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THERE'S A DIFFERENCE?

I was shocked last week to hear from my high school crush. Athletic star, honor roll member, man of personality, musician, actor, anything good, he won an award for outstanding performance.

George galloped his white horse across my world for four years. My country girl heart thudded in his presence. He was my brother's best friend, and he hung out at our house, where our friends gathered to do what teens did in the 50s. Without computer games and TV!

I hadn't seen George since our last high school reunion. I knew this retired pastor had kept his good looks, good health and friendly personality. He'd lived in Florida for years.

When he contacted me last week, George said his wife had died and he'd like to refresh the friendship, something like that. Thrill of a lifetime, right?

All went well until George started assuming I was going to communicate with him without aid of phone or email. Use familiar spirits, in other words. Sorcery, to be blunt about it. When I told him I couldn't do that, my back started hurting and arthritis made my hip joints creak. I struggled to remember what I'd done five minutes ago. My stomach knotted as if I had stomach flu.

Was George putting New Age curses on me? I immediately used the defenses I'd learned to keep Jesus front and center in my life, (Read more in R U Bullied?)  and returned to normal. I shut down any communication with George after explaining he operates in sorcery!

A retired pastor. Son of godly parents and grandparents. George used sorcery!

Yes! That's what God calls it. Sorcery. "Use of supernatural power over others through the assistance of demons; witchcraft." Copied from ASK online.

Millions of people send curses [and demons] to harass anyone who crosses them or causes them real or imagined harm. Friends, this is NOT Holy Spirit directed behavior!

I met sorcery head-on in the mid-80s. Chuck, the attorney I shared office space with, recommended that I attend a conference in Colorado. I refused because of a vague suspicion, based on what Chuck told me we would be doing. He returned from the conference with stories that didn't jibe with my Holy-Spirit-filled world and the Word of God. Chuck saw Jesus at the conference, but his description did not match the Jesus of the Bible.

"Oh Chuck," I said, "They taught you New Age--the demons they taught you to manipulate and send out are the same Babylonian demons that destroyed the Israelites and sent them into captivity before Jesus was born."

Chuck laughed at me, as if I'd lost a marble or two. He started causing my face to turn red. He laughed when he saw me squirming behind my desk. I experienced confusion when I tried to see what Chuck asked for on my desk and hand it to him. I forgot things and made stupid comments. More ridicule. More of Chuck's strutting and gloating.

"What can I do about this, Lord?" I prayed.

"Pray in the prayer language that Chuck will make Jesus Lord of his life." For the next few months, before I moved out of the shared office arrangement, I prayed for Chuck. I discovered my mind has a second tier, that allowed me to pray for Chuck and continue my daily duties.

Suddenly my attorney friend stumbled and mumbled through his legal duties. He expressed gratitude when I stopped my prayers long enough for him to conduct an important meeting. He begged. He groveled. He could never match the power he used with the Holy Spirit's grand power I used.

I learned to pray silently as I carried out the tasks required for my business support service. Any time I was awake, 24/7, I prayed for Chuck.

For 35 years I have asked the Lord to teach me what He wants me to know. (Psalm 25:4) You've read past posts about some of the amazing things He taught me. By His grace I've learned the difference between Holy Spirit power and the dark power wielded by the enemy of our souls.

There is no other power. We operate either in God's immense power, or we use the evil power from the wicked spheres where Satan dwells. In spite of what our modern thinkers say, the Bible is still the Truth. God's standards have not changed.

Remember, Satan tried to kill Jesus at the cross. [Jesus laid down His life; nobody killed him.] Satan thought he had Jesus beaten, bruised, humiliated and crucified, but three days later Jesus rose from the dead! Victorious! Satan's phony power failed him. He was forced to bow to the Winner! The mighty Son of God!

Ask the Holy Spirit to teach you the difference between these two powers, and help you choose Jesus' winning power every time.

This morning I re-read I Corinthians 10 and Galatians 5 to review what God says will happen to people who use sorcery. I hope you read the passages yourself.

This is serious, friends! People who think they are Christians and practice sorcery will lose fellowship with God! Anyone who uses sorcery will be refused entrance to heaven! I John 1:9 - confess your sins and forsake them!

You don't want to go to Hell.  http://spiritlessons.com/Documents/BillWiese_23MinutesinHell_Text.htm

You want to go to Heaven.  http://www.amazon.com/Heaven-Real-Little-Astounding-Story/dp/0849946158

Now you know what I tell anyone involved in sorcery, including George. His good looks, his money, anything in the whole wide world would not make up for the loss of my relationship with the God of the Universe. Read more in R U Bullied?, where three chapters are dedicated to the power and work of the Holy Spirit in a human life.

I know--I've tried to condense a book's worth of material into a thousand-word blog post. I'll respond to your comments/questions if they're respectful. Leave a comment. If I don't know the answer to your question, I'll ask someone who knows.