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Mark 1:21, 23-26
When the sabbath came, [Jesus] entered the synagogue and taught … Just then there was in their synagogue a man with an unclean spirit, and he cried out, “What have you to do with us, Jesus of Nazareth? Have you come to destroy us? I know who you are, the Holy One of God.” But Jesus rebuked him, saying, “Be silent, and come out of him!” And the unclean spirit, convulsing him and crying with a loud voice, came out of him.

To ponder
I just know that demons, whether they be addictions or evil spirits, are not what Jesus wants for us.

- Nadia Bolz-Weber, “Demon Possession”

Show up
Jesus isn’t one who hides or dips his toe in to take the temperature of the moment before deciding how he will respond to a situation. He’s always all in, all Jesus, all the time, no matter who likes it or doesn’t like it. On several occasions his “all-in-ness” results in attacks from demons.

Demons do not want us to show up all in like Jesus. They are their most contrary when we show up no-holds-barred. They bully, belittle, and berate to get us to follow their lead and to be less than ourselves. But it is not our fate to follow demons down their rabbit holes. We have been given the same authority as Jesus. The next time a bullying word or thought comes to you, flick it away. God’s desire is for you to show up all in, all the way, as you share Christ’s love in the world.

Prayer
Jesus, you never let demons bully you. Put your power behind my tongue, that every time I am assailed into thinking I ought to be less than myself, I can say no, in Jesus’ name. Amen.

(from: “A Story to Tell: Devotions for Lent” Bekki Lohrmann, Harvard Stephens Jr., Lydia Posselt, David L. Miller; Augsburg Fortress, 2020)