Grace Point! July 2015 | Page 35

Jesus dealt with a 'cutter' when He went into the Gadarenes. This man lived among the tombs, had been bound by the people by shackles and chains, but had broken them easily. He was 'always, night and day, in the mountains, and in the tombs, crying, and cutting himself with stones.' (Mark 5:1-20) This is a grown man who was in so much emotional pain, manifested by demons, that he cut himself, and lived naked in the tombs. Was it because he was physically or verbally abused as a child? Was it because he saw no hope for his future, and this was the only way of relieving himself from the pain? This sounds very much like the girl mentioned above. The key to the hope of the future is putting the demons in the presence of Jesus Christ. In the scripture, as soon as Jesus' presence was perceived by the demons, they immediately called out to Him. For those people, no matter their age, who cut themselves to try to get rid of the pain, they need to be put in the presence of Jesus, just as the man in the tombs was. This can be achieved through intercessory prayer, to lift up the abused and neglected. When the demons were cast out, the man was 'sitting, and clothed, and in his right mind.' How great a miracle would it be to see today's young people experience the same thing? How great would it be for all those people to proclaim that Jesus healed them? That's what Jesus told the man to do-share his experience. We need to pray for our youth, and those that abuse them. The troubled mind of anyone that has to deal with abuse of any kind gives the perfect conditions for demons to take over and manifest themselves so that people try to destroy themselves. Some wounds cut to the quick, so deep that only Jesus can heal them. photo credit: Jesus Casting Out Legion 35