When I tell you that spiritual warfare is real, I’m not talking theory or something I read in a book. I’m talking about my childhood nights in the Northeast Georgia mountains, lying on the bottom bunk of my brother’s bed because my own bedroom was worse. I’m talking about watching demons — yes, demons — slip in and out of my brother’s closet as easily as people walk through a doorway.

I was only a little girl then. I didn’t have theology, I didn’t have a framework; I just knew what I saw. Sometimes it made me physically sick. But nobody in my house really understood. My mother was the daughter of a Masonic/deistic family and passed most of what I said off as imagination. My father — the one person who could have recognized it — was only with us half the time. He had known God powerfully as a boy, even been miraculously healed of polio under Oral Roberts Sr.’s Jacksonville crusade. But Vietnam had left its scars, and he was away more than he was home.

But when my dad was around, I felt a security I couldn’t explain. He made sure I knew about God. He took me to church, and more importantly he made sure I spent time with my Granny (his mother) and my Godparents, who were all strong believers in Christ. Those were the moments when the pieces began to come together. At ten years old my dad took me to a minister to give my life to the Lord. It wasn’t a neat or polished conversion — but it was real.

It was a few years later that I began to truly understand what I was seeing. These weren’t nightmares. They weren’t figments of my imagination. They were demons. And I discovered, slowly but surely, that they didn’t have the last word.

I learned that the only way to make them leave wasn’t complicated formulas, special rituals, or anything “magical.” It was the name of Jesus. Sometimes, simply speaking His name was enough to make them run. Other times, it took prayer and fasting. It took surrendering my heart, my habits, my life. But once I began seeking the Lord wholeheartedly — look out devil! Suddenly, through Christ’s authority, I was blowing devils up everywhere and they couldn’t stand it.

And here’s what I want new believers to understand: those two steps are the only two steps to freedom.

Step one: total surrender to Christ.

Step two: stand in His authority through prayer, fasting, and speaking His Word.

Everything else is noise. Twelve-step programs can be helpful for habits, but they will not drive out demons. Religious rituals or repeated prayers won’t free you. Only Jesus does that.

Freedom in Christ is not about earning or performing. It’s about surrendering everything and accepting His Word at face value — no conditions, no stipulations, no “God can but God won’t” theology. We’ve seen too much to put Him back in a box. Every denomination, to some extent, tries to define God’s limits. We’re done with that. If God is God, then He is able to do abundantly above all we can think or ask.

That’s why my husband Dexter and I no longer call ourselves by any denominational label. We’re done with fences. We’re done with man-made boundaries on the Holy Spirit. We call ourselves Renewed Christians because that’s what we are. We’ve been renewed, and we want Him to have His way in every decision and every aspect of our lives. No conditions. No stipulations. All in.

If you’re a new believer reading this, you need to know: yes, demons are real. Yes, spiritual warfare is real. But you do not need to be afraid. The same Jesus who pulled me from those nights of terror and who has carried Dexter and me through hellish battles is the same Jesus who will stand with you. His name makes demons flee. His blood covers you. His Spirit empowers you. There’s no prayer too simple and no life too broken for Him to restore.

Freedom isn’t complicated. It’s surrender plus authority — His, not yours. Speak His name. Live in His Word. Fast and pray when you need breakthrough. Believe Him. That’s it.

We are living proof.

And if this post has spoken to you — if it’s stirred something in you, or helped you understand the unseen battles you’ve been facing — I’d love your support. I share these stories not to frighten but to equip, and I do it out of obedience. You can tip me on Buy Me A Coffee to help me keep writing, keep teaching, and keep encouraging new believers to walk in freedom. Every little bit fuels this mission.

Look out devil. We’re all in with Christ.