Though the Scriptures teach that the realm of the demonic exists, we encounter its presence most usually in thoughts and feelings that torment us. That is where the battle begins. In the mind. The monster that tempted Eve in the Garden got into her head before she bit into the fruit from the forbidden tree. And unless we are on guard against insinuations of godless insanity, we are liable to be under its influence as well…
You might think that demonic oppression is something flamboyant or requiring the ministrations of an exorcist, but long before such intervention may be necessary, the mind has been captivated by evil and deranged thinking. Such thinking may have its origins with a demons named “worry,” or “shame,” or “unworthiness” or “envy.” But a common strategy of the devil is to supply plausible ideas that are designed to deceive us and lead us astray.
Everyone is a theologian of sorts. The difference, however, is whether you are a good theologian or one who is swamped with muddled thinking about the issues. As C.S. Lewis once said, “Good philosophy must exist, if for no other reason, because bad philosophy needs to be answered. The cool intellect must work not only against cool intellect on the other side, but against the muddy heathen mysticisms which deny intellect altogether. Most of all, perhaps we need intimate knowledge of the past.”
The devil doesn’t care if it is a “holier-than-thou” theology, a murky mysticism of “absolute tolerance,” or a smarmy disavowal of faith in God altogether — he is equally pleased with the sensualist as well as the atheist, indeed, he is content with any distortion of the truth, for this enables him to “feed” his deluded ego as the “Prince of Darkness.”
In a way, dealing with evil thinking is prosaic and unremarkable. After all, the airwaves of mass media continually disseminate lies, disinformation, and godless thinking in countless formats and through diabolical stratagems. Whenever we encounter the demonic affecting us, then, we should not panic or be scandalized, but must instead reaffirm the truth of God and resolutely submit to his will (James 4:7). Sometimes this means contradicting the lie by quoting Scripture, offering praise to the Lord, and asking your Heavenly Father for deliverance. In extreme cases, it may be necessary to command the evil spirits to silence their blasphemies and to cease their intrusions. If we find ourselves going out of control emotionally, we are giving ground to the devil. The best tactic is to stay calm and re-center our focus on the Lord who is always present. There is shalom – that is, healing, wholeness, and soundness of mind – as we regain awareness of the greatness and the beauty and the glory of our God.
- Psalm 3:3 Hebrew page (pdf)
Our Torah reading for this week, 
Yeshua likened His relationship with his followers in terms using the metaphor of a vine and its branches: “I am the true Vine (הַגֶּפֶן הָאֲמִתִּית), and you are the branches” (see John 15:1-5). We derive our identity, life and strength from being made part of His life… The purpose of the branch is to be a conduit of the life of the vine. Vine branches by themselves are of little value, apart from the manifestation of fruit; they cannot be used for building things and otherwise are regarded as bramble (Ezek. 15:2-4). Notice further that the vine branch cannot bear good fruit while it remains on the ground: it must “climb” upward and be elevated. And if you look closely at a vine, it is often difficult to see where the vine ends and the branches begin.
The goal of the Sinai revelation was not only the giving of the Ten Commandments to the Israelites but enshrining the Divine Presence within their hearts… In our Torah portion for this week (i.e., 
Sometimes in our afflictions we may feel lost, confused, and uncertain of ourselves. We dare not doubt God’s love for us, though we may wonder how He might use such affliction to mend our hearts… As C.S. Lewis once said, “We are not necessarily doubting that God will do the best for us; we are wondering how painful the best will turn out to be” (Letters: 1964). There is a trust issue in suffering, and an intimacy that comes through its fires. As Kierkegaard reminds us, “It is one thing to conquer in the hardship, to overcome the hardship as one overcomes an enemy, while continuing in the idea that the hardship is one’s enemy; but it is more than conquering to believe that the hardship is one’s friend, that it is not the opposition but the road, is not what obstructs but what develops, is not what disheartens but ennobles” (Four Upbuilding Discourses, 1844).
Life is often a messy (and painful) business for us. We are weak. We are tempted, and we regularly fail. We are filled with ambivalence; we contradict ourselves; we struggle; we falter, we sin. At times we may even feel lost and inconsolably alone. But faith is a gift from heaven – the gift of God’s presence, and as such the miracle attests that “God is with us,” even in our times of darkness, in moments of sadness, heartache, confusion, anger, and fear.
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There is a gap between the “real” and the “ideal,” between our present sense of exile and our hope that one day we will be in our heavenly home; there is an inherent and ongoing dualism we experience as we sojourn through our days. On the one hand, if we make time to reflect on what is “real,” we will eventually encounter the “Parmenidean” realm of “being,” that is, the totality of sheer existence, the inescapable presence that surrounds and pervades any “thing” whatsoever: the “ground” of existence; the timeless sense of unity, perfection, and so on. The heart’s response to this awareness is humble acceptance – to surrender to all that is — in wonder over the miracle of consciousness and the sheer gift of life itself. The “real” is what “is” and that is a monolithic mystery…
From our Torah reading this week (i.e., 