Do you feel like you are fighting demons?!! Like there is a war in your mind? A bad habit you can’t get rid of? Depression that is sinking you??
Have you guys ever heard the story of Mary Magdalene? Mary Magdalene reminds me of myself. Mary Magdalene was fighting seven demons. Now I don’t think the Bible mentions exactly what these 7 demons are. But we do know that she was tormented, depressed, and basically a dead woman walking!
But when I think about 7 demons, we can relate that to what people struggle with today:
1. Alcoholism – which to me is really what I call “the devil’s juice”, it can make you do things you would never do and it also kills your insides because it is basically poison.
2. Drug Addiction – I think many of you would agree that this is absolutely a demon. This can make people steal, lie, abandon their own families and kids, and some people would prefer to be homeless as long as they get their next hit.
3. Pornography / Strip Clubs- This one might be controversial. But don’t take this one lightly, it is certainly a demon. Because it becomes an addiction and ruins families and relationships. And makes you never respect or fall in love with your spouses body because you have a non-realistic ideal image in your head.
4. Feelings of worthlessness – This is a demon because if you feel worthless then there is not much you will do for your life or for others. And not to mention, you are questioning God’s creation. And God does not make mistakes.
5. Gambling/Obsession with money/Greed – Whatever you want to call it. This is a demon for sure. Because this causes people to sell drugs, waste all of their money at the Casino and can ruin lives and families.
6. Prostitution / Sex before marriage / sexual immorality / Infidelity/Cheating- I guess I could have added this to #3 but I think it is important to have its own category. Because this could cause people to catch diseases, such as HIV, can ruin families and can cause people to have low self-worth and low self-esteem because it will make you feel disgusted with yourself.
7. Worry / Fear / Lack of hope/confidence about the future/Depression – This is certainly a demon, because it steals our joy, prevents us from living in the moment and takes us from family and friends, makes a sink further and further into a depression.
So maybe these were some of the 7 demons Mary Magdalene dealt with. Mary screamed, cried, and was miserable for years, so much so that she originally didn’t even tell anyone her real name because she was so ashamed of herself.
But there was one person who knew her name. There was only one person who could heal her from her 7 demons. The priest tried, family and friends tried, other religious leaders tried. But the scripture tells us that only God himself could heal her.
So Jesus called her and saw her for who she could become and who she was in her heart, not for the demons she was fighting.
Some people are afraid to draw near to God because you think He might judge you for your demons. But in fact, the opposite is true, God knows that He is the only ONE who can heal you from your demons.
After ONE encounter with JESUS, she turned into a completely different woman!!!!!! So much so, that people who used to know her could not even recognize her.
She became so in love with Jesus and she was completely set free. She became very close to Jesus, one of his followers. And never wanted to leave HIS side.
And that is why I can relate to Mary. I believe in Jesus and want others to build a relationship with him too, not because I have to. Telling others about Jesus is not technically a requirement for access to heaven.
But I share the Word of God and share what I know about Jesus because He has done the same thing for me. He set me free from my demons, cleaned me up and has allowed me to find joy, happiness, peace and so much more in my life.
And like Mary Magdalene, I will never ever leave His side, and my prayer is that we all can encounter Jesus in such a way that washes all of our demons away. Comment amen or 🙏 if you want me to pray for you!
Blessings XOXO,
Tarinah