Fasting for Breakthrough and Deliverance

This one thing I do, forgetting those things which are behind and reaching forward to those things which are ahead, I press toward the goal to the prize of the high calling of God in Christ Jesus.

IHAVE MINISTERED TO many believers who are still bound and tied to their past. The past can be a chain that keeps you from enjoying the present and being successful in the future. While ministering deliverance to a young man, I encountered a strong spirit dwelling in him who boasted that he would not depart. I commanded the spirit to identify himself, and he replied that his name was Past. The spirit proceeded to explain that it was his job to keep the young man bound to his past so that he could not be successful in his Christian walk. The young man had been through a divorce, and his past continued to haunt him. This encounter helped to give me a revelation of the fact that there are numerous spirits assigned to people to keep them bound to the past that has left scars and wounds that have not completely healed. Many of these wounds have been infected and have become the dwelling places of unclean spirits.

People need to be loosed not only from demons but also from other people. Ungodly soul ties are avenues that spirits of control and manipulation utilize when working upon their unwary victims.

Let’s look at some of the things that could cause spirits to attach themselves to people who have had traumatic experiences in their past. For the purposes of clarity, we find the word trauma defined by Webster’s as “a disordered psychic or behavioral state resulting from severe mental or emotional stress or physical injury.”¹

Traumatic experiences can open the door for demons. These can and often include accidents. Mentioned below are two such traumatic experiences that greatly affect the lives of individuals.

Rape is one of the most traumatic experiences a person can have. It is a violation that leaves deep scars in the psyche of the person who is victimized by this ungodly act. The door is opened for a host of evil spirits to enter and operate throughout the life of the victim.

Spirits of hurt, distrust, lust, perversion, anger, hatred, rage, bitterness, shame, guilt, and fear can enter and torment the person for the rest of their life if not discerned and cast out. Rape can also be a curse, and there is often a history of this sin in the bloodline.

Rape has always been in the history of oppressed people. It was (and is) common for victors to rape the women of the vanquished. It is one of the most shameful and humiliating acts that can be perpetrated upon an oppressed people.

Often victims of rape carry sexual blockages into marriage, including spirits of frigidity, bound and blocked emotions, hatred of men, and fear of sexual intercourse. Individuals can grow up with deep roots of bitterness that poison the system, opening the door for spirits of sickness and infirmity, including cancer.

Father, in Jesus’s name, I loose myself from this prowling demon that sought to steal, kill, and destroy my body, my sexuality, and my worth. I loose myself from any hatred, bitterness, and unforgiveness. I loose myself from blaming myself for this violation. I loose myself from any soul ties, spirits of infirmity, or other evil spirits that would seek to latch on to my life because of this trauma. I loose myself from any bondages that would keep me from experiencing healthy and free marital intimacy. Amen.

Another common sexual violation is the sin of incest. Incest can also result from a curse, and there can be a history of this sin in the bloodline. It is an act that causes much shame and guilt. It opens the door for all kinds of curses, including insanity, death, destruction, confusion, perversion, and sickness. Often the victim blames himself for this act even though it may have been the result of a seducing spirit.

Father, in Jesus’s name, I loose myself from the shame, guilt, soul ties, and any other hindering spirit that would try to keep me from living a whole and healthy life. I loose myself from the painful memories of this abuse and declare that I am washed clean, inside and out. I loose myself from every demonic spirit that would seek to enter through this open door, and I shut this door to my past and pray a hedge of protection around my future. Amen.

There is an evil spirit named memory recall that can cause a person to have flashbacks of past experiences. This keeps a person in bondage to traumatic experiences of the past. This spirit causes a person to remember experiences of hurt, pain, and rejection. Although there may be experiences in your life you will never completely forget, you should not be in bondage to the past through your memory.

The enemy should not be able to trigger things in your memory that hinder you in your present or future life. This is why your memory needs to be loosed from bad experiences of hurt and trauma.

The days of my mourning have past. I have now found favor in the sight of the King (Gen. 50:4).

My winter has past. The rain is over and gone. Flowers appear on the earth and the time of singing has come (Songs 2:11–12).

The mysteries of my past sufferings have been revealed to me. Now I can rejoice.

Glory forever to Jesus Christ who has established me according to the gospel and the preaching of Christ. My past is no longer a kept secret. Its purpose has been revealed through the prophetic Scriptures that I might believe and obey.

In my past I was not one of God’s people, but now I am. I had not received His mercy, but now I have (1 Pet. 2:10).

There is hope for my future. The Lord has plans to give me a peaceful and hopeful future (Jer. 29:11).

The sign of God’s covenant is with me and all my future generations.

This one thing I will do: Forget the past and reach forward to the things that are ahead. I will press toward the goal of the prize of the high calling of God in Christ Jesus (Phil. 3:13–14).