It was the night before Katherine’s baptism, and she was very sick.
That evening, as I visited her at her home, she showed me a metal charm bracelet the people of the village had given her. At first, she had put it on. Then, thinking better of it, she had taken it off and buried it. However, the bracelet had come back.

Now, many of you may not understand what that means. Here in West Africa, evil spirits operate much more openly than they do in the States. Asserting their claim over Katherine through the bracelet, the spirits had dug it up and returned it to her house. Desperate, she asked me to get rid of it for her.

“I’d be glad to dispose of it,” I told Katherine, “but first we need to pray and ask God to break its lines of control over you and anyone else who has touched it.” I prayed that God would protect Katherine and that all Satan’s power over her, her children and her grandchildren would be broken. Then, in the name of Jesus, I commanded Satan to leave because he had no right over her or any of her children living or to be born. I then made a mistake. I touched the bracelet—something destined for destruction (Josh. 7:11; Deut. 7:26). Instead of burning it where it lay, I picked it up and put it in my pack. I said goodbye to Katherine and left with her son.

As we walked, I came under heavy satanic attack. If you have never felt the fear a satanic attack brings, it is impossible to describe. If you don’t have hope in God, it could easily drive you insane.

The fear oppressed me more and more the farther we walked from Katherine’s home. I fought back and prayed, holding onto my faith in God’s power to liberate me. As soon as Katherine’s son parted ways with me, I made a mad dash across the road to an empty field. I pulled together a hasty pile of dried weeds and sticks, put the bracelet in the middle, struck a match and set the tinder on fire. I prayed that God would forgive me for touching something that was demonic (2 Cor. 6:17), and I asked for His protection. Then I rebuked Satan again in Jesus’ name, ordering him to leave me (Mark 16:17). As I waited for the fire to burn down, I sang about Jesus and His saving blood. When the fire was out, I placed a large rock on the remains of the bracelet.

I sang the whole way home. By the time I got there, all fear was gone, and I was free. I enjoyed a peaceful sleep that night. Praise God for the freedom Jesus gave us!

Do you have any detestable things destined for destruction in your home? Such things take many forms. Cards or videos with satanic representations, games, clothes, good luck charms, statues or masks from other countries that represent gods, souvenirs or jewelry with spiritual significance, pornographic material, things related to the occult or secret societies. Deuteronomy 7:26 tells us that, by keeping such things, we set ourselves apart for destruction. Please don’t think that because you live in a developed country Satan doesn’t work there. Though he isn’t as visible in the West as he is here in Benin, the cradle of Voodoo, he is just as active. Though the Old Testament warnings about satanic things are thousands of years old, they are still very important and relevant.

“Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles, and let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us” (Heb. 12:1).

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