Would like feedback

[mandy30]

A few years back, I was wanting to change my life around. I stopped drinking and smoking and started gaining an interest in my faith. I was reading books and praying at night to myself and would pray silently to God for patience, to be my best as a mother, etc…Just daily difficulties I seemed to be having at the moment.

One night I woke up terrified and I don’t know why. I had no dreams of anything that I could recall, and just woke up that way in the middle of the night. I believe it was around Christmas time because my bedroom door was open and there was light illuminating from the living room and that was usually the only time I left any lights on. So anyway, I woke up terrified and I started praying for God to take my fear, and all of a sudden I hear this very raspy, deep and ugly voice that said, why are you praying, there’s no God here, or He’s not listening. I instantly stopped praying and became frozen. I was so scared I don’t think I even moved or remembered to breathe. I did keep praying silently, and what seemed like forever I was able to cover my head with my blankets. That hasn’t happened since, but I remember I slept with the lights on for a while!

Another incident was when I lived in an apartment in October 2009-March 2010. There was a time when I was sitting in front of my TV and I heard papers rustling, and my papers that were on the couch moved.

There was another incident where I was sitting in my little living room and I heard a noise in my bathroom like something falling. When I went to check it out, there was my necklace on the floor by the toilet. I have no idea how that could’ve happened because I had a glass candle holder with a lid on it and the lid had a metal thing that was about an inch on top of it so I could grab that and lift the lid off. I wrapped my necklace around that so it would stay in place and wouldn’t fall. So when it did fall, I was confused how that happened.

Another time in the middle of the night, I got up to use the restroom. It was dark and when I came out and was going through the small kitchen, I had the feeling that something was behind me and felt warmth on the back of my neck. Almost like breathing on my skin.

And now in this house I don’t get scared but when I first moved in I would hear knocking coming from my bedroom. I haven’t heard it in a while, but that just struck me as odd.

I don’t know if this is relevant, but when I was like between 7-9 I stayed home by myself and was told not to turn any lights on until my parents came back. It was like 5 in the evening and it was already dark, and my parents were going to the store quick. So when I was sitting on the floor in front of the TV I felt something on my stomach. To me it felt like someone ran their hand over my stomach. That was the only time I ever experienced anything young…

So I am just trying to find out or make sense of what this means or could mean. I don’t know what to think. I am just looking for any kind of feedback from anyone. I haven’t really researched any of this or talked to too many people about it. And when I did no one really knew what to say or give any advice. So if you know where I can research this I’d appreciate it.

 

[EricFilmer]

Hello Mandy, and welcome to CAF.

People often experience what appears to be strange phenomena in their homes which have an unnoticed but natural explanation (a draft of air moves something, a temperature causes a board to creek, a dream seems more like a real vision, etc.). I tend to look for natural explanations as a first recourse, and I’m sure that this was your first reaction as well (so I hope I am not sounding condescending, because that is not my intention). Nevertheless, being a spiritual person and believing what the Catholic Church teaches about demonic activity, I do not rule out the possibility of supernatural explanations. So I do not make light of what you have described, nor do I make light of your concerns.

In answer to your post, I would like to point out that the devil messes with everyone, it is simply a question as to what degree with each individual. In light of this, spiritual warfare is an important aspect to the practice of Christianity. Therefore, regardless of whether or not there is a natural explanation for what you have experienced, I suggest that you incorporate spiritual warfare into your daily prayer life.

For a Christian, this all starts with baptism, and I presume that you have already been baptized. Your posted information did not say much about your faith background, but if you are a Catholic then I recommend staying close to the sacraments of the Church (especially Confession and the Eucharist, with the latter including Mass and Holy Hours) and engaging in devotional practices that are often used in the context of spiritual warfare (such as the Our Father, Rosary, the Prayer to St. Michael, Holy Water, St. Benedict Medals, Deliverance Prayers, etc.). A house blessing would also be a good idea. Ultimately these are expressions of faith in the power of Jesus over the devil, and that Jesus can send his saving grace into our lives in a variety of ways. We also want to strive to root out sin in our lives, because sin & temptation is the main way that the devil attacks us.

If you are not a Catholic then I am sure there are a number of things your faith background suggests in terms of spiritual warfare. And whether you are Catholic, Protestant, Orthodox, etc., if you feel that your home has become a place infected with a negative spiritual presence or energy, then fill your home with good Christian spiritual energy. I know you said that you have an active prayer life, and that is a great thing. The question is, what more can you be doing? Maybe you could host a Bible study in your home and play gospel music on the stereo. Watch DVDs such as the Gospel of John, which presents the entire Gospel of John word-for-word (through narration and the spoken parts of the actors): Amazon Link for DVD (note that there are abbreviated versions out there, so make sure you know which version you are ordering). Just imagine the spiritual implications of having the entire Gospel of John broadcast in your home, and there are other DVDs that do the same with other books from the Bible. And, of course, you can commit yourself to reading the Bible each day (if you have not done so already) without the benefit of such DVD productions. The general idea is that if you are worried about demonic spirits in your life and in your home, fill your heart and surroundings with the Holy Spirit in all the many wonderful ways that God provides for this to happen.

 

[wild_thing]

Hello Mandy, and welcome to CAF.

People often experience what appears to be strange phenomena in their homes which have an unnoticed but natural explanation (a draft of air moves something, a temperature causes a board to creek, a dream seems more like a real vision, etc.). I tend to look for natural explanations as a first recourse, and I’m sure that this was your first reaction as well (so I hope I am not sounding condescending, because that is not my intention). Nevertheless, being a spiritual person and believing what the Catholic Church teaches about demonic activity, I do not rule out the possibility of supernatural explanations. So I do not make light of what you have described, nor do I make light of your concerns.

In answer to your post, I would like to point out that the devil messes with everyone, it is simply a question as to what degree with each individual. In light of this, spiritual warfare is an important aspect to the practice of Christianity. Therefore, regardless of whether or not there is a natural explanation for what you have experienced, I suggest that you incorporate spiritual warfare into your daily prayer life.

For a Christian, this all starts with baptism, and I presume that you have already been baptized. Your posted information did not say much about your faith background, but if you are a Catholic then I recommend staying close to the sacraments of the Church (especially Confession and the Eucharist, with the latter including Mass and Holy Hours) and engaging in devotional practices that are often used in the context of spiritual warfare (such as the Our Father, Rosary, the Prayer to St. Michael, Holy Water, St. Benedict Medals, Deliverance Prayers, etc.). A house blessing would also be a good idea. Ultimately these are expressions of faith in the power of Jesus over the devil, and that Jesus can send his saving grace into our lives in a variety of ways. We also want to strive to root out sin in our lives, because sin & temptation is the main way that the devil attacks us.

If you are not a Catholic then I am sure there are a number of things your faith background suggests in terms of spiritual warfare. And whether you are Catholic, Protestant, Orthodox, etc., if you feel that your home has become a place infected with a negative spiritual presence or energy, then fill your home with good Christian spiritual energy. I know you said that you have an active prayer life, and that is a great thing. The question is, what more can you be doing? Maybe you could host a Bible study in your home and play gospel music on the stereo. Watch DVDs such as the Gospel of John, which presents the entire Gospel of John word-for-word (through narration and the spoken parts of the actors): Amazon Link for DVD (note that there are abbreviated versions out there, so make sure you know which version you are ordering). Just imagine the spiritual implications of having the entire Gospel of John broadcast in your home, and there are other DVDs that do the same with other books from the Bible. And, of course, you can commit yourself to reading the Bible each day (if you have not done so already) without the benefit of such DVD productions. The general idea is that if you are worried about demonic spirits in your life and in your home, fill your heart and surroundings with the Holy Spirit in all the many wonderful ways that God provides for this to happen.

This is such a good post that I barely have anything to add to it. The only other thing I would say is that if you are trying to live out your faith and if it is the devil that is oppressing you, don’t let him discourage you. He doesn’t want you to come closer to God. Stay firm and steadfast and follow the tenets of your faith. “Resist the devil and he will flee from you.” God bless!

 

[Rafaela]

When I was studying in college I lived alone in single-room apartment. I had such an occurance at nights sometimes, usually at wild times like 4am, 2.30am etc, when I would wake up, and realize that the room has gone pitch black (rare at spring nights) and I had a feeling that something bad is in the room. I grabbed my rosary and started praying, sometimes I would pray it 2-3times from the beginning to the end before I felt safe enough to sleep again. This happened few weeks before I was to be received into full communion with the catholic church, and I believe it happening at this time was no accident. After that it happened very rarely, and after I was invested to Brown scapular, I have practically not had such a thing happening at all.:twocents: