Spiritual Warfare, Part Four

This week on the Allender Center Podcast, Dr. Dan Allender is joined once again by his friend and colleague Rachael Clinton, Assistant Director of Program Development & Admissions, to conclude their conversation about the realities and complexities of spiritual warfare. After addressing the crucial intersections with story work in last week’s episode, Dan and Rachael now talk about what spiritual warfare looks like in practice for them.

Dan: “I’m a representative of his death, a representative of his resurrection and his ascension. So I will always pray the story of the death, resurrection, and ascension. […] It’s bringing the work of Christ against the work of what evil would desire.”

Dan and Rachael reflect on an article Rachael recently wrote for our blog, wrestling with experiences of harm that led her to develop a deeper, more holistic understanding that spiritual warfare is not merely something that unfolds through prayer.

Rachael: “Body work is a form of spiritual warfare.”

Dan: “Living well—living with a heart for the kingdom of God—is, in and of itself, a form of standing against and doing harm to the kingdom of darkness. […] Therapy, good body work, how you eat becomes part of the way that we begin to grow in warfare against the work of evil.”

As they continue engaging Rachael’s experience, they reflect on how spiritual warfare is also a collaborative endeavor, an opportunity to invite the wisdom and discernment of others, joining our voices with those who know us, love us, and call us to deeper levels of wholeness and light. This can occur in powerful ways through shared ritual, as individuals bear witness, speak truth, and call out life in each other.

Dan: “Whether you believe it or not, you’re in warfare. And you and your younger parts have sometimes made an agreement or a vow or a soul tie. You’ve been cursed in some form, and those need to be addressed—not only narratively, but prayerfully.”

Rachael: “We need holistic healing from the whole thing. We need God to break the power of sin and death over us, and we need that ongoing work of healing and tending to how it’s been woven into us.”