Stewart 5

ok, this is pretty much non-scientifically-verifiable. However, my experience and small about of spiritual discernment leads me to believe there is actually a spirit of fear with influence over South Africa. Whether you hold a more liberal perspective (there aren’t actual person-spirits), or you do indeed believe in demons and territorial spirits, there seems to be a pervasive ethos here that leads people to fear.

It’s reasonably obvious in the general populace. The abundance of security gates/bars and generally-accepted fables about “how many people get carjacked, robbed, etc.” leave no question that South Africans generally hold a perspective that they are not safe. I have also noticed that people that come to visit/live who have pre-existing fear issues seem to have these magnified while they are here.

I believe there is a strong spirit or spirits that have much influence in this part of the world that cause people to be fearful. Why would they want to do that? Because this causes us to put our trust in things other than God (like handguns or security systems). It causes us to dis-trust our neighbor. It propagates stereotypes about others. It keeps us from living free and fulfilling lives. Our enemy wants nothing more than to keep people isolated, unhappy, and alone.

I also believe that we can pray against such spiritual forces. AND, we can receive and live in the perfect love that God offers - love that casts out fear because there is nothing to fear when we are with God.

Please pray against the spirit of fear in South Africa.

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continuing from the last blog post re: IS SOUTH AFRICA SAFE?

What is safe to you?

I understand that this is not so much an either/or questions as a quantitative/qualitative one. But when you say a place is safe, or not, or somewhat safe, what do you have in your mind? What are the things you factor in (perhaps even subconsciously) when you think of safety?

murder, rape, robbery…

Everyone worries about different things, don’t they? What is safe to you?

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IS SOUTH AFRICA SAFE?

1. Is America safe? See, that’s not a fair question, is it? America is a big place. Really, you can’t even say, “is Michigan safe?” Because, of course, some parts are, some part’s aren’t. Is Fresno safe? See, even one town and you can’t answer unequivocally for the whole place, right?

2. What is safe, really? Now, I don’t mean by definition. I am saying that SAFETY IS AN ENTIRELY SUBJECTIVE FEELING. You and I can be in the exact same place or situation and I feel fine and you are scared (for any number of reasons). Is it safe? Well, depends on who you ask AND what they base their answer on. So, has a crime ever been committed in SA? Yes. Does that make it unsafe? How many crimes, or what types of crime = unsafety? I walk from work to home several times a day, at any time of the day. For me, I obviously consider our neighborhood safe. Other people won’t drive with their windows down or doors unlocked. Same neighborhood. Is is safe?

Am I the only one who thinks, “Is South Africa safe?” an unfair and impossible to answer question? I only ask because people ask it all the time. What do you think? More to come (if I don’t get killed tomorrow)…

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