This article is one I published many years ago but as you read you will understand my urgency in repeating it now. The church has a "new cast" on stage but the script is still the same. Many Christians are suffering deep psychological crisis and pain but—for the most part— the modern church is powerless to help. Most victims are sent to psychiatrists for mind-numbing
medication. Sometimes that is necessary—but Jesus dealt with psychiatric- crisis in a very different way.
Years ago a Christian psychotherapist called my office and asked if I would minister to eight or ten of her worst patients. These represented a wide spectrum of mental problems. I agreed, set up the appointments, and after hanging up the phone, was angered at myself for accepting the request. I had no experience in this area and had never attempted ministry to patients suffering from schizophrenia and parallel disorders. As the therapist already knew, people battling rage, depression, drug addiction, alcoholism, homosexuality, and similar problems, had experienced successful Deliverance Ministry under my care (Luke 11:19, Matthew 28:20).
One of my former church members, for example, who had been a severe alcoholic for 18 years was totally set free in a ten minute ministry. To the shock of her church and family, she never drank again. It was because of such examples the psychotherapist called me.But, even with wonderful accomplishments in my past there had been a consistent pattern of failure with others. In these cases, the people seemed to achieve successful deliverance only to discover a short time later that the entire process had to be done again. They could receive freedom but could not keep it. This was the aspect that frightened me about the psychiatric patients.
One memory of failure was especially vivid; it had taken place with an older woman in a high-rise apartment building in Smolensk, Russia. As a child she and her family had narrowly escaped the Nazi massacre in the Second World War. Thousands of her townspeople had been destroyed–machine-gunned to the ground. While ministering to her the Holy Spirit came powerfully, she cooperated in every way, earnestly wanted to be set free. Demons manifested in the same pattern described in the ministry of Jesus. But all similarity with Jesus ‘ ministry abruptly ended there. We came to an impasse that could not be breached. Some unknown obstruction prevented victory. When neighbors in the building became suspicious at the woman’s loud noises, started banging on the door and threatening to call the police, I had to leave. The woman was still in bondage. And I was later told, she had undergone many previous attempts at deliverance but all of them ended in the same unsuccessful way.
A few days later on the train back to Moscow I met the woman’s daughter and was told the full story of her mother’s harrowing escape from the Nazi bloodbath: Moments after her family’s crossing a bridge--the only way out of town--it was bombed leaving everyone else trapped in the city. The townspeople were then herded into an open field and machine-gunned to the
ground. That included her relatives and friends. No one escaped. Children and elderly folks, pregnant mothers and grieving fathers, perished alike. As I rode along on the train, listening to the war-story, I was convinced that her mother’s failure to receive deliverance was connected to the terror she experienced as a child.
Some may not understand what I mean by "Deliverance Ministry." Thirty percent of Jesus’ recorded ministry was spent in delivering people from unclean spirits. People such as the woman with the crooked back was attacked by a spirit of infirmity: She was not actually sick but had a "spirit of infirmity" that caused her problem. Others who suffered from mental disorders and many involved in sin and immorality were delivered (Luke 11:13). Jesus gave His authority to the original disciples, then assured all future generations, "These signs will follow those who believe. In my name they will cast out demons ..." (Mark 16:17). "Deliverance" is the current name given to this ministry.
Following my own deliverance in 1977 I have since ministered deliverance to thousands of hurting people. Marriages have been saved and lives permanently changed. Many children have been radically helped. One pastor who flew in from out of state and received successful deliverance told me afterward, "I brought my gun and if this ministry had failed I was not going home alive." Thankfully, he went back to his church and family a changed man with a happy future before him. Even so, the psychotherapist’s phone call forced me to my knees for new understanding about the "pattern" of failure I had experienced.
The Holy Spirit answered, impressing me with three specific Scripture subjects and showing their application to the people’s needs. Each Bible verse spoke of God’s "regathering" His people. It was a wonderful revelation, one I prize to this day. The Scriptures were:
1. God's restoration of Israel to their land and to His grace: Amos 9:11-15. Romans 11:25-36. 2. The final gathering of the elect: Matthew 24:31. 3. Identification of double-minds and its cure: James 1:7
The Lord then emphasized it was always His purpose to re-gather His people from wherever they had been scattered. That applied to nations, families, or individuals, who had become fragmented. Through the prophecy of Amos, God emphasized that He would make a final gathering of Jews to their mother-country. Jesus spoke of a "gathering" of God’s elect and their reunion in Heaven. The Holy Spirit then applied that "regathering" principle to individuals whose minds had been scattered. It was His will that they come to complete restoration. He then cautioned me that Deliverance Ministry was only the second part of their need. Before anything else, these people needed to have their minds "called together."
I will never forget the first patient who came, a young woman who had been under psychotherapy for two years. In the first minutes of ministry the Lord showed me a vision of her as a little girl, probably four years old, hiding under an old-fashioned wicker sofa. She had her arms and legs tightly locked into its springs and under-structure. She refused to turn loose and come out. In that state it would have been impossible to remove her without injury. The Lord explained, "What you are seeing is that part of her mind that is still hiding." I understood this was a visible picture of schizophrenia. The woman who was sitting in my office was–in part–still a four year-old hiding behind the sofa. In that moment, I understood the Apostle James description of a "double minded" person (James 1:8. 4:8) who is "unstable in all his ways." In the Greek text, "double minded" is translated from the word dipsuchos literally, "two souls" or "two psyches."
In the woman’s case, two "people" were living competitively in the same brain angrily refusing to talk to each other. In effect, one part was protecting itself
from a fear which no longer existed. The other part had become amnesic to any memory of it. The woman’s need at this point was not deliverance–even though demons seemed to be in control. What she needed was for that hidden
part of her mind to be coaxed out of hiding. This was key. Non- communicating parts of her consciousness needed to be reconnected.
Deliverance Ministry at this point might have appeared successful but she would have quickly returned to her tormented state.
I remember praying desperately saying, "Lord, what do we do?!" The answer I received was that I should speak very lovingly, very reassuringly, to that frightened little girl in hiding and tell her the danger was gone. She no longer needed to hide, Jesus was her protector. I was not to command her as I would have a demon but to appeal to that tiny, frightened little girl to turn loose of the sofa and come home. The word "home" particularly interested me. Further, I was to remind the traumatized part that no one else could fit into that empty place but she. That was her home. And she could fit no where else. She wanted to come home. She needed to come home, was tired of being in hiding, tired of separation, tired of loneliness. All those pains would end when she slipped back into place. I would then wait. Repeat the appeal. Coax her by saying, "Come on home ... you want to ... we will wait ... you don’t have to rush ... but you do want to come home ... ‘God has not given you the spirit of fear but of power, of love, and a sound mind.’" This process was repeated for the next two weeks.
Soon afterward I received an excited phone call from the psychotherapist who had made the original appointments. Speaking of that first patient, she said, "I had her for two years and achieved nothing. You had her for two weeks and she is normal! ... I want to do what you are doing! Will you teach me?" She not only came to my office with her husband for learning sessions but quit her practice and quickly moved to the top of a national Christian women's organization where she had great influence in teaching others. The good news is that all of the patients she sent were completely restored or dramatically helped. One even sent a generous donation as an expression of gratitude.
But I need to emphasize this point: We ministered deliverance successfully to these patients only after the fragmented condition of their minds had been corrected. I know now that the Russian woman could have been healed–at least dramatically helped–had she received this type of ministry. Can I explain what happened inside these patients’ brains? No. Nor am I suggesting I have any kind of cure for mental illness. Not all mental illness is spiritual in origin. There are many other potential sources. And I still experience failure. What I did worked in these cases. In addressing the question as to why Deliverance Ministry is unsuccessful in untreated schizophrenic patients, it seems that the offending spirit uses the person’s mental wounding as their consent to stay. Once the consent-factor has been corrected, the gap closed, the darkness dispelled, the spirit can be forced out. Until this has been done we are wasting our time in attempting deliverance.
Working with a friend I later conducted weekly worship and ministry sessions to patients in the psychiatric ward of Bethesda Hospital in Boynton Beach, Florida, where I live.. This succeeded well until a patient complained about my using the name "Jesus" and the hospital (with their personal regrets to me) was forced to cancel the practice. I am well aware that most of the psychiatric world ridicules belief in demons. That is changing and leading psychiatrists now practice Deliverance Ministry with their patients. My grief, however, is not with the medical field but with the American church which refuses to accept and exercise the teaching of Jesus. Millions of people needlessly suffer long-term crises because church leadership rejects Jesus’ instructions.
How many pastors do you know who cast out demons? Microscopically few. On that point--controversy or not--I will yield no ground. I am 90 years old, have been preaching for 73 years, and am a committed disciple of Jesus Christ. He practiced and taught deliverance. I believe it. Since my baptism and
renewal in the Holy Spirit 40+ years ago, I have witnessed almost all of the New Testament descriptions of demonic manifestations. Thousands of victims have been set free by Deliverance Ministry.. It is too late to tell me the teachings of Jesus do not work. I’ve seen them work!
But please hear this: Deliverance Ministry is not a one-time experience. There must be follow-up with all patients. Each must be warned that deliverance can bring immediate results but the renewal of their mind is a process. One without the other is not only futile but dangerous. Jesus taught that demons return to unprotected houses (Matthew 12:44). Everyone undergoing this type of ministry must learn to defend themselves from spiritual re-infestation. They must become active in a full-gospel church, stay in fellowship with other believers, daily nurture themselves in the Scripture, and maintain a loving relationship with the Lord. This is absolutely mandatory.
Two Of My Psychotherapist Friends Share Their Opinion Regarding Deliverance Ministry
Abiola Dipeolu, Ph.D. "As a licensed psychologist and now teaching at a university, I have had experiences with patients with high recidivism rate (Pedophilia and Axis II disorders, etc.), for whom psychology seems to offer little hope. About ten years ago, I came across Brother Carrin’s newsletter and through the years gleaned from its pages helpful principles of kingdom living. His teachings on "re-gathering the mind," "homecoming," and "re-infestation" appear to be God-given keys of kingdom living. *Jesus talks about the keys of the kingdom. What are these keys? These are the keys that open the doors that hitherto have been closed to difficult cases in psychology; if only we could appropriate them. Psychology does not have access to these keys--simply because they are available only to the children of the kingdom. Until now, the doors to the kingdom have pretty much been closed to these individuals. However, with these keys, they will finally be re-gathered home to stay." *Matthew 16:19.
Dr. Joseph Donaldson, Ph.D. "When Brother Carrin came to the aid of the Christian psychotherapist, he was probably unaware that many experienced and skilled psychotherapists perform as mirrors for their patients. I am a certified clinical psychotherapist practicing for seven years. When reflecting patient’s verbal and nonverbal behavior, some improve dramatically in therapy. However, when one considers severe mental disorders such as Schizophrenia, Multiple Personality (now called Dissociative Identity Disorder), and others, facilitating positive change can be quite elusive. What brother Carrin describes with concepts such as "re-gathering the mind," preventing "re-infestation, and "homecoming," goes a step farther. During his work with the therapist’s patients, he was able to mirror the Holy Spirit,. Essentially, Brother Carrin found a way for the Holy Spirit to confront the person’s mental emotional demons which resulted in them not only being healed, but delivered, and eventually freed."
I am no longer available for private ministry. If you need help, take this information to your pastor and ask his aid. If he refuses, ask him again. Should he continue to decline, find some true believer who will come to your rescue. Most importantly, remember that you, as a believer, can minister to others. For further information, visit my website at www.CharlesCarrinMinistries.com and read related articles linked to the home page entitled "Deliverance Ministry." God bless you! Get free and stay free! Amen!