What would you do if you found yourself in a physical battle against a spiritual entity?
Corey Russell experienced a physical reality of the spiritual battle for his soul. During his time in college, he was living his life completely the way he wanted to, doing anything that pleased him. Yet after one of his friends was radically transformed by God’s grace, he found himself battling with whether he should give his life to Christ. As he was about to abandon his friend’s plea, Russell found himself overwhelmed by the presence of the Lord.
“I felt a presence I had never felt before; it was the Holy Spirit,” Russell says in an interview with Isaiah Saldivar. “From the right of my body to the left, I felt the presence of God fill the van, and before I knew it, I’m shaking violently like I’m having a seizure. All I could see was a tug-of-war battle between light and darkness over my soul.”
In this harrowing moment, Russell’s friend started praying over his soul, and the spiritual war over him became incredibly evident—in particular in his battle against the Antichrist spirit.
“As soon as he bound the spirit, it manifested into a choke hold around my throat and I couldn’t breathe,” Russell says.
As the spirit pressed tighter around him, he strained to get out the name “Jesus,” as his friend encouraged him along toward the end goal.
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“I just remember taking a deep breath, and with all the power inside of me screaming, ‘Jesus.’ And right when I screamed His name, the hold broke off of me, and it was like God came and breathed into my mouth,” Russell says.
This fresh wind of life poured over him in a unique and beautiful way as God prompted him to then commit his life to Christ. He loudly proclaimed his faith in Jesus right there on the sidewalk in front of his peers.
Since this powerful experience, Russell’s life has never been the same. At 20 years old, he evangelized his brother and watched as the Holy Spirit completely invaded his small town in Northwest Arkansas for the glory of God.
It’s testimonies like Russell’s that remind us we fight not against flesh and blood but against powers and principalities (Eph. 6:12). Just as Jesus gave His life for every one of us, the enemy would also like to get hold of each one of us. The spiritual battles around us are real, and at the end of the day, we will belong either to darkness or to the light.
Russell will be hosting a live Q&A session with Christians Engaged founder and Charisma House author Bunni Pounds. The event will be live tomorrow at 4 p.m. EST on Charisma Magazine’s YouTube channel and other social media platforms.
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Abby Trivett is a marketing copywriter and coordinator for Charisma Media.
Abby Trivett is copywriter for Charisma and an editorial intern.
