Yesterday morning I got the sudden desire to change my plans for the evening. I was due to celebrate a friend’s birthday at a new restaurant downtown and out of the blue I had a strong desire to make my evening open. I text my friend and apologized promising I’d make it up to her by taking her to dinner for her birthday another evening. About an hour later I was walking into Mass and was stopped by Fr. TJ, “Are you available to help me out with something tonight?” he asked. “Yes, I am,” I said. “What is it?”
“I got a call from a woman who has been having some strange things go in her house and she wants me to come bless her home,” he said.
If you followed the blog from when I did the original 365 day challenge I’m sure you’ll remember another post where Fr. TJ and I went to a home with similar issues. It’s kind of nice to be considered to join in this healing event. 😉
We set time and place to meet and later after Mass he filled me in a little bit more about the situation. This woman and her family don’t live in Kingwood so it would be a bit of a drive but I didn’t have any reservations. I knew I needed to go. When I told Neal what I was doing later that night instead of having dinner downtown I thought he’d give me grief but instead he acted as if it were an every day occurrence. (Maybe I’m rubbing off on him 😉 )
On the way to the woman’s house I was feeling anxious. I was going over the information Fr. TJ had given me in my head and there were many questions that I wanted to ask. It felt too familiar. Fr. TJ looked over at me and said, “Why are you sitting with your arms folded like that? What’s wrong?”
I thought about how I wanted to answer because I was trying to figure it out for myself! “I’m frustrated because I didn’t bless myself with the holy water my friend gave me that was blessed by the Benedictine priest.” Realizing what I was saying TO A PRIEST I laughed and said, “I mean you can bless me, I know this but I just wanted to make sure I am covered with prayer because I don’t want enter into this and be susceptible to taking on any kind of bad spirit.”
Fr. TJ gets very excited about the gifts he has received in being a priest and at times he can be very animated in his gestures and homilies…this car ride was no different. Nearly bouncing in his seat he said, “Well, you know, I can give you absolution through reconciliation which will clean your spirit and the enemy can’t touch you! Do you want to do that?”
“Yes,” I answered quickly. “I do. That would make me feel prepared.”
When we got to the residence before going to the front door Fr. TJ put on his stole and he offered me the Sacrament of Reconciliation. I got off my chest anything that was troubling me, he gave me a penance, I offered up an act of contrition and then he gave me the greatest prayer of absolution. Once that was done he looked at me and said, “Okay, you ready?”
“Yes!” I said emphatically. When I stepped out of the car I was already struck with the uneasy feeling I get when things just ‘aren’t right’.
For two hours were visited with this woman and her husband. They told us about all the things that were seen, heard, felt, even showed pictures of how this evil could manifest on the body as scratch marks and then fade away. Many, if not most of the stories and things that took place I could relate too at one point in my life. In an effort to keep the evening sacred I don’t wish to focus too much on how the enemy has chosen to plague this woman and her family but after a lot of probing and listening I began to recognize that she too had a gift of discernment of spirits just as I do and I know many of you do as well (because you’ve come up to me and shared your stories!).
“You have experienced things before in your past where you’ve either seen someone, sensed someone, or had strange things happen that are unexplainable haven’t you?” I asked. Her husband jumped in before she could, “Yes, she does. We’ve been married 11 years and she’s always had strange things happen.”
I could see her mind recalling a few of these moments and she told me about a particular instance where someone helped her out of a sticky situation and she never saw that person’s face and the person vanished…the person could not be found. That remained with her and she would joke “Oh that was an angel.” I told her she was probably right. I then asked her, “Have you made any changes in your life recently for the better? Have you been away from the church and have come back? Have you tried to become a better person, etc?”
There is no greater gift to me than to watch a person have an epiphany that can only be coming from the love of God. She looked at me and said, “How did you know this? Yes!” Then she stopped and looked at me with a look of determination. “Tell me how you know this. Tell me what happened to you.” So I briefly told her my story and how when I was in college and felt the longing to come back to God and begin making my life ‘right’ the worst of the spiritual warfare began.
Her eyes were as big as lemons. “That is exactly it! Oh my…I can totally relate to you…” she paused and gathered her emotions. She then proceeded to tell us about a past filled with abuse and situations that the enemy loved to use as his power to keep her angry, resentful and away from God. Just recently she had decided she didn’t want to be that person anymore, she wanted to get rid of the anger and resentment so she set out for answers to questions she had in regards to the abuse that took place. She was becoming free, with understanding, compassion and she was getting closer to God. This is when the worst of the ‘happenings’ in her house began.
There was a Bible sitting on the table so I picked it up and read the verse from Ephesians 5:6-14 where EXPOSED received its title. Our conversation then went to what it was she could do to continue to FIGHT this battle and become the woman God created her to be. Fr. TJ helped out the most in this area, giving her and her husband spiritual direction. We made it clear the fight wasn’t over, she still had a lot of work to do but now that she recognized it for what it was the fear could be gone. The enemy has a hard time still playing his theatrical tricks when there is no fear within you.
We prayed together a prayer of deliverance and peace for the family and then Fr. TJ blessed the house.
By the time we left it was very late into the evening and Fr. TJ and I looked at each other and gave one another a high five. Who knew we came to do ‘demon’ busting by healing a wounded heart? This was truly a life-giving moment for me. When all was said and done I had looked at the woman who literally appeared more peaceful before our eyes and it dawned on me how much God loved her. I told her about the fact that I had other plans that evening but felt the ‘call’ to cancel them. Fr. TJ looked surprised, “You didn’t tell me that!” he said. “I know because I didn’t have plans when you asked. I’d already canceled them.”
I looked at the woman and said, “I am blessed to have been able to come here and be with you. Lately I’ve been trying to be obedient to where God wants me on a moment by moment basis and for Him to have canceled my plans and then brought me here…to me that is His way of saying ‘I need you to be there for her.’ He loves you so much and he doesn’t want you to spend anymore energy or time on the enemy and his tricks.”
I hope to hear from this woman again… I have no doubt she is strong and will fight the good fight! Plus, it’s not often I get to meet someone who has seen the things that I have in such detail as well. In many ways God gave me a side gift too through the continuous validation.
Finally, the greatest news of the evening….the woman was raised Catholic, received all of her Sacraments, etc….but had gone away from the church. After Fr. TJ’s convincing I’m pretty sure this woman will be coming back to the faith and her husband going into RCIA! At least that is the hope and prayer…so PLEASE PRAY FOR THEM! 🙂
Blessings
Shannon