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by Gabriele Massie
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Christians agree that spiritual warfare is a real battle
Forty-nine percent of the Christians polled said they had experienced spiritual warfare, resulting in feelings of depression, emotional swings, anger, fear, loneliness, mistrust, etc.
Twenty-seven percent talked of experiences where Satan had attacked their minds. They attributed to Satan bad thoughts, false perceptions about others, confusion and even suicidal thoughts at times.
Katie Nilson, an MBC freshman, described spiritual warfare as being "an all-out war that can't be seen. Satan attacks my mind, trying to tell me that I am what I used to be when that's not who I am."
Jennifer Sloma, an MBC seminary student, said Christians experience greater spiritual warfare when they are "really living the life God calls us to. If we are not being attacked, then something is wrong. Praise the Lord that we are threatened."
Dr. Thomas Hauff, an MBC prof-essor, described spiritual warfare as "anything that works against you fulfilling your gift."
Eleven of the 41 Christians said they had experienced the greatest warfare while actively engaging in ministry, taking steps of faith, witnessing or trying to communicate a deep spiritual truth.
Nine Christians spoke of physical attacks by demons by experiencing harassment, being physically held down in bed by the arms, having sudden sicknesses and near accidents while doing the Lord's work and experiencing physical manifestations of the spirits.
Joe Grysban, an MBC junior and the former pastor of a small church in Gig Harbor, Wash., for 10 years, remembered having a vision of the inside of an unbeliever's brain. He said it looked like "spirits swimming around together like maggots."
John Wallace, a former MBC student and retired police officer in Seaside, Ore., witnessed demonic activity within the drug culture. Wallace said, "As a police officer, I saw demonic possession disguised as mental disease. Our culture sees it as a disease and puts [the possessed] into an institution." He said that a large Bible, collecting dust, was found in almost every drug addict's house.
Twenty-five percent mentioned the hidden aspects of spiritual warfare while comparing their experiences in the United States to those during mission trips in foreign countries--Africa, Costa Rica, Japan, Mexico and New Guinea.
"I think that Satan is more crafty in America than other places in the world," Amber Schieck, an MBC junior, said. She said that post-modern relativism hides the deceptions of a crafty enemy.
Dr. Calvin Blom, an MBC seminary professor who teaches spiritual warfare, said that since about 1980 the U.S. culture has become more open to the spiritual realm. He pointed to the popular fascination with angels. Because culture can't answer some questions, Americans believe angels connect them to the supernatural.
"Spiritual warfare is a whole lot more than casting out demons," he said. "It's 24/7, and I'm sick of it."
Two Christians said they had been demon-possessed prior to becoming a Christian. They had had visions and received prophecy and were heavily involved in the occult.
No one surveyed believed that a Christian could be possessed by a demon, but several had observed demon possession in non-believers.
Six of the 41 Christians polled had never heard of the term "spiritual warfare." Two were unsure what it was or if they could recognize it.
Forty-one professing Christians were asked the question, "What has been your experience with spiritual warfare?" Twenty-seven surveys were taken on the MBC campus and 14 off campus. The poll included 18 males and 23 females.
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