Just as some of you, I was harassed by fear for many years.  

Even in the womb I believe my spirit felt rejection.  It wasn’t that my parents didn’t love me, but I wasn’t planned.  My arrival into this world wasn’t in my Mom’s timing.  She thought she was finished when she had a boy and then a girl – two years apart.  Nine years later – SURPRISE – I came bouncing into the world.

I’m sharing this to tell you that satan does NOT play fair!  He hates us and tries to plant lies into our minds at the youngest age possible.  

Ephesians 6:12
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.

God’s Word is truth.  Paul is telling us that we WRESTLE against spiritual wickedness.  Did you see that?  I don’t know about you, but the verb wrestle isn’t something “light” to me.  I envision a struggle!  I see a picture of two forces pushing against one another until one submits.

Are you in a battle?  YES.  With who?  The enemy of our souls and his demons, that’s who.  Do we put our focus on him and what he is doing?  NO.  I don’t want to give him any honor or glory, but I DO want to make some aware of his schemes.  

I meet many people who walk down a similar path that I did and I want to share some of the steps I took to OVERCOME and walk in FREEDOM.  

1.  I learned that as a Christian I had AUTHORITY over the enemy who was attacking me.  Did you even realize Christians can be oppressed by demons?  It is true.

Luke 10:19
Behold, I give you the authority to trample on serpents and scorpions, and over all the power of the enemy, and nothing shall by any means hurt you.

Just place your name in that scripture to make it personal if that helps:  “Beth, behold, I have given YOU the authority …”  Did you see that?  God has given us the authority OVER ALL the power of the enemy.  What good is this authority for those who don’t even realize they have it?  

Colossians 2:13-15
When you were dead in your sins and in the uncircumcision of your sinful nature, God made you alive with Christ. He forgave us all our sins,  having canceled the written code, with its regulations, that was against us and that stood opposed to us; he took it away, nailing it to the cross.  And having disarmed the powers and authorities, he made a public spectacle of them, triumphing over them by the cross.

Jesus DISARMED the powers and authorities!

What are these scriptures to you?  EVERYTHING.  Trust me!


2.  I learned that the devil is crafty and often speaks to us in 1st person.  He plants thoughts in your mind, but you believe it is your own thought.  You may hear a thought, “I’m stupid.  I’m going to fail.  I’ll never get it right.  I’ll never be free.  I have no hope.  I have no future.  I can’t change.”  If the thoughts came in 3rd person as, “You’re stupid.  You’re going to fail.  You’ll never get it right, etc …”  you would eventually figure out that someone or something placed the thoughts in your mind.  Does that make sense?

When I was bound by fear and suffering from panic attacks, I would always hear, “I’m going to have an attack.  I won’t be able to breathe.  I will lose control.”  Those taunting thoughts would prepare me and work my breathing up to the point that I WOULD have an attack.  The thoughts would talk me right into one.  Argh, it really angers me now — how easily the enemy could manipulate my thoughts.  

3.  I learned about the AUTHORITY and POWER of God’s Word!!

Hebrews 4:12
For the word of God is living and powerful, and sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing even to the division of soul and spirit, and of joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart.

Did you read that?  The WORD is LIVING and POWERFUL.  These scriptures are ALIVE.  Living things have a purpose.  They move and change the world around them, right?  

Isaiah 55:11
So shall My word be that goes forth from My mouth; It shall not return to Me void, But it shall accomplish what I please, And it shall prosper in the thing for which I sent it.

When we speak God’s Word IT ACCOMPLISHES something.  The Amplified Version states that void means “without producing any effect, useless.”  The Word of God moves out into the atmosphere and EFFECTS our circumstances and our lives.  

4.  I learned to follow the example of Jesus.  


If you haven’t read the story of Jesus being tempted in the wilderness, go to biblegateway.com or turn in your bible to Matthew chapter 4.  Each time Jesus was tempted by the devil, He answered him with God’s Word.  He quoted it (used the SWORD) as His defense.  We should do the same thing!


Back to my own example.  Attacks happened to me at stop lights when they turned red.  I felt trapped and just approaching one would bring great anxiety.  I didn’t know the scriptures by heart, so I wrote them on index cards and kept them in my car.  As I started approaching a light, I would grab my cards and OUT LOUD I would confess God’s Word over myself.

Matthew 18:18
Assuredly, I say to you, whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth will be loosed in heaven.

God’s Word said if I bound it — it is bound, so I would say OUT LOUD, “Spirit of fear, I BIND YOU in the Name of Jesus!  God’s Word says that what I bind on earth will be bound in heaven and I bind you!”  I confessed God’s Word AND I believed that it would happen.  

You may be confused about the “heaven” part … Just a quick note about this.  Ephesians describes satan as the prince of the air.  He and his demons are in our atmosphere — what we consider the air — the heaven over us.  Ephesians 2:2 in the New KJV describes him as the prince of the air.  The NIV 1984 version calls him the ruler of the kingdom of the air.  


Ok, back to my example.  I would also quote scriptures about fear (because GOD’S WORD IS LIVING – it has an EFFECT — it is a SWORD and I followed Jesus’ example).  


I would say OUT LOUD, “God has NOT given me a spirit of FEAR, but of power, of love, and of a SOUND MIND! IT IS WRITTEN!”  

2 Timothy 1:7
For God has not given us a spirit of fear, but of power and of love and of a sound mind.

 I would quote other scriptures as well.  That was just two examples.  I would remind the devil that Jesus made a public spectacle of him on the cross and DISARMED him.  

4.  I learned that though our battle IS against spiritual wickedness, we can play a part in this as well.  WE can open doors to the devil and give him legal right to harass us.  UNFORGIVENESS IS A HUGE DOOR.  Can I shout that from the mountain tops?!?!?  Do you know that God can’t forgive us unless we forgive others?  How scary is that?  I can show you the scriptures if you’d like.  (Of course there are obvious doors like witchcraft, occult practices, etc ..)

So many have battles and cry out for God to set them free.  Trust me — been there!  But I have great news for you!  JESUS HAS ALREADY SET YOU FREE.  You have the keys to remove the chains!  Did you know it?  Jesus did everything needed for you to walk in freedom and liberty.


The thing is YOU HAVE TO DO IT.  YOU must read God’s Word and learn it for yourself.  YOU must decide to take a stand and use the scriptures as your sword.  YOU must walk in the authority that has been given to you.  Nobody can do it for you.  I can pray for you — others can pray for you.  That will help and can offer relief, but ultimately YOU must renew your mind with His Word and BELIEVE that YOU ARE who His Word says YOU ARE as a Christian.  


I can hear someone right now, “I can’t do it.  This is too much to ask.”  YES YOU CAN DO IT because IF you are a Christian, you have the Holy Spirit living inside of you.  You can do ALL THINGS through Him who gives you strength.  If I can do it – someone who had NOBODY to teach me other than the Holy Spirit — YOU can do it.  You have been given some very important keys here.  YOU CAN do this. 

Philippians 4:13
I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me.

If you have any questions, please feel free to contact me at [email protected]

Romans 8:37-39
Yet in all these things we are more than conquerors through Him who loved us.  For I am persuaded that neither death nor life, nor angels nor principalities nor powers, nor things present nor things to come,  nor height nor depth, nor any other created thing, shall be able to separate us from the love of God which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.