DELIVERANCE & INNER HEALING

Well yes, a Christian cannot be completely under the control of a demonic spirit (which is implied using the term “possession”). The demon doesn’t actually possess you. A person can have demons without being owned by them. You still have ultimate ownership of, and responsibility for, yourself. Even if a demon influences us to sin, and we do, God still holds us personally accountable for those sins. You are responsible for yourself.

To be technical if you’ve been born again by the Holy Spirit then Jesus owns you. You have been bought at a price. (1 Corinthians 6:20) It is no longer you who live but Christ who lives in you! (Galatians 2:20). It is actually the unsaved, those still lost and dead in their sins, that are the ones who are more possessed by Satan (Ephesians 2:1-3; 2 Corinthians 4:4). And this is the case even if they don’t feel like they have demons or even believe in them. So the term possession gets us confused about what we really mean. A more accurate word is to be demonized. Christians can be demonized. And this also does include demonic access to some our parts of our “insides” including our mind, emotions, and body.

Demonization means that anyone, including a born-again Christian, can be tormented by, influenced by, in-dwelt by, and even occasionally-overtaken by, demonic forces. Sorry to be the bearer of bad news but your pastor is mistaken in teaching this. Just like when first hearing that we have a fallen, sin nature, it’s better that you know the truth and confess it that way you can actually do something about it. Denial causes bondage.

The false teaching that Christians can’t be demonized, often taught by cessationist pastors, is one of the reasons the problem is still so widespread—even within the church. Few pastors confess it as a reality because their theology won’t allow it and they were never taught about it in their seminaries. Also, especially in North America, demonic activity is more subtle here than it is in other areas of the world. Demons have cleverly hidden their tracks in issues that we can blame on the flesh, false beliefs, and mental, physical, or emotional health.

This is one of the reasons Pentecostalism and Charismatic Christianity has grown so rapidly – because it is addressing some of these needs. While only being just over a hundred years old it has quickly grown to almost 600 million, or 27 percent of the world’s Christian population! Subsequently sin and pain are rampant in the church and few pastors have been trained in how to deal with it. While we certainly openly reject some of the major figures and unbiblical teachings in this movement, we cannot deny that it embraces a worldview that is more open to these deeper spiritual realities.

Many of these “pastors” will tell you that Christians can’t be demonized, when often these pastors themselves are the ones caught up in adultery, pornography, child molestation, excessive greed, unbiblical doctrine, etc. Where do you think these false ideas and unbiblical teachings come from? Many are demonic in origin. And if Christian leaders, who have made a vow to the church, can succumb to the temptations of demons, it should certainly not be difficult to see how the rest of us could be vulnerable.

Continuous sin and harmful behavior is often attributed by the secular world to natural problems—emotional, psychological, or otherwise—but we find that often, not always, but more often than you might think, demonic influence is at the root of one’s ability to be completely set free despite constant efforts to become free. Christians are wise enough to realize that there are spiritual problems behind many of what the world perceives as natural problems.

It is an error to attribute our “sin-nature” alone as the cause of all of all our problems. Especially when Jesus promises “when the Son sets you free, you will be free indeed.” So this leads many people to wonder if they are saved because they are still struggling immensely. Demonic influence may be at the root of why many Christians still struggle with deep sins, harmful addictions, violent outbursts, deep-seated emotional trauma, and difficulty giving up occult or deceptive religious beliefs and practices.

Jesus has provided a way to become free – and it should be no surprise that it requires faith in Him and His church, trust in the gospel and salvation by faith alone, a dependence upon a genuine relationship with God by the Holy Spirit, a holy lifestyle, and biblical beliefs.

If you consider yourself a Christian, or perhaps were raised Christian, but you have never truly repented and given yourself completely to Jesus and put your genuine faith in Him then you might not be saved, but it has nothing to do with whether or not you may have a demon. However, if you have been born again and love God with all your heart, mind, soul and strength, and completely trust in Jesus as both your Lord and your Savior, then your salvation is secure. Just because you struggle with sin and are waging war against both sin and Satan does not mean that you are not born again or that you aren’t saved. You are saved once you have been born again of God.

Demonic oppression occurs during your sanctification, i.e. during the process of your personal holiness and status of how you’re becoming more Christlike – not your justification, i.e. your right standing with God based on your faith alone in Jesus’s death as the payment of your sins on your behalf. If you are reborn of God you will persevere and overcome in Christ and there is nothing Satan can do to cause you to lose your salvation. In fact, if you are saved Satan likely has that much more of a target on your back, because he wants you to suffer. He can inflict torment and oppression on you, but God only allows this to discipline His children that He loves. And if you are living in obedience and growing in your sanctification He will protect you from much of it. That being said, you should be having a recognizable struggle against sin and the demonic. (You can still be winning most of the time) However, if the demonic and sinful nature are having their way with you because you have not resisted their temptations, and you’re still living in active rebellion to God’s will in various areas of your life, then that should be a definite cause for concern!

Many people are intrigued with the possibility of going through deliverance ministry but are unsure if that is what they need. Let us be clear at the outset: we believe every believer should go through deliverance ministry to get set free from demonic strongholds! If you view your body as a temple of God (and you should) then it makes sense to have it cleansed from unwanted guests. Spiritual bondage can take many forms, many of which are extremely subtle.

As we proceed through the first interview session, it often becomes apparent that an issue (or issues) has been pervasive in someone’s life and has limited their spiritual, emotional, physical and relational growth. These can be defined as spiritual strongholds.

What are some indicators or evidences of potential strongholds being present?

• Have you had repeated prayer, ministry and/or counsel for one or more issues in your life with limited or short-term freedom at best?
• Have you been crying out to God for change in a certain area of your life?
• Are there negative behaviors that you can’t get control over?
• Are you using physical, of-this-world means to address spiritual issues?
• Have you tried medications/alternative therapies without success?
• Is your thought-life in disarray? Is it running loose and undisciplined?
• Do you feel like you, or large parts of your family tree are cursed?
• Are you walking in known disobedience to the Word?
• Are you violating, neglecting or causing pain in a relationship?
• Are you feeling depressed, defeated or angry (at God, the church, yourself) that you are not seeing progress in some area of your life that you have put before the Lord?

As you can see it may be easier to pinpoint an area where you have a spiritual stronghold than a particular demon, per say. Deliverance ministry can benefit us even if we’re not having specific demonic manifestations of evil. However, if that is the case, here are a few indicators or evidences that you likely have a demon:

• Are you listening to and following words that contradict God’s Word?
• Are you consistently receiving ungodly and unwanted desires and thoughts that contradict God’s commands?
• Do you sometimes sense that the problem isn’t you, but rather something in you?
• Are you having odd “spiritual” encounters such as recurring sinful dreams or nightmares?
• Have you been directly attacked by spiritual encounters such as night terrors, alien abductions, or ghost-like hauntings?

People can have strongholds of pride, fear/anxiety, depression, anger, lust, pornography and more. These are often symptoms of spiritual oppression. They function like chains, to keep people and bondage and not truly walking in the full freedom Jesus has for them.

We provide coaching and counseling services and biblically-based programs to help people in all of these areas, including understanding their God-given temperaments and associated needs, strengths and weaknesses. These are useful and helpful but sometimes they are not enough. Deliverance ministry is a more head-on approach to getting results quicker and/or more thoroughly. Deliverance itself isn’t counseling, its intervention.

Yes and no. Yes, if a person is a born-again Christian then their spirit has been reborn of the Holy Spirit. Your reborn spirit therefore, being of God, of course, cannot be demonized. However, your soul (the seat of your identity, mind and emotions) as well as your physical body and your surrounding environment can still be in bondage or suffering oppression. This is one of the more practical reasons why Christians are to submit to the Spirit and obey Him and let His presence consume every area of their being and life. In addition to becoming more sanctified and holy, and in partaking of the divine nature through your relationship with God, this also protects us from the enemy. The presence of Christ in us is our access to life and freedom, and is our biggest defense against Satan. Any area of your being that has not been cleansed by the blood of Christ and restored to life by the Holy Spirit can still suffer the effects and consequences of your sins. Paul tells us in Ephesians 6 the method that Jesus has prepared in order to protect His church from the enemy, namely, the indwelling Spirit, the Word of God, the communal ministry of the church, and personal faith, supplication, and prayer. It is important to note that none of these things listed would need to be said, at all, if any of us were instantly protected the moment we became born again. Scripture constantly reminds us to repent, to renew our minds, to safeguard our hearts, pray always, and to sanctify our bodies—frequently. We must do this because if we don’t we will suffer the consequences of our sins and fall prey to the schemes of the enemy.

“Finally, be strong in the Lord and in the strength of his might. Put on the whole armor of God, that you may be able to stand against the schemes of the devil. For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the cosmic powers over this present darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places. Therefore take up the whole armor of God, that you may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand firm. Stand therefore, having fastened on the belt of truth, and having put on the breastplate of righteousness, and, as shoes for your feet, having put on the readiness given by the gospel of peace. In all circumstances take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming darts of the evil one; and take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God, praying at all times in the Spirit, with all prayer and supplication. To that end, keep alert with all perseverance, making supplication for all the saints..” (Ephesians 6:10-18)

In-Person sessions do have additional fees and costs associated and several hour minimum. There is also a distance charge of $2.00 per mile charge for every mile outside of a 20-mile range of Central Pinellas County, FL (Pinellas Park). We always start with a virtual session first with our onboarding session, which is primarily spent reviewing your questionnaire, discussing the deliverance process with you, and dealing with the major presenting problems. This also allows us to better understand your situation and make the appropriate accommodations. In-home sessions require us to bring assistants for help and accountability. After your situation is better understood after your initial onboarding session your minister will provide a recommended course of action and determine if in-person ministry is recommended at that time and whether it should be at our St. Petersburg office or in your home.

Multiple-Hour sessions are often necessary or preferred. We’ve done sessions that can take a full 8-hour day! We’ve also had plenty of sessions that went over time due to the client having more questions and things to discuss then they had thought. Though we do see people get freedom within a 1-hour session, and the Lord works with our timing and often it’s a process that can take time to sort out everything. It’s not infrequent for Zoom sessions to last 3-5 hours. As such, we’ve set up two and three hour session options in our scheduler to make this easier to schedule. If you suspect you will need more time (or if your counselor has previously recommended your next session be a longer session) then select one of these options scheduling your session. If our schedule permits, we also make this option available to clients who schedule a single hour session but need to/want to go over our session time. If we go over your time we will invoice you by email for the time we went over at the same rate you used for the initial session. For regular clients, we can also just run your card on file so you don’t have the hassle of logging in to do it manually.

Often people have the belief that an in-person session, or a full day session will guarantee total freedom. You need to realize that it’s not about being in-person or not, or the total length of hours. Jesus is in charge of the process! Sometimes it is very quick – even minutes! Sometimes it can take months or years to be fully free, healed, and victorious in all areas! You need to trust in the Lord and be humble and just submit to the process. Start thinking long-term sanctification and growth.

We know that you’re suffering and we will do whatever we can to move through the process as quickly as possible on our end. But we trust in God’s timing more than our timing preferences or your timing preferences. Just give Him 100% and you will get there ASAP according to God’s will. And He will give you the grace to persevere during the process.

A person with demons that manifest could exhibit the personality traits of the demon. A manifestation is when a demon presents itself by coming to the forefront of a person’s consciousness by taking on the mental and physical faculties of the host. Demonic manifestations can occur intermittently in a person’s life when a demon is strongly enough embedded into the person’s core being. This happens when a person has let a demon in at an early enough stage that the person’s thinking, emotions, beliefs, etc. have all become heavily influenced over time by the demon(s). In other words, the demon and the person have been together so long that it’s difficult to distinguish where one ends and the other begins. This is not unlike how we can become more like Christ gradually as we continue to submit to the influence and promptings of the Holy Spirit.

Usually a demon doesn’t fully manifest all the time. It requires a lot of energy for a demon to fully manifest. Even during deliverance, demons don’t usually manifest unless they are forced to in an attempt to try to interrupt the current activity. They prefer to hide in the background and be undetected, so as to permit doubt of their existence. More commonly a demon makes internal promptings and suggestions that the host feels as though they are his own. The more frequently a person agrees with those promptings and acts on them the more their personalities become intertwined. If they not only allow the demon to stay there but also agree with him and accept his influences then he really has no incentive to leave and he will stay forever, and invite others. Their attempt to hide in the background becomes most apparent when the demon is confronted by clear and objective truth that the demon can’t subtly mislead the host away from. When a person is allowing themselves to be under full submission to Christ, led by the Spirit of God, directed by a minister of God, to then to quote God’s Word and authority and command them to leave, the demon is left with no other choice but to come up and fight for their right to stay.

In some instances, yes. Prayer should not be our last resort – it should be our first response. Prayer is simply communication with God. It’s you talking with Him and Him talking with you. It’s not about just talking, it’s about your relationship. The most important thing you need to walk in spiritual freedom is a close relationship with God. As you press in to your relationship with God, repent of your sin, forgive those who harmed you, abstain from things that defile us, and live a pure and holy life, God will bring freedom to you.

I like to say that as you draw closer to the light the darkness will be forced to leave. Jesus is the Deliverer, not any Christian person. If we have a life of being “a living sacrifice” (Romans 12:1) where Jesus is present in every area of it, then we don’t leave much room for Satan to hide and influence do we? And there is also power in the prayers of a righteous person (James 5:16). So we should be righteous people who pray and surround ourselves with righteous people who pray for us. But we also need to remember that even good prayers (like freedom from demons) with wrong motives (like so I can live however I want to and have my best, selfish, sinful life now) don’t get answered by God (James 4:1-10).

The reality is that most people who are demonized have many areas of their lives that don’t belong to God yet. They need help, and this is what the church is here to help them with: their walk with God. God doesn’t want to remove your demons just so you can go back to your old life of sin. Your demons (which are bad) are being used by God in a good way – to cause us to seek Him, humble ourselves, repent, trust in His grace, and learn to walk in obedience. This can take time. It doesn’t happen overnight and so often our demons are also not removed overnight.

Now, I do want to say that a person can be delivered of their demons through a single prayer or a series of prayers. They can be. He is God and He graciously gives us many good gifts that we don’t deserve! But it shouldn’t be our attitude that He always does this way, because He usually doesn’t. Or that He supposed to do it this way, because He doesn’t have to. If we think “God owes us this” and we get impatient, selfish, self-righteous, arrogant, prideful, and angry at Him for not doing it sooner, or our way, then not only will we not get our prayers answered we’re actually hindering them further. This is creating more demonic bondage, not less.

You should definitely have a robust prayer life and start there. And you should definitely surround yourself with a godly church and family and have people praying for you for deliverance and healing. But if you’ve already been doing this, and God has not delivered you, then He wants more from you. You don’t need to go find some special anointed or gifted person whose supposedly better at casting out demons. What you need is a better relationship with God and to be more eagerly and desperately seeking to become more like Jesus! The Holy Spirit will lead you to your freedom if you do this. Desire to be in the promised land serving God for His glory and then God will gladly deliver you from Egypt!

This can take time but knowledgeable, godly, experienced people who walk alongside you can help you get there much quicker. God doesn’t want you to suffer any longer than it will take to build you into the person that He has called you to be. So the sooner you get with the program the sooner God will free you from the garbage mess that our sins have gotten us into. If you believe a simple prayer is all you need praise God! But if you could be free with a quick prayer then why isn’t everyone free? And you believe this and you still have demons, why aren’t you free?

If you find some relief from traditional prayer but not total freedom, we’re happy to come alongside you and help you get to that place of freedom and abundant fulfilling life.

Have you been doing all you can and just getting nowhere and more hopeless and frustrated? Do you feel like nobody understands, even your pastor and church? Unfortunately, you’re not alone. Many clients come to me after they’ve struggling on their own silently for years. Many have already repented on their sins, have been fasting and seeking the Lord, getting regular prayer at their church, watching deliverance videos on YouTube, etc. Many have been to deliverance churches or ministries who were unable to resolve the problem. Some get so desperate they go to questionable sources for help getting rid of demons by actually doing witchcraft only making the situation worse!

Some deliverance methods appear to be Christian-based but upon further inspection they’re just unbiblical, ungodly, and unnecessarily aggressive and unloving. Sometimes people are quickly prayed over and then told “Ok, we prayed for you, you’re free”—but the person could tell that the demons were still there. Then because they believe the lie that “Christians can’t have demons,” and they did all the prayer they believe necessary, the struggling person is told that if they still have demons then it’s because they aren’t saved, aren’t born again, they don’t have enough faith, they aren’t truly repentant about some secret sins, etc.

On behalf of Jesus and His Church, I’m sorry! That is awful. They’re supposed to be the loving hands of Jesus and instead they’re acting more like Satan – falsely accusing His lambs of not even belonging to Him, and literally blaming the victims looking for help. They were wrong. If you don’t FEEL free then you’re not free! Our ministry is different.

I’m here to do my best to help you the way that Jesus would!

MPowered Christian Ministries’ coaches are compensated hourly by those partaking in their ministry services. Business, office, and advertising expenses are also paid from the financial contributions of clients. Scripture affirms this method of supply when it says, “If we sowed spiritual things in you, is it too much if we should reap material things from you?” Therefore, clients are asked to contribute financially for the counseling and life coaching services they receive.

Our suggested rate* for one-on-one in-person counseling is $125 per hour. However, we only require the minimum rate which will be the service rate advertised on our website. We also offer even more affordable virtual counseling with our Zoom option. No one will be refused ministry counseling services for being unable to donate above our minimum rate. We only ask that you provide supplementary donations in any amount you’re capable of, and when God does bless you financially, that you remember MPowered Christian Ministries’ ministry to you. Donations by credit or debit card, virtual check, PayPal, or bank transfer can be made online at MPoweredChristian.org/Donate.

Our First Time New Client Onboarding session (3-hour Virtual Zoom) is $375.00 but we have it available for those with low income at our minimum flat rate of $185.00. This averages less than $62.00 per hour. We do ask that if clients are able to pay above our minimum that they would.

Our long-term goal, in regards to deliverance ministry, is to help train and empower local church pastors and pastoral counselors to be able to provide this service to their congregations. At the same hourly-rate we could dramatically affect revival this way. We provide this service directly because there’s a need for it, and few theologically-sound actually provide it, leaving desperate people going outside of their local church and finding really bad, unbiblical, even demonic alternatives.

We understand your concerns and we want you to know that we’ve thought long and hard about this. Since we began our organization we’ve continued to humble ourselves, reevaluate our own motives, and bring it to the Lord in prayer as to whether we should change our organization’s business model. At least at the present time we feel content that God is okay with us doing it this way. We are working on various things to help meet the needs for all who need it. Rather than criticizing us please partner with us and help us!

There are weird fringe deliverance ministries with very suspect approaches to deliverance. We believe it should be an integrated part of regular pastoral care. We believe the deliverance process should accompany sound biblical, Gospel-centered teaching; in-depth spiritual analysis, discussion, and explanation; pastoral counseling helping clients have understanding, repentance, inner healing, and followthrough; direct interrogation of demons (if necessary); permanent expulsion (i.e. exorcism) of demons (if necessary); behavior modification, sanctification, and ongoing discipleship. These things require education, knowledge, experience, godly character, time, and energy.

We understand that you think it should be free when all you think is that we have to do is say a quick prayer and everything leaves! But the decision, power, and length of time it takes is not determined by us—it’s determined by God! Jesus is the Deliverer! The time it takes to help a person become completely free and fully empowered may take 10 minutes, or an hour, ten hours, months, or in some cases even years. There are three involved that need to all be on the same page – us, the client, and God. When people understand that it is often much more involved and requiring a much larger time commitment on the part of the minister it’s easier to see why this is more like counseling and less like a simple action one chooses to do. If God changes something so that we could set everyone free in 1 minute because God gives us the ability to do that we will figure out a way to offer it freely without charge!

We’re also doing several things to accommodate those in need. First, we have a sliding scale with a lower minimum charge to accommodate those with lower incomes. Second, we have provided multiple ways for people to donate specifically towards purchasing this service for others in need. It’s a shame but usually the people who say we’re wrong for trying to support our own living to provide deliverance services only want the people who do it for free. They want to judge and criticize us and our motives while not being a part of the solution themselves. It’s not hard to tell other people that they should give their time away. But if they were really generous people who wanted to see people set free then they could donate towards it. If many people donated, even a small amount, on a consistent basis (like church’s receive) then we could consider bringing on staff/contractors to do this full time, and pay them a salary to do it, and offer it to people free of charge. Or at the very least we could lower the charges to be even more affordable, etc.

Third, we also invest a lot of time developing content to teach/train more people to do this in a godly, biblical, loving way. We also want to be able to bring on contractors or volunteers. We don’t want it to be about us, like we’re the only people capable of offering this. Jesus has empowered every Christian in the church to cast out demons and this duty should fall to the people in the church who are already responsible for pastoring, discipling, pastoral counseling, etc. It’s about God’s people coming together in love, to be used by God, to help God’s people.

We do sometimes see people get completely free in the first session, however we’re not a “quick fix.” Sometimes the process can take time. Jesus is in control over this process, not us. Your desperation, humility, repentance, faith, and desire to live for the Lord makes all the difference in the world. If you want to get rid of your torment but don’t want to learn about Jesus, don’t want to correct your unbiblical beliefs, don’t want to quit your sin, just want to get free so you can go back to your worldly lifestyle after, please go elsewhere. Jesus sets us free not to continue to sin but to live for God’s glory! But if you want to live the life that God has for you then we’re honored to be the hands and feet of Jesus and be used by Him to bring deliverance to His people (which He called “the children’s bread” (Mark 7:24-30).

I will attempt to get you total freedom during your new client onboarding session, but it is important that you know and trust that all spiritual freedom ultimately comes from God, everything is in His timing, and He’s in charge of the deliverance process. A variety of things can contribute to the process taking longer. These can include false or limiting beliefs that need to be corrected, behaviors that need to change, wounds that need to be healed first, or other commitments on your end that need to be followed through for lasting results.

I (Pastor Brian Holmes) can’t prove it to you – I can only give you reasonable reasons why you should trust me. I have zero motive to deceive anyone and nothing but a sincere drive to make disciples and create revival.

First, ministry isn’t all I know how to do. Creating MPowered Christian Ministries was not my only option, and I didn’t do it because a church wouldn’t hire me. I’ve never wanted to be employed by a church. Before starting this ministry venture a few years ago I was a college-educated, and self-taught, and highly-skilled and experienced advertising and marketing professional. I have a wide variety of professional credentials that would permit many different and prosperous career paths. I also was an ambitious entrepreneur with multiple secular businesses, where I made and had every expectation to continue to make, increasingly way more money in the secular world than I probably ever will in ministry. In fact, deciding to change careers in my 30’s, start a grass-roots ministry from my home office, and go back to school was not a decision motivated by financial gain (to say the least! lol). Starting a B-corp with nonprofit-like aspirations and nonprofit partnerships and pursue ministry work full-time was inspired by intentionally choosing to leave a successful and lucrative career path and serve our Lord doing something more eternally meaningful and more personally fulfilling.

Second, deliverance outcasts us and reduces our income potential. We provide deliverance ministry along with a myriad of other coaching, counseling, training, teaching, and mentoring services and programs. On top of that, these other services are even more-respected, more sought-after, and higher paying. Deliverance ministries already do, and I expect to continue, to suffer and face opposition and ridicule from both the church and the rest of the world for believing in demons and doing exorcisms. The outside world, and unfortunately even most of the church, distances itself from this type of work and anyone who does it or talks about it. It is not well understood, nor is it highly esteemed, even within Christendom. Especially a young, small, unknown ministry like this. If I didn’t feel empathy for those suffering, and feel called by the Lord to help set people free, staring in the face of evil and exposing my life and career by personally fighting demons is the last thing I want to be doing. But it is thoroughly biblical. Jesus did deliverance, he taught all of his followers to do it, and he in no way suggested that it would stop after the apostles. And the Holy Spirit is prompting me to. It’s certainly not glamorous like building fancy church cathedrals, eloquent preaching, writing books, or participating in theological debates between Ph.Ds, is. However, our hurting, lost world needs it and the church is the only one Jesus has empowered to do it! Don’t misunderstand me, I do also want to do all of those things above. And we do not focus exclusively on deliverance ministry as we do not feel that it alone is the primary purpose of the church in whole, or of our ministry’s existence. But in order to bring healing restoration to the church, help it overcome the forces of evil, make radical disciples, and create real revival, deliverance needed to be included. The current state of the church is an example of the consequences of the church continuing to neglect it.

Third, we charge minimal fees for this service, and are not even seeking to turn this into a counseling practice full time. We provide our deliverance ministry sessions at the exact same cost—or less—than our other coaching and counseling sessions. And even those are offered significantly more affordable than they could be worth in the secular life coaching or counseling world. Additionally, I don’t even want to spend all week in one-on-one sessions! I want to create a major impact in the world, and I can’t do that if I only minister to a small handful of people! My goal in doing one-on-one sessions is to impact those people so that they can get past their past and join me in the bigger picture. If I wanted to work full time as a counselor I would charge at least double our current rate. Furthermore, if you’re not in need of deliverance – and would be better suited to coaching or mentoring – we’re not going to recommend it! We have no ulterior motive for recommending it anyways and we gain nothing by doing so. Our goal is to help people, if needed, to receive the deliverance, inner healing, or pastoral counseling as quickly and effectively as possible, and then progress them towards a discipleship mentoring or ministry training program. Our goal is to equip people to become fully mature and flourishing disciples of Christ and leaders within their marriages, families, workplaces, churches, and communities. The church cannot go on the offense and bring real impact in the world if it is full of people who spend years struggling with the same sins, circumstances, and torment over and over without ever achieving victory over them.

Fourth, I want to be liked and accepted, too. I get it that this whole demons and exorcism thing is different and weird and suspicious. Like everyone else, I want to be liked and accepted and respected. No one who possesses intellectual wherewithal, and one who is emotionally healthy and well-balanced, will go out of their way (intentionally) to do something that makes people dislike or distrust them and puts a bullseye on their back personally and professionally—unless they feel they are doing the right thing and God is calling them to. It took me several years of feeling mysteriously drawn to study supernatural evils and many, many hours of investigation into its plausibility before being fully on board. It became much more real once I actually witnessed demons and talked to them and fought against them. Also meeting many other deliverance ministers, feeling their hearts and exchanging stories of our experiences led me to realize the experiences that I encountered weren’t that unique. And more than that, but its all the individuals that come to me who have nowhere else to turn to. They’ve tried all the medical treatments and seen the psychologists and psychiatrists and talked to all the other churches and no one can do anything for them. What a shame. And for those of you who still doubt, it’s hard to explain but even though I KNOW it’s real I still have doubts enter my mind from time to time! So I get it! But I also know from whom those thoughts come from and why. They come from Satan, and he is perfectly happy to let Christians think they are saved and serving God, provided that he still has a stronghold in their lives he can influence them, and steal, kill, and destroy them subtly. I’ve had Christians who I know have demons tell me in normal conversion that “god” spoke to them and told them deliverance shouldn’t be done at all, or done like how we do it. Now it would be one thing if we stopped because people can’t get demons at all. But why would “god” acknowledge that they are there and then desire us not to cast them out? The answer is sometimes the “god” people hear from isn’t God. And if a demon wants you to stop doing what you’re doing then you’re probably on to something!

Like any other area of our faith we must pursue truth—perhaps especially even more when it makes us uncomfortable—and continue to press on in faith and trust in God to provide us the way. The deliverance process leads unsaved people to faith in Jesus! The full gospel is front-and-center from beginning to end and the deliverance process includes Bible recitation, personal acknowledgment of itemized sins, complete repentance, confession of faith in Jesus and His atonement, and absolute submission and obedience to God, etc. It is an absolutely God-glorifying process! And for those who are Christians, the deliverance process leads those who are suffering to freedom and greater trust in God and increases in personal holiness and empowerment in their walk. Whether it is absolutely necessary is not the point. Deliverance is edifying. Whether you’re struggling with something yourself that you think might be demonic, or if you’re mysteriously being drawn towards investigating this stuff out for yourself, God led you here for a reason!

It is sad that some ministers have to do deliverance full time. It is tiring and exhausting. It is not a fun job! I personally don’t want to do it AT ALL, much less all day long. It shouldn’t be what ANY minister has to do all day long. It should be a very small, but normal, part of every church’s responsibilities, so that it is not up to outside ministries on the outskirts to have to pick up the slack for the rest of the churches because they all ignore it! If even just 5% of Christians had a little knowledge about how to handle this problem with our circle of influence it would be a massive game changer for the Kingdom of God on earth!

Deliverance is the process of setting someone free from spiritual strongholds or demonic oppression. Spiritual and emotional healing is usually provided and included during the deliverance process as well. Spiritual strongholds and demonic oppression can occur in a variety of ways that impact the spiritual, mental, physical, emotional or financial health and well-being of an individual, relationship, family, home, church or organization. Deliverance may also include an exorcism but an exorcism (at least one with visible manifestations) is not always necessary. Deliverance is a process. You can become freed of bondage to something enslaving you in an instance of divine intervention, or it could take time occurring in stages of small spiritual victories over time.

Since every human being is already involved in an ongoing spiritual war, for life, deliverance is something that is already happening regularly behind-the-scenes throughout your life. You are constantly becoming more or less under the snare of sin and Satan with many micro-battles. This spiritual reality becomes extremely noticeable once you begin following Jesus.

Deliverance ministry is a direct confrontation against the enemy’s operations in order to be free NOW!

Our sessions with clients are actually very similar to Larson’s private or Youtube Live “I have a demon” sessions. But sometimes people have only been exposed to a short clip or graphic his public seminars – which sometimes feature the more aggressive or explosive outbursts that get more attention on Youtube just because of their sensationalism. Since the majority of our sessions are virtual over Zoom we take a more cautious approach to weaken the demons influence (and thus their ability to manifest in such an outlandish way) which can take longer. Most of our clients are fine with this and actually prefer it.

Our deliverance process is methodic and therapeutic and it leads to permanent freedom. The deliverance process should not inflict harm or be emotionally terrifying or upsetting. It should be calm, calculated, holistic, loving, and restorative. Sessions end with people feeling much better than they were when they started, closer to God, more filled with the Holy Spirit, and thanking us with a smile on their face. This is even when their isn’t total freedom, because every step in the right direction towards God brings benefits. We provide complete education, intervention, interrogation, exorcism, inner healing, pastoral counseling. These are all mentioned descriptively (along with much more information on this page) so that you know we don’t do “deliverance lite” and just say a prayer. We’re not afraid of demons. They are nothing compared to Jesus! He is King of kings and Lord of lords and we see Him move in the lives of His people often.

The deliverance process begins with a questionnaire and assessment interview that provides us with important details about your background and family history. We will discuss a variety of things about your past and talk about the issues or behaviors that you want addressed. During this session we will be able to provide you more information about deliverance ministry and answer any questions you might have. Based on your feedback we will be able to determine if it is likely that you are under demonic oppression and provide a recommended course of action.

We treat our deliverance ministry just like any of our other personalized coaching or counseling programs. We don’t provide a cookie-cutter formula, rather, we tailor the total number of sessions, as well as what we do during the sessions based on your circumstances and needs. Sessions are similar to pastoral counseling where we just “talk” and sessions are mostly just discussion between us and include prayer, scripture reading, and renunciations. Once we’ve identified targeted areas of spiritual oppression we will identify the specific enemy behind it and break its bondage over you. Many deliverance sessions can be done virtually via internet/video Skype. For extenuating circumstances requiring additional in-person assistance contact us to discuss pricing or make custom arrangements. We recommend beginning with virtual sessions and then progressing to in-person sessions only if the situation has deemed itself necessary.

METHODOLOGY & ETHICS – When it comes to the specific methodology and processes we use during deliverance ministry we submit to the general authority and expertise of our parent affiliate, SFC. We ascribe to the code of ethics of our denomination, Missionary Church USA as well as to the Code of Ethics of the American Association of Christian Counselors . However, if there is any doubt we will first and foremost follow our Statement of Faith, our own biblical exegesis, any other godly standards, and our own consciences before God.

• MPowered Christian Ministries, Inc. is affiliated with Bob Larson’s international Do What Jesus Did® (DWJD) teams and with Bob Larson’s, Spiritual Freedom Churches International, Inc. (SFC) For more information about their organizations you can visit: DWJD.org, BobLarson.org, InternationalSchoolofExorcism.org
• Pastor Brian Holmes is a Certified Deliverance Minister and graduate of the International School of Exorcism, and has been personally trained by Bob Larson and ministered deliverance alongside him in both private sessions and public conferences in St Petersburg, Tampa, and Sarasota. Our deliverance process is consistent with Rev. Larson’s methodology. However, our pastoral counseling, discipleship, and teaching approach is our own, combining a variety of other disciplines and counseling approaches.
• The MPowered Deliverance logo and identity was created for branding purposes and is NOT an official legal entity or DBA.
• SEPARATE BUSINESS ENTITIES – We are locally and independently owned and operated as MPowered Christian Ministries Inc. registered in the State of Florida. We are an affiliate of SFC in good standing and represent their ministry as a local DWJD team. However, we are a completely separate entity and are NOT legally or financially in partnership with SFC. There is no compensation exchange whatsoever. We offer the occasional donation to help support their ministry.
• AFFILIATION – We believe SFC to be one of the foremost leaders in the world in exorcism and deliverance ministry. In regards to the way that MPowered Christian Ministries does deliverance we submit to the DWJD Core Team member’s declaration of faith and doctrine, charter of affiliation, ethics and practices, spiritual guidelines, organizational structure, and standards of deliverance process and methodology.
• DISCLAIMER – We do not necessarily endorse or stand behind every single teaching and/or practice performed by SFC or Bob Larson or any other DWJD team or SPC Church affiliate. If you are concerned about a specific church, person, doctrine, or teaching please contact us directly. We do believe SFC and Bob Larson to be earnest and sincere in their ministry efforts, however, we are to be judged based on our own ministry’s efforts, beliefs, and actions alone.
• METHODOLOGY – When it comes to the specific methodology and processes we use during deliverance ministry we submit to the general authority and expertise of our parent affiliate, SFC. However, if there is any doubt we will first and foremost follow our own Statement of Faith, our own biblical exegesis, other godly standards, and our consciences before God.
• ETHICS – We ascribe to the code of ethics of our denomination, Missionary Church USA as well as to the Code of Ethics of the American Association of Christian Counselors .

Pastor Brian Holmes is a Certified Deliverance Minister and graduate of Rev. Bob Larson’s International School of Exorcism. He has been personally trained by Rev. Larson, the world’s foremost expert on cults, the occult, and supernatural phenomena, who has ministered in over 100 countries and authored over 36 books. Pastor Brian has ministered deliverance alongside Rev. Larson in both private sessions and public conferences in St Petersburg, Tampa, and Sarasota. Pastor Brian also heads the St Petersburg, FL chapter of Rev. Larson’s Do What Jesus Did® (deliverance) teams for Spiritual Freedom Church International, Inc.

Additionally, Pastor Brian has a variety of other credentials. He is a student of Christian theology, history, and apologetics, as well as world religions, new age spirituality, and cult movements, theologies, and ideologies. In addition to Deliverance Minister, he is also a Teacher, Pastor, Life Coach, and Pastoral Counselor. His expertise and diverse range of specialties make him uniquely qualified to help a wide range of people and circumstances. Learn more about Pastor Brian Holmes here.

Unfortunately, due to the circumstances of being born in sin, having a sin nature, and living in a fallen world just about every person and every society we encounter has some influence by demonic forces. Therefore, a better question might be how come many of us don’t have demons constantly? God’s common grace given to the entire world provides protection. This is because God has limited the demonic realm to be able to operate only within certain controlled parameters. Within these parameters, they have an opportunity to pierce the veil between the spiritual realm and the material realm in order to exact evil on mankind. Primarily, this happens when we break God’s moral or spiritual laws, when legally, God’s sovereign protection gets lifted and we are then vulnerable to receive the natural consequences of our sins. For example, if God says “Don’t practice sorcery”- and we do – then we are free to suffer the natural consequences of our actions by demons of witchcraft. Demons need a legal right to attack or enter a person or they’re seriously limited in their ability to do so. Unfortunately, just about everything is severely tainted by sin.

We do have another protector – King Jesus! First, when Satan was defeated by Christ on the cross, Satan was bound providing even greater limitations to the amount of evil the demonic realm can do directly. Additionally, wherever Christ is proclaimed and the church exists Christ reigns and spiritual evil is bound and conquered in His name! This does not mean that we won’t still suffer the consequences of our ongoing or unrepentant sins and rejection of God’s provision and protection in Christ, we will if we continue to live in disharmony with God. Our sins still do expose us and leave us vulnerable to the enemy. These openings include any form of sin against God, godless living, various emotional or physical trauma, worship of false religions, occult practices and rituals; unhealthy interest in ghosts, aliens, or alternative spirituality; idolatry and worldliness, curses in our bloodline, rejection of God’s Spirit, etc. Demonic influences begin from the outside in (as temptations), but if not recognized for what they are and rejected, and are indulged, they can give internal access to a person’s life and soul leading to demonization.

Yes, if you or a loved one is suffering from minor spiritual oppression you may be able to receive deliverance yourselves directly by appealing to Jesus through prayer, Bible study, worship, fasting, communion, and God’s other sanctifying activities. Remember, we are all involved in an ongoing spiritual war, for life, so deliverance is something that is already happening behind-the-scenes regularly and constantly throughout your Christian walk. When you’re investing time into God’s Kingdom and your heart, mind, emotions and body are being sanctified and renewed you are allowing the Holy Spirit to deliver you regularly from the grips of spiritual enemies. There is an ebb and flow to the spiritual condition of your soul. We cannot see this, but it is happening. You will know your present condition by your fruit.

It is possible for a person to be delivered from spiritual strongholds or demonic oppression by engaging in self-deliverance. This is when you directly confront evil hiding within yourself. We teach how to do this and often it can be effective. At other times, when under greater oppression, you may not have the spiritual wherewithal to do this yourself effectively. Just as a person under extreme duress may have difficulty counseling themselves it may be equally difficult to deliver themselves. To be clear, it is Jesus Himself who does the delivering, not us. However, just has it may be hard to read a counseling book yourself and appropriate it correctly and follow its requirements obediently, it can be difficult to hear the Spirit yourself and internalize, appropriate, and obey His teachings.

It may be necessary to rely on God’s chosen vehicle, His church, the universal collection of believers, to assist in the process. Just as God has called and especially gifted and empowered some to prophesy, teach, pastor, etc He has called some to have a greater responsibility in the area of deliverance. There are good books on the topic and if unable yourself your believing family and friends may be able to learn and help you. We teach spiritual warfare and deliverance. This should not be a small niche within Christendom, as the Church of Rome created it to be. Jesus commanded ALL of His followers to do as He did – and that includes deliverance! (Matthew 28:19-20, 10:1, Luke 9:1, Mark 6:7, 3:14-15, 9:29, Acts 16:18, Mark 16:17)

It depends. Are there cases where people claim to be “demonically possessed” when they are in fact suffering from a trauma or some other type of psychological condition? Yes. Are there cases when con-artists are successful at duping gullible people into believing that they have a demon and charging absurd amounts to do so? Yes. Are there cases where a “self-diagnosed” exorcist is actually themselves severely ill and self-deceived and is unintentionally taking advantage of people that also have mental illnesses? Yes. Are there bonafide, real-world exorcisms, where otherwise mentally healthy and stable people are delivered from the inhabitation of a malevolent spirit performed by a qualified minister that is led and empowered by the Holy Spirit to do so? Yes!

I understand that many people, even Christians, might have a hard time swallowing that truth nugget right there. It feels strange to step out of our comfort zones and explore the dark side of the supernatural reality we live in. However, if you believe the Bible is inspired and reliable, then there is no reason to doubt the 1/3 of the gospels that tell us that demons are real. And, if you believe the universe is both physical and spiritual, and it was all created by a good God, and yet still recognize the presence of evil in the world, there’s no reason to doubt that demonic influence is possible.

So, is exorcism real or fake? Sometimes it’s fake, and sometimes it’s real. I know it’s real because I’m quite trained in psychology and I’ve conducted a number of exorcisms myself. I’ve met a wide variety of ministers from different denominations, regions, and backgrounds all doing the same. I’ve also delivered mentally-healthy people that are close to me. Qualified deliverance ministers will rule out, or factor in, psychological conditions and mental illnesses early on in the counseling process and continue to do so consistently throughout.

Contrary to popular belief, exorcism, or rather deliverance, is not performed with a shotgun blast approach where you just throw holy water at a person until they throw up a demon. It’s actually more of a “spiritual housekeeping” process that can actually sometimes happen internally and quietly. It’s also not only for “crazy” people. I’ve helped deliver some very intelligent, successful, and morally-upstanding people. Some were even devout Christians. Deliverance is like pastoral counseling, with a spiritually-led intercession, that just so happens to include an eviction. 🙂

Simple: A good spirit guide does not exist.

There are good angels, and then there are bad demons, and then there are bad demons that are good at pretending that they are good (in whatever form or fashion you prefer) and that they care about you. Good angels are messengers, warriors and workers of God and they work almost exclusively behind-the-scenes. In fact, scripture tells us we all have guardian angels but we aren’t even to acknowledge them—but give all glory and praise and honor and prayers to God alone!

Good heavenly angels have a common purpose on Earth, to minister to the church and help and protect us, per the Lord Jesus’s commands to do so. They serve and obey Christ. If angels help us it is because God answers our prayers and gives angels assignments for our benefit. Thank God and I’m sure He will pass the “Well done, good and faithful servant” message along to any angels that may have helped us.

Demons are fallen angels that rebelled against God and were cast out of Heaven with Satan and now work for Satan in the spiritual realm on Earth. Demons are following Satan’s agenda to steal, kill and destroy the life and hope that we have. And sometimes demons even act good, but they cannot be trusted. Supposedly “good” angels that tell people things that lead people away from believing anything other than Christ, Son of God, in the flesh, crucified, resurrected, and King of everything are actually just demons deceiving people.

They may genuinely even help people but it is never without ultimately a person finding their faith and security and hope in the spirit guide—and not God! (They do DO that sometimes that’s why people think there are good spirit guides and angels). However the evidence is very clear. Even the good sounding things have a deceptive undertone. I’ve read tons of the stories reported, recorded and written into books in history. I have books on it. If you know Christian doctrine and have the Holy Spirit in you, even reading these “good” recorded messages will give you evil chills.

Their goal is always to lead people ASTRAY FROM knowing the True God and His actual characteristics and desires, and believing in and giving our lives to Jesus. If they can get you to believe anything – and I seriously mean ANYTHING else – then they win your soul. This is what is meant by them stealing. They steal your opportunity to know God personally and have eternal life and avoid hell.

“I am the door. If anyone enters by me, he will be saved and will go in and out and find pasture. The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy. I came that they may have life and have it abundantly. I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep.” – Jesus (John 10:9-11)

“Dear friends, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits to see whether they are from God, because many false prophets have gone out into the world. This is how you can recognize the Spirit of God: Every spirit that acknowledges that Jesus Christ has come in the flesh is from God, but every spirit that does not acknowledge Jesus is not from God. This is the spirit of the antichrist, which you have heard is coming and even now is already in the world.” – Apostle John (1 John 4:1-3)

If you’re under attack and its trying to influence you (and it claims that it’s a good angel or spirit guide) please CALL UPON THE NAME OF JESUS!

This can be a complicated answer. The short version is you need is a living faith in and a relationship with the fully divine and very alive Son of God. But for someone already a born again Christian with a good walk with the Lord, the more specific answer to your question is you need to know is their names, how they got there, how long they’ve been there, and what rights they have (if any) to stay there. This is not always easily divulged. Demons are liars, thieves, murderers and destroyers. If you’re not already a born-again Christian then you should not attempt a deliverance or exorcism just yet. We recommend you learn the basics about Christianity in order to understand what demons are and how we get rid of them. You will also need to understand who God is, and His relationship to us, and accept Jesus as your Lord and Savior. This sounds complicated but you can learn this all within a single conversation.

The reason this is necessary is because demons can be powerful and have the ability to destroy a person. It is NOT my skills, or any other deliverance minister, or any “secret teaching” or “hidden knowledge” or “specific works or formulas” that can force a demon out or drive them away permanently. It’s a person. Namely God, and it is by Jesus’s authority and power alone that we can force them to leave. This is not to say that the field of deliverance ministry doesn’t have techniques that have proven effective, but it is the person and work of Christ that defeats them not techniques. And it is unwise to even start to target them if you don’t have what you need to win the fight.

Most other religions and spiritual beliefs have some concept of demons and ways to free yourself of them, usually referring to them by a different name and sometimes radically different ideas of what they actually are. These false ideas of their true identity and purpose are, themselves, false deceptions created by demons given to people over the millennia to deceive them. So while you may get some type of response or spiritual manifestation, or even temporary relief, you won’t get actually true and permanent spiritual freedom. Usually these other “solutions” compound the problem. For example, if you go to a psychic or a witch doctor or some guru to get rid of your “ghost” or “spirit” or whatever they call it you’re inviting yourself to attract even more demons. Some non-Christian spiritual activities do actually aggravate them. This is because they are territorial and have jurisdictions. One demon doesn’t want to share you with another type of demon, or they will but they will fight over who gets to be the strong man and have dominion over you.

If you’re not a born again Christian any exercise that only aggravates them (without demanding their cooperation and forcing their expulsion) they will either: 1) only pretend to leave, 2) fight back and refuse to, or 3) leave and come back again next time bringing more and worse demons with them. It is the indwelling of the Holy Spirit that “moves in” to these newly vacated places in your soul and prevents them from coming back in. (Matthew 12:43-45, Luke 11:24-26) Please become knowledgeable about this and don’t rush in. Many people cause more harm by letting just anyone start throwing holy water and yelling at demons to come out. Deliverance is a process because the goal is not to just rip them out – but remove them in a way that will bring restoration and healing to you physically, emotionally, mentally, and spiritually—and prevent them from coming back with reinforcements later.

If you or a loved one with demonization is not a Christian yet then you might be hear all of this and feel dejected with no hope for freedom. If you don’t believe in Jesus how can you be freed? It should be noted that being delivered is a miraculous, incredible, and life-changing experience that illuminates one’s mind with God’s truth, brings the joy of Jesus to the heart, and reveals the spiritual reality of our world and our sinful condition in an extremely powerful and nearly-undeniable way. We sometimes make Christianity all about theology and doctrine and head knowledge, but at its core it is a personal, spiritual encounter with the living God! It is very possible that going through the deliverance process itself could cause a person to go from being a demon-tormented unbeliever to being a born again Christian! We just recommend that you tread lightly and begin to allow either yourself, or the person you’re ministering to, to begin to give themselves to Jesus during the process before trying to get a demon to manifest or commanding it to leave. Keep your prayers simple, and directed towards God alone, primarily asking Jesus and the Holy Spirit to purify and deliver you, allowing God to intervene and do it for you, on your behalf. This way everything is in His perfect control.

Yes! We provide spiritual warfare education and training in a variety of ways including educational workshops, sermons, or lectures, books, and one-on-one training and coaching for individuals or pastors. This controversial area of Christian life doesn’t need to be misunderstood or neglected by the church any longer. Just doing a sermon or Bible study about the armor of God alone obviously isn’t enough!

Many people—including many dedicated Christians already part of a local church—suffer mentally, emotionally, spiritually and physically, without realizing that there might be a spiritual culprit behind their ailment. Or even worse, they know they have demons and their pastors aren’t sure how to help them get free. Many of our clients have exhausted the options at their church before finding us. What a shame.

Jesus has given the power and authority to cast out demons and set the captives free to EVERY person that has put their faith and trust in Jesus and has been born again by the Holy Spirit. It’s time for the Church to not only get all of its limbs delivered but get on offense in the world! Let’s get free and stay free, and then get in front of this war and bring the good fight to the unsaved and show them why they need Jesus!

That’s great! Do you already have or are you looking for more hands-on deliverance experience? Once we know and trust you, and you have the proper training, you can help as a volunteer assisting us and our other ministry partners when we’re providing deliverance interventions. We’re looking for both men and women volunteers to help out. We will eventually like to offer paid positions, which will likely be chosen from those who we already know and trust. The best way to get started is to show an active interest in our ministry and support the programs, courses, and services we offer. You could start today by:

1. Enroll in The Empowered Christian Road Map Transformation Program (we want to know that you’re serious, committed, have a very solid foundation, and also know what we believe and agree with it).
2. Schedule a New Client Life Coaching session with Pastor Brian to discuss your education, experience, and calling.
3. Join the Mobilize level of our Empowered 365 membership program.
4. Subscribe to our YouTube channel, like, comment on, and share our videos, and join The Empower Hour and Freedom Fridays live streams, show support, help us build community, ask great questions, encourage others in the chat.
5. Join our social media channels and interact with us and help promote our ministry
6. Become an Affiliate

Thank you for your interest! We look forward to getting to know you!