I ran across this quote that I thought was worth reposting today.

“If not dealt with through repentance and cleansing of generational blood , we walk around with generational voices , traumas, and inequities screaming in our DNA . They demand that we bend towards their command. They want us to pay rent to their altars . We walk around believing that what we consider as truth, is absolute truth! Lies masquerade as truth behind culture, tradition and whatever has been passed down through our ancestral lines. Repentance is an act of cutting  deep in ourselves until we see our own prejudices. 
It’s being willing to change our minds about certain races , tribes, people , nationalities and what we’ve considered as truth . Until we see what’s at work within us , we will never see a desperation for repentance no matter what it costs us. 

Bloodline Repentance sets me free from generational giants who had held my family in bondage , who have influenced the way I see things , the way I do life and the way I subconsciously operate. It sets me free from demonic cycles . Understand this my friend , we are deep beings (spirit , soul and body- and there are untouched layers within these layers. Never miss an opportunity of dealing with a layer of who you are through repentance.” Nonhlanhla Maseko-Gcabashe

I don’t know the author of the above quote, but the longer I minister in spiritual warfare, the more I believe we must pay attention to generational curses assigned to our bloodlines. Remember the principle that the sins of the fathers shall be passed down to the third and fourth generations (Ex. 20:5). As generations continue the sin that established that curse, the curse keeps being pushed forward and will remain until the blood of Christ breaks the curse through our confession and repentance on behalf of our bloodlines.

If you read through Daniel and Nehemiah, when praying for the nation of Israel, they confessed not only their own sins but also the sins and wickedness of their fathers as they plead for God’s mercy. We represent our own bloodlines and may need to confess, repent, and renounce any sins we are aware of that have been passed down through the generations. Sometimes we can identify that sin because we struggle with something we have also seen in our family line such as sexual sin, greed, fear, bitterness, violence, witchcraft, etc.

We may have also seen the consequences of that sin in multiple divorces, addictions, broken identities, poverty, suicides, violence, and generations of depression. What the author of the quote I began with did not clearly point out is that the voices screaming from our DNA are demonic. Not only do sins need to be confessed and renounced, but demons need to be dismissed. Sometimes parents forget that though they have broken a generational curse, demons can still be attached to them and their children until they are commanded to leave. Breaking the curse takes away the legal right of the demonic to remain, but they will still remain until forced to leave.

The challenge with generational curses is that many of us don’t know much about our family lines. It would not hurt to find out what we can…the good, the bad, and the ugly. We may also know if we have bloodlines that go back to ancestors who worshipped false gods, practiced human sacrifice, or that persecuted Jews. If so, we may need to repent of those things in the name of Jesus. We may also want to spend a season asking the Holy Spirit to reveal anything in our bloodlines that the enemy can use against us so that we can submit those things to the cross as well.

In the book of Revelation we are told, “Now have come the salvation and the power and the kingdom of our God, and the authority of his Christ. For the accuser of our brothers, who accuses them before our God day and night, has been hurled down” (Rev. 12:10).  Satan constantly appears before God accusing us of sin so that he might gain legal access to afflict us. Much of what he uses to gain that legal right is generational. If we can confess and renounces specific sins of our fathers, we should. But if not, we can follow the example of the prophets who simply confessed the wickedness and rebellion of their forefathers. If you have not spent anytime with the Lord dealing with these generational sins and curses, I encourage you to do so. They are very real and a real source of access to the enemy.

Blessings in Him.

As a church that has ministered deliverance to adults for years, we are often asked about children and deliverance.  The questions generally are:

• Can children be demonized?
• If parents break generational curses, are the children set free from the effects?
• Should you minister deliverance to children and, if so, how?
• What should you do if your child tells you that he/she is seeing something scary in their room?

These are legitimate questions that books on deliverance rarely deal with, so I thought I would take a couple of blogs to respond to these.   By the way, there seems to have been a definite increase in demonic activity in the last year, at least in our area, and children are being affected as well.   As many in America pursue sin and perversion and as many of our national leaders do the same, the spiritual gates have been opened wide for the demonic to be active in our nation. Because of that, we can expect demonization of individuals and demonic manifestations to be heightened.  The enemy always pursues the most vulnerable, so we can also expect children to be targeted as well as adults.  

The first question is whether or not children can be demonized.  I guess we ask that because we assume that God would protect children because he cares for them in a special way (Matt.18:10) or because they are innocent and Satan should have no legal right to afflict them.  In Mark 9, a man came to Jesus whose son had been tormented by demons manifesting as seizures.  The text says, “When the spirit saw Jesus, it immediately threw the boy into a convulsion. He fell to the ground and rolled around, foaming at the mouth. Jesus asked the boy’s father, ‘How long has he been like this?’ ‘From childhood,’ he answered. ‘It has often thrown him into fire or water to kill him. But if you can do anything, take pity on us and help us’” (Mk.9:20-22). Clearly, children can be afflicted by demons. 

Demons can attach themselves to children as a consequence of generational sin, curses, or trauma. The trauma of abuse, the loss of a parent or sibling, a severe injury or illness, etc. can easily open a child up to a spirit of rejection and/or fear.  Spirits of trauma can also attach to physical or emotional wounds and hinder their healing.  

Curses spoken over the child by those who have spiritual authority over them (typically parents) can also give the enemy a legal right to afflict a child. This can happen in unplanned pregnancies where a parent might say that he or she wishes the child would miscarry or “never be born” or that this child would bring them nothing but pain and sorrow, etc.  Words like that can open the door to spirits of rejection, infirmity, death, or an orphan spirit. 

Generational spirits of fear, anger, infirmity, lying, rejection, stupor, etc. can also be passed down to a child. We have seen these show up and manifest as learning disabilities, feelings of self-hatred from an early age, cutting, extreme anger, obsessiveness, chronic lying, etc. even in young children.  Of course, all these conditions can be physiological and not demonic, but in our experience, many have a demonic componnt.

I always feel a need to remind anyone reading this that demonization is not possession. Demonization means that demons are afflicting an individual in one part of their life while the rest is fairly functional. One part can impact the other parts, but typically the person is out of control in only one or two areas and not all of the time.  The most effective demons are those that mimic physiological or psychological conditions that exist in the natural realm.  They do so without manifesting in such extreme ways that we might suddenly wonder if something beyond the natural was occurring.

We also need to remember that demonization does not nullify salvation.  Demonization effects our ability to mature spiritually or develop fruits of the Spirit, but does not affect our salvation. Sometimes, believers want to deny demonization because they think it means they belong to Satan and are, therefore, lost. Deliverance is about sanctification rather than salvation.  

So, how do we know if a child’s “issues” come from the natural realm or are a manifestation of the spiritual realm?  Sometimes, it is hard to know.  However, if everything has been tried that should help, but has not brought any lasting healing or freedom, demonic activity could be indicated.  If you see something in the child’s eye’s that seems unnatural when an issue is manifesting, it is likely demonic. If a child tells you that something or someone is telling them to hate, hurt, or be afraid, that could be demonic.  If a child has been abused or traumatized, then be sensitive to the possibility of demonization.  Before anything else, ask the Holy Spirit to show you if something demonic is in play.  If you know someone who has a strong gift of discernment, ask that person for their impressions.

Our general rule is that if we are unsure, minister deliverance. Cover the base.   If something manifests or something changes, then demons were involved. If not, keep seeking answers in the natural realm.  Next week, I will talk about appropriate deliverance for children and how to equip them appropriately for spiritual warfare.