My wife Amy and I participated in a house cleansing this last Saturday. What follows is a report of that account.What happened was... incredible.

The background.

Some distant friends, whom I'll call Jack and Jill (not their real names), contacted me a couple weeks ago through Facebook.  When I say "distant friends", I mean we aren't in close relationship with them and rarely see them, but they're the kind of people that when we get together, it's like we've known each other all our lives.Jack and Jill are middle class Americans with young children. He owns a business. She owns a separate business and works from home.  She wrote,

"You and Amy keep popping in my mind. I need you to pray about something for me, and tell me how you're feeling lead... it's a long story but my family has been under major attack since last summer. It's not stopping but instead grown and has grown into a blatant evil full on spiritual assault..."

The next day we chatted.  She told me a long story, which involves some litigation and personal information. At risk are their livelihood, their reputations, and their emotional well being.  Because of that, I'll leave the details out, except to say the attack came from friends of theirs, people whom they had been warned about befriending, and who ended up living in an apartment they owned for a time.As she was telling me the story, I discerned the nature of the spiritual assault against them, and I named the type of spirit at work (a Jezebel spirit, in this case), and asked if that made sense. I also prayed Psalm 55 over the phone to her.Coincidentally (as it's called), earlier that day Jack had texted her a verse from that same Psalm to encourage her.Although she didn't know what a Jezebel spirit was, she said it rang true in her heart.She later relayed the story to our mutual friend Gerry, who is a seer and whom I interviewed here. He also named it a Jezebel spirit. I told my wife the details of our encounter, and she too named the spirit.  The Holy Spirit lives inside all of us and revealed to us the nature of what was going on.The spirit at work was being exposed. For Jill, the fog of war was lifting.

It's all coming together.

Jill emailed me again that night and said she was realizing that it was more than just her family bearing the brunt of the attack, but that it was targeting the leaders in her church as well, trying to create division (which is how the Jezebel spirit works).Jack called me even later that night and described manifestations that had occurred in the house, and he had just realized that they began at the same time the rest of the attack had started on their family and his business.The manifestations usually occurred while he was drifting off to sleep, but continued in his fully wakened state, stopping only when he commanded them to stop in Jesus' name, and included

• Seeing a dark, menacing shadow before the fireplace
• The room shaking, leaving pictures crooked
• The bed shaking while he and his children were sleeping on it
• A sensation of levitation coming on him and his children while resting in bed, such that he physically had to hold them down
• Chilling laughter coming from the upstairs, but heard throughout the house

In each case, the manifestation stopped when he called out the name of Jesus, although the menacing laughter would linger somewhat before fading away.Jack, although a Christian who had experienced supernatural healing, classified himself a skeptic when it came to paranormal activity like demonic hauntings and spirits making themselves visible. That is, until these things began to happen to him.I suggested he go through the house and read through some spiritual house cleansing prayers. See this page for the problems with that suggestion.Anyway, the demonic manifestations continued off and on, and at times there was just a feeling of "ickiness" in the house.  They asked if we'd come over to do a "house cleansing."We agreed. They also invited Gerry and his wife, and two other older couples whom they trusted and considered "prayer warriors."

No seers this time.

Gerry was recovering from surgery and could not make it.  I invited another seer. I felt it would be useful to have one. Seers are the eyes, the spy satellites, the scouts, the reconnaissance forces in a spiritual battle. I didn't want to go in blind.  Unfortunately, she was out of town as well.We'd have to rely on our spiritual eyes instead of a seer's physical eyes.

The Battle Begins

The battle began days before we actually showed up.  Amy and I both prayed ahead of time.  I instructed Jack and Jill to fast something leading into the cleansing.The enemy was preparing too.  My wife had a headache and severe stomach ache all week.   Of the two older couples who participated, all four had severe stomach pains beforehand and one almost didn't make it.  Gerry, although recovering from surgery, had planned on making it but "overdid it", and couldn't get out of bed due to... stomach pains.  Jill had been in the bathroom sick with stomach issues.  Jack had a flat tire that morning.

Game on.

We all arrived at the house Saturday afternoon at 3:05. Jill jokingly asked if we caravanned. It was kind of funny how we all showed up at exactly the same time. Jack later described it this way:

"Seeing everyone walk up to the house (was) like a scene out of a movie, like slow motion with cool music...our army warriors."

They have a nice, large, white two-story house that dates to the 1930s, with an in-ground pool, and a large detached work-related garage with an apartment in it.We gathered in the kitchen/dining area.  I think we were all generally nervous. We took stock of our physical sensations and made sure we were all on the same page.  The air was tense.Although  we had two couples who were much older than me and Amy or Jack and Jill, -couples who knew a thing or two about prayer - somehow the grace to lead was on me, and they followed.  One of the women had brought anointing oil. Amy suggested salt as well. For information on "blessed objects" like oil, salt, and water, go here.Jill poured a little salt in a bowl, and we prayed over it.

The Order of Battle

Generally speaking, the order of battle followed these steps and principles:

1. We pray aloud in the name of Jesus and occasionally invoke the reminder that it's by the Blood Jesus shed on the Cross that the enemy has been defeated.
2. We invited the Holy Spirit to show us any open doorways and reveal any hidden spirits in the room.
3. We listened to God's answers and respond to what God spoke to us by praying over those areas. (See the Hearing God page for more on this).
4. As God led us, we would spread through the room or area with blessed oil, dabbing windows, doorsills, and other openings the Holy Spirit highlighted to us, while speaking that the spiritual portal was closed to enemy spirits. We'd also sprinkle blessed salt in corners and miscellaneous places as led by the Holy Spirit.
5. We'd command all spirits to leave, break spoken curses, etc.
6. As needed, someone would pray in tongues. This happens when we're not sure what to pray exactly (but the Holy Spirit knows) or we feel we need extra power. Typically, when someone is doing this, they do it softly. It's not for show. It's for power and to work God's will. (Note: Not everyone present that day actually prays in tongues, but several do and some did at times in this particular situation).
7. We invite God's rule and reign to come, declaring the room/area is now God's territory, thus sealing the room from the enemy.

While we followed a plan, we also maintained the flexibility of the Holy Spirit redirecting our efforts. This is, after all, Jesus' battle. He's our warrior. It's His Kingdom we want to come. We're just the instruments.

The opening salvo.

We started in the Kitchen/Dining Room. Out loud, I invited the Holy Spirit to guide us, to reveal any open doorways or portals through which dark spirits might be entering.This might sound dramatic, but it really isn't. For instance, I didn't use "King James" language; I didn't raise my voice.  I just said in conversational tones something like, "Holy Spirit, please come, and show us any openings and portals that spirits are using to come into this room."We waited. Some of us stood with hands outstretched as in a receiving posture. Some had their eyes closed. Others were looking around carefully.A picture came to my mind. It's almost like I could see it, but nothing was actually hitting my retina. It was in my mind. I saw a picture of a red current that flowed from the backdoor/laundry room area and weaved through the kitchen/dining room, into the living room, and from there, I didn't know.  I said what I saw, and Jack said he often felt like he was walking against a current of some kind, a dark will, when heading towards the back door.One of the women said she had a picture of the dryer vent as an open doorway (or spiritual portal). People sprang into action, speaking prayers along the line of those on this site, but not from rote memory. It was more like telling an intruder they no longer had authority to be there or to enter, that they had to leave and the doorways were shut.

May I enter?

You know the old vampire legend that states a vampire cannot enter a home without the homeowner's permission? Just where do you think that legend came from? Old wives tales?Pay attention to them, because old wives knew a thing or two about spiritual things.Demonic spirits cannot enter unless you give them permission. In this case, a Jezebel spirit was attached to Jill's former friend, and she had spent countless hours in their home, bringing who knows how many companies of demonic presences with her.  Jack and Jill had unwittingly invited her - and the spirits - into their home.

The Assault Intensifies

The windows, door, dryer vents were all anointed with oil and prayer, salt was sprinkled in some corners, curses were broken and demons told to get out.  Nothing discernible happened, but we believed something was going on in the spirit realm. After a few minutes, we felt our work in those rooms were complete.We went to the unfinished basement, scattered across the area, praying, binding the enemy and loosing heaven, anointing the windows and vents with oil and/or salt. Jack began to gain confidence and take authority, going to each corner, sealing each window. He was a true warrior, emboldened by our support.We went back upstairs and moved around the corner into the living room.Actual manifestations had happened in there... visions of spirits, freezing cold spots, the room shaking, and demonic laughter.  We repeated the steps, beginning with asking the Holy Spirit to reveal entry ways.One corner of the room had some pictures with bible verses on them and images that represented Jesus. They are all askew. Jack mentioned that probably happened when the room shook.Amy said these kind of representations are a common target for attack. Demons hate Jesus and anything that reminds them of him. They want to mock him by scaring us.  But there's no need for fear.Someone received a picture of a heating duct. We got to the praying and anointing. I still detected that red current, but fainter. I wasn't sure what it was about.

The Front Door.

Next, we went to the main entryway to the house. We all felt a very sickening feeling in our stomachs and hearts, like we were dying in our spirit.  Jill actually gripped her stomach."It feels very icky here," one of the ladies said. We all agreed. In fact, I sensed a vibration on my skin, a dark resonance that stirred my spirit, urging me to battle.Amy said, "This is going to be weird, but..."

In hindsight, that's a funny statement. To physical eyes with no supernatural worldview, what we were doing in general was weird; insane even.

Amy opened the door. Then she said with power and authority, "Spirits in this house. Get out."Even now, as I type this, I'm getting chills remembering what happened next.Normally on cool winter days, when you open a door in a warm house, you feel cool air rushing in.The opposite happened.Freezing cold air rushed from the kitchen and living room to the hallway and out of the door.  I felt it. We all felt it. The air whooshed so quickly you could hear it.Jill keeled over in pain. The rest of us began to command the dark spirits to go as well.With my spiritual eyes, I saw the red current stream outside, being pushed by a hot spiritual force.

Even now, with all the amazing supernatural events I've experienced, a part of my mind remains skeptical to some of this. When I felt and heard  the freezing cold air rushing past me to and out the front door, from my vantage point, I could see the backdoor and the refrigerator in the kitchen, and I looked, wondering if either was open. I looked for air ducts.  Where was the physical sensation of deathly cold air coming from? Later, I tested it again, opening the front door, and waiting for cold air to rush outside.  Nope. Cool air from outside tumbled in, per normal circumstances.

Later, Jill emailed me:

"Btw that entryway experience was awesome! I felt the Holy Spirit come through there like a big shove getting it all out...so awesome!"

Indeed, the ickiness was gone. Peace was there. I felt the battle had been won.I told Amy, "That was brilliant." She gave the credit so someone who taught her this when they came to clean our church.I really wish a seer had been among us. What did that actually look like? What would a seer have seen?

Upstairs

We next went upstairs, into each bedroom, each closet, anointing and praying, especially the master bedroom, which had experienced bed shaking and other creepy activity. I felt peace was reigning, but maybe that was because two little children were napping in there. Still, we quietly prayed, cleansed, and sealed the room.Heading back downstairs, I looked out a window, and saw with my spiritual eyes the dark spirits that had been in the house lining up across the street, unable to cross the property line. We would deal with them again later.After that, with the house cleaned, and an air of peace, joy and victory, we settled in the kitchen for a time and snacked and chatted some.  But our work wasn't complete.

Round 2: The Apartment

For a time, the people who brought the dark spiritual activity had lived in an apartment on their property, so it was time to clean that place out as well.Stepping in there was... like stepping into an inkwell of death. I think it was really jarring to our spirit, moving from such a victorious  field of battle to enemy territory. The heat wasn't on, so it was cool in there, but behind the coolness, something was causing a sensation in our spirit that I can only describe as shriveling, like a ripe grape being sucked of life to become a dry raisin.Jack pointed to the laundry area and said, "It's in there."I suggested we open front door, since it worked so brilliantly in the house, and this time...It happened again. Un-freaking-believable!  Rushing cold air; almost a howl.  Everyone was praying with authority and more than a little anger.Jill doubled over in pain again, this time collapsing in a chair. As I was praying, I stepped behind her, placed my hand lightly on her head and asked her to describe what she was feeling.She was feeling a deep clutching, gripping around her stomach and waist. That matched a picture I had of the spirit clutching on her but in my picture, I saw claws, like a cockroach trying to avoid being sucked out the door into a vacuum to hell.I was planning praying something like this: "By the blood of Jesus, I command you to go where Jesus  wants you to go." That is a good prayer when dealing with spirits. It reminds them the instrument of their destruction (the blood shed by Jesus on the cross); and Jesus has prepared a place for demons: hell. However, if a spirit happens to be a disembodied human who is somehow attached to a place, then the spirit will go to Jesus, and God will determine the best place.But this time an interesting thing happened. I said, "By the blood of Jesus, go-"Jill suddenly sat up, "It's gone."I immediately was thinking, "Dang it. He knew where I was going to send him." But it was gone, out the door in flash.When we were done, the apartment was clean. Peace reigned. God's Kingdom had come.

Seal the Deal

We prayed over the yard, broke the assignments of the spirits across the street so that they'd scatter, sprinkled salt here and there. It felt like a route. The enemy had broken ranks and was fleeing, and we were mopping up the corners.Finally, one of the ladies said, "What's that song, The enemy's been defeated?" We laughed.https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kjZfkgqHydMIt felt... and feels appropriate.We visited for a while, finishing off the snacks. We were all hungry.  The older couples left. Amy and I stayed a few more hours, debriefing some, and rehashing the missed signs before the attack.Later, Jill emailed me:

Thank you and Amy so very much for being there for us! The house is so peaceful! We are so drained but a good kind of drained like a relief!

To which our reply is, Jesus.Is.Amazing.To seal the deal and to prevent retaliation from the enemy, more prayer must and does go on over us, over the other couples, and over Jack and Jill's family. The battle was won, but the war isn't over.Some retaliatory actions have already happened. Jill was hit by a rogue rock in her eye, but there was no serious damage. A freakish accident, as it's called.

Why do attacks happen? 

Jill has felt remorse over her "lack of discernment" when beginning a friendship with someone who would bring such destruction to their lives.  Hindsight is 20/20 and yes, there had been warnings from the Holy Spirit. But these things happen. We miss signs. Sometimes we so want to see the best in people. The fact is, in this specific case, a very high-level spiritual attack was being mustered against a powerful advance of God's kingdom, and Jack and Jill were caught in the crossfire. We continue to believe and pray that what has been stolen from them will be restored in greater measure and the litigation will cease, in their favor.God does not send destructive people into our lives to wreck them. He does not send tornadoes to destroy our homes. He does not send cancer to make us sick.Satan does.While God can and does work through the bad things that come against us, ever since the Cross, he does not send the bad things.The fact is, since sin, the corrupting force in the universe, was introduced to creation by humans, a spiritual domain of darkness has held sway over the world.  With Jesus's first appearance, God's Kingdom launched a counter-offensive to begin overturning the works of the enemy.Understand this: the enemy comes to steal, kill and destroy. But I (Jesus) came that you might have life and have it abundantly (John 10).Yes, bad things will happen. Mistakes will be made. Christians will sin.  But that's not our reality. Our reality is the Kingdom of God has come and is coming and Christians can overturn the works of the enemy by taking back what was lost and bringing the Kingdom of God with love and power.http://open.spotify.com/track/6W6oqNDJixaJ1JLEPgoybH