Spiritual Freedom Church

The Teenage Exorcists backstage before the show.

I just completed an appearance on “The Anderson Cooper TV show,” seen nationally, Wednesday, February 22, 2012. You may read this before or after seeing the appearance.  (To see excerpts of the show, go to:  http://www.andersoncooper.com/episodes/i-am-a-teenage-exorcist-plus-jesse-tyler-ferguson-modern-family/). Of all the national media appearance I have done, this was by far the most hostile. Cooper has a reputation for being a fair journalist, but his treatment of me was far from fair. It was “ambush” journalism at its worst.  Anderson was cynical with his mind made up from the start. He accused me of “extortion” (so said the promos) and the teenage girl exorcists of being “robotic,” “acting,” and only wanting a reality show.  Somehow Cooper couldn’t handle the idea that three young Christian women could be poised, beautiful, intelligent and God-fearing. It just didn’t fit into his prejudiced idea about Christians. At one point he tried to paint me as homophobic (surprise, surprise) but when that failed he complained that it cost $9.95 to go to demontest.com, our web site, and take the test that shows the likelihood of demonic possession.  When I tried to explain that we have internet management costs to build and maintain the site, Cooper admitted that he scored high on the test!  Interesting.  Cooper’s brother committed suicide right in front of him by jumping to his death from a tall building. But worst of all, Anderson Cooper stacked all the other guests against us, including a priest who called our ministry “voodoo magic.” He also brought on an Assemblies of God missionary who doesn’t believe Christians can have demons and whose daughter was reportedly abused more than 10 years ago in an exorcism gone bad.  (As if somehow her unfortunate experience was typical of what we do.) Worse yet, he turned his stage over to a self-styled Baptist preacher with a vendetta against all deliverance ministries. The man mocked our ministry (to the cheers of the audience, egged on by Cooper) and accused me of taking five offerings a night in our seminars, a patently false lie.  But in spite of all efforts to portray me and the teenage exorcists as greedy, dangerous, and having ill-motives, we were able to get our message across, especially through the witness of a young woman, Cynthia, recently delivered in one of our seminars.  Cynthia shared how Christ changed her life through our ministry and how wonderful things are since her deliverance.

View of the audience from on-stage.

 I’m not surprised that Anderson Cooper acted the way he did. He also failed to mention that five years ago he sent his top reporter Tom Foreman to shadow me for an entire day and found nothing negative to say about that instance of investigative journalism. I expected Cooper to be adversarial because of his obvious disdain for hard-core Christianity. But the saddest scene was the Assemblies of God missionary and the Baptist preacher who allowed themselves to be manipulated by Cooper to attack other Christians. Matthew 18:15 is clear that if you have anything against a brother, you don’t become the pawn of an unbelieving TV host to broadcast your differences on national TV. As the character in the old comic-strip Pogo once said, “We have met the enemy, and he is us!’

Whitney Houston has been laid to rest, but is her soul truly at rest? Only God knows if America’s sweetheart singer, raised in church by a gospel-singing mother, made it to the Pearly Gates. I watched video clips of her funeral, which was truly touching. Even I had a few tears in my eyes, but for a reason much different from the weeping guests. I wept for the spiritual confusion of those at the funeral. Jesse Jackson, Al Sharpton, Oprah and other paid their respects and preachers preached her into heaven. The truth is that later in life she became known for a foul mouth, raunchy  behavior, and a decidedly unchristian image. However, gospel music legend Shirley Caesar claims that Houston recently visited a church, got blessed, ran around the auditorium and then fell on the floor for 30 minutes speaking in tongues. Caesar said, “We’ve lost a precious jewel to the body of Christ.” Really? Did I miss something? Weren’t her last days filled with illicit drugs fueled by an addled alcohol haze? One headline in a Christian publication read, “Despite Demons Whitney Wanted Jesus.” If she did want Him, she had a strange way of looking for Him. Perhaps she did have demons – real demons and they destroyed the woman of God she might have been. It’s sad that surrounded by so many well-meaning Christians there wasn’t someone who actually believed in deliverance and could confront those demons boldly. If they had, she might be alive today.

Last week, Pastor Bob and the teenage exorcists, appeared on TV’s “Inside Edition.” If you missed the program, you can see
a pictorial of scenes from the report along with a written transcript. Just go to:
http://www.insideedition.com/news/7631/teenage-exorcists.aspx .
Instead of my usual blog, this week I include a portion of the report from “Inside Edition” mentioned above.

For the past year, Tess Scherkenback, Savannah Scherkenback, and Brynne Larson, from Phoenix, Arizona, say they have been purging demons from the possessed. But it’s nothing like anything you’ve seen in the movies. “I would just say we are like your average girl. We love shopping, we do all kinds of girly stuff, we don’t chase boys, we chase demons,” said Savannah Scherkenback.

By day they are serious high school and college students, and in their free time, like most young women, they like to socialize and go to the mall. But one day last month, they took a break from their studies and performed an exorcism on 51-year-old Matt Beauvais, a construction worker, who believes he’s possessed by demons. Before the exorcism, the teens are mentored by Bob Larson, a self-taught exorcist, who has conducted thousands of his own exorcisms. “The thing that caught my attention were thoughts of murder, revenge and unforgiveness,” said Larson when briefing the girls before the exorcism.

Bob Larson starts things off by pushing a Bible in Beauvais’ chest, causing loud screams. But in a few moments Larson puts the women in charge of the exorcism.

“Get up murder. I break the curse,” said Brynne Larson.

During the exorcism Bob Larson steps in and gives tips to the women. “Make him pronounce his doom and go.” Brynne Larson then attempts to cast out Beauvais’ demons by sending them to a place she calls the pit.

“What do people say when they see you, because you are probably breaking all the stereotypes of what people think are exorcists?” Guerrero asked the young women.

“I think the biggest shock is when they walk in the room and they see braces, teenage girls, sequins,” said Savannah Scherkenback.

Brynne adds, “This isn’t just to get media, this is to help others and really make a difference.”

Last week, Richard Roberts, the son of late evangelist Oral Roberts and former president of Oral Roberts University, was arrested by the Oklahoma Highway Patrol and booked for drunk driving. (Ironically his donor-funded TV show is called “Your Hour of Healing.”) After going 93 mph in a 65-mph zone, police stopped Roberts. After failing a blood alcohol test (his blood alcohol level was at .11%, higher than the .08% limit for legal intoxication), Roberts was sent to the Tulsa County Jail. One embarrassment after another plagues the American Christian Community as failed leaders of huge ministries bite the dust in a succession of moral failures. It might be argued that “all have sinned and come short of the glory of God.” True, but the immensity of these tragedies defies the obligatory “there but for the grace of God” response. A spokesman for ORU stated: “Our prayers go out to Richard and Lindsay Roberts and their entire family as they face this life challenge.” Of course we pray for them and, as the Body of Christ, we wish them no ill. But how long will we continue overlooking egregious behavior with platitudes and politically correct sentiments. Have we forgotten the advice of Paul to Timothy (2 Tim. 4:2) to “reprove (reprimand)” and “rebuke?” And why are we afraid to suggest that the possible reason gifted men and women of God (Tims, Long, Haggard, White, Roberts et. al.) fall is that they may be demonized and that such an invasion of evil at least partly explains their irrational behavior?

While the attention of the electorate is focused on which way America will go on Tuesday, November 6, 2012, our spiritual direction is already being determined. And it’s not being decided by a Godly GPS. Somewhat under the radar, the forces of accommodation and “tolerance,” continue to undermine our Christian heritage. In 1892 the Supreme Court declared that, “Our laws and our institutions must necessarily be based on, and must include, the teachings of the Redeemer of mankind . . . our civilization and our institutions are emphatically Christian.” That verdict was based on law, precedence, and factual history. Fast forward to 2012 and a recent report that the Department of Veterans Affairs, which oversees the hallowed ground of Arlington National Cemetery, has approved the Wiccan pentacle for display on gravesite tombstones. The star in a circle is in part emblematic of the spells cast in witchcraft “sacred” circles. In a perverted twist of our nation’s declaration of “one nation under God,” the Department of Veterans Affairs has now approved witchcraft devotion toward the “Lord and the Lady, the Maiden and the Crone” (aka. Lucifer and Jezebel). The pentacle is officially on par with the Cross. Privately, our Constitution guarantees the right of an individual to worship anyone or anything. But official approbation of witchcraft (a capital crime under Old Testament law; Exodus 22:18) opens the door for demons and provides Satan one more legal right to attack our nation spiritually.

NOTE: This blog was first featured in November of 2011. But because of the current political contest between Newt Gingrich and Mitt Romney, we are making this blog available again. In no way are we endorsing or failing to endorse any particular candidate. In fact, if you’re a Republican, you have a very difficult choice if Mitt and Newt are your favorites. More on that in coming blogs.

THE CREED AND THE CANDIDATE
The Mormons famously put their heresy this way: “As man is now, God once was. As God is now, man may become.” And to make matters worse, Mormons not only believe that God and Christ were once humans we became gods, they assert that Christ was a created being and NOT co-eternal with the Father. Case closed. The Nicene Creed was an early definition of Christian faith that has stood the test of time. Mormonism is a 19th century heresy that demotes and devalues the divinity of Christ. Mitt may believe what he wishes, but by creedal definition, he IS NOT a Christian.

More than half the cases of exorcism that we encounter in America are the result of childhood sexual abuse. Now, a new report (Associated Press 01/08/12) lends a disturbing slant to this tragedy. As we often discover, this abuse is sometimes perpetrated by other minors. In fact, the sobering statistic is that one-third of sexually abused children were violated by other children.  Some perpetrators commit a one-time act of curiosity, but others turned into adult pedophiles and rapists. In some states, the sex-offender registries include kids as young as 14. Of these offenders, according to a Justice Department study, 93% are male, and the peak age for offenders is 12 through 14; 59 percent of the victims were younger than 12 and 75 percent of victims were female.  What the Justice Department doesn’t reveal, is what our ministry constantly observes. Virtually 99% of these perpetrators were victims themselves, who were also victims of a generational curse of perversion. I am glad that our government is finally paying attention to this terrible crime and seeking ways to address the problem. But unless the spiritual issue of generationally transmitted behavior through demonization is faced, the statistics may sadly be destined to increase.

Last Friday, a new horror movie premiered–“The Devil Inside,” a film about exorcism.  Paramount Pictures flew me to Hollywood a few weeks ago for an exclusive, advance screening. They asked me to be a spokesperson regarding the exorcism aspect of the movie.  Because this film is the best so far to explore the reality of demonic possession, I agreed. Let me be clear, I AM NOT ENDORSING THIS MOVIE.  It is filled with profanity, crude sexual expressions, and considerable blood and gore. However, millions are going to see it, and I can set the record straight about what demons can and cannot do. I am not being personally paid to do this.  A very small donation will be made to our ministry to compensate for my time to do media interviews. If you want to see a sample of the kind of articles being written, here is a link to one: http://www.movieweb.com/news/exclusive-exorcist-reverend-bob-larson-talks-the-devil-inside . Our Facebook page has been bombarded with inquiries from desperate people.  I’ve been asked to bless the movie audiences for spiritual protection.  I’ve done eight major print media interviews and more are on the way.  Fox TV News is covering my involvement with this film. We have opportunities to present the power of Christ over evil that no ministry has even been given. Thank you for praying that God will grant wisdom and protect us from every counter-attack of the Enemy.

The results are in. The most admired man and woman in America, according to the USA TODAY/Gallup Poll, are President Obama and Hillary Clinton. Who do these pollsters poll? Are the questions at random or are the people given a list? I’ve never been asked, so I don’t know.  I find it hard to believe that people on the street, selected indiscriminately, would choose Barack and Hillary? But maybe it’s more a matter of name recognition than actual popularity. Still, if it is anywhere accurate, it’s a sad commentary. Granted, the President of the United States does have a leg up on the competition in terms of notoriety. So does the Secretary of State. But if it’s about admiration it says a lot about the state of the American mind. Both are pro-abortion, pro-gay rights, politically radical, economically profligate, and neither has held a real job in the real world outside of politics. To be fair, both have something to admire. Hillary is a strong woman who has taken on a tough job (no, not being Bill’s husband) on the world political stage. President Obama seems to be a devoted family man who loves his wife and kids. But the fact that the list IS NOT headed by someone with traditional values raises the question whether anyone with conservative morals could top the list. Not likely, unless there is a major spiritual revival of biblically based respect for scriptural moral leadership in the public arena

Peper spray attacks at a shopping mall in California, on Black Friday.  An insane attack on shoppers in Liege, Beligium that killed five.  A spineless Rhode Island governor who lights his state’s “holiday tree.”  With headlines like this, it makes one wonder about the reason for the season.  All this frustration, greed, and emotional turmoil leads me (tongue in cheek ) to extend to each and every one of you the following politically correct, legally precise, Christmas greeting: Please accept without obligation, implied or implicit, my best wishes for  an environmentally conscious, socially responsible, low stress,  non-addictive, gender neutral celebration of the winter solstice holiday, practiced with the most politically correct, enjoyable traditions of the religious persuasion of your choice. This greeting is extended with respect for the secular traditions of others, or their choice not to practice any at all. May you have a financially successful, personally fulfilling and medically uncomplicated new year, according to the generally accepted current calendar year, but with due respect for the calendars of choice of other cultures or sects. Please note that this greeting is without regard or prejudice to race, creed, color, age, physical ability, religious faith, sexual proclivities, choice of computer platform or dietary preference.  SERIOUSLY—MERRY CHRISTMAS!