of God and the only way of salvation is based upon false doctrine and invites demonic involvement.
Baha’i, Christian Science, Daughters of the Nile, DeMolay, Eastern Religions, Elks, Freemasonry, Hinduism, Jehovah’s Witnesses, Job's Daughters, Native religions, New Age Movement, Rainbow Girls, Satanism, Shriner, and Spiritism and anything like them.
Trauma, Abuse, and Victimization
Are you dealing with Post Traumatic Stress Disorder? Have you been raped, beat up, or robbed? Have you gone through traumatic situations that still affect your life on a daily basis?
Many demons take advantage of traumatic situations to attack your life. Spirits of violence, rage, murder, horror, and shock come in through violent situations in your life. Spirits of perversion, homosexuality, violence, and fear come in through rapes and molestations. Our wonderful emergency responders see a lot of death and tragic situations that impact their emotional life and leave them open to the work of the enemy.
Family and Relationship Breakdown
The enemy is always at work bringing strife and division among family members. He’ll work in the relationship between husband and wife, children and parents, and sibling rivalry. He’ll seek to bring strife in the extended family where other members will not talk with one another for years.
Remember that our battle is not against flesh and blood. There can be demonic roots to some of the division and strife that will not move or be broken without specific spiritual warfare to defeat the work of the enemy.
Chronic Financial Struggles
Are you constantly struggling to make ends meet? Does it seem like no matter how much money you make, there’s never enough? Does it seem like every time you get ahead financially you take two steps backward?
The word of God tells us that God wants to make you successful and help you to prosper. He will supply all your needs according to His riches in glory. The Lord is your shepherd. You shall not want.
If you’re struggling financially all of the time, start looking for the influence of the enemy through your generational lines and through your own thought life. How do you view money? Do you have any negative thoughts or patterns of spending that may contribute to your financial lack?
These are just a few of the ways that your adversary may be using to bring forth his death and destruction in your life. The good news is that once you see him working you can do something about it. God has given you the ability to repent if sin is involved. You can renew your mind if you have believed any of the enemy’s lies and walk in God’s truth. You have the authority to stand up against the devil and cause him to flee.
The more you are aware of the enemy’s schemes, the better equipped you will be to overcome them.
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