As a young girl in middle school, I used to experience night terrors or dreams that were influenced by the devil’s hold on my life. Now, I’m free from that darkness because Jesus saved me with His blood on the cross. However, I know that some of my good Christian friends still struggle with spiritual warfare dreams, so I’ve asked them how they interpret and battle these dreams.
What is a spiritual warfare dream? A spiritual warfare dream is when Christians experience a night terror that is either dictated by demonic powers. Spititual warfare dreams could also show a depiction darkness fighting against the Kingdom of God.
These dreams are not fun in the slightest, and often terrifying. They can leave the dreamer exhausted the next day and afraid to fall asleep the next night.
As Christians, we know that it is for freedom Christ set us free, and He loves us and wants to help us and comfort us in anything we go through. We also know that this world is fallen, and even though we have a relationship with Jesus now, we still have to battle sin and darkness.
Despite this evil, however, God is working everything for our good and wants to redeem and heal every part of our lives, including our dreams.
How to Interpret a Spiritual Warfare Dream
Interpreting a spiritual warfare dream can be confusing and scary at times, and the Bible doesn’t give us a clear formula for how to to decipher these dreams. However, God’s Word gives us direction on how to distinguish where the dream is coming from and how to fight against it.
For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the cosmic powers over this present darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places.
Ephesians 6:12 ESV
When you have a spiritual warfare dream, know that the fight is against the spiritual forces that do not belong to this world.
If your dream is a scene of a battle or a struggle against good and evil, you can interpret this as a real battle going on for you or for the people in your life, happening in the heavenly places.
A friend of mine told me once that in her spiritual warfare dream, the demonic powers were trying to snatch her sisters away from her, and she knew that there was a real battle going on for their souls.
During her dream, she realized that she could cry out the name of Jesus, and as soon as she did she woke up and felt the need to pray for her sisters.
Though scary, spiritual warfare dreams may call you to just that: war. You can interpret dreams that you wouldn’t otherwise have as signals to pray for people and their struggles.
Without this glimpse into the spiritual realm, my friend may have never known how to pray for her sisters.
For though we walk in the flesh, we are not waging war according to the flesh. For the weapons of our warfare are not of the flesh but have divine power to destroy strongholds. We destroy arguments and every lofty opinion raised against the knowledge of God, and take every thought captive to obey Christ,
2 Corinthians 10:3-5 ESV
Another way to interpret your dreams is to raise it up to the knowledge or Word of God. If you believe you’ve had a spiritual warfare dream, ask the Holy Spirit to help you understand what you need to and what the root of it is.
Sometimes, these dreams are random attacks, thrown on us at random by the devil. Other times, they attack specific things in our lives, like our family members, situations, or our faith.
Know that these are attacks are straight from the devil, and whether you feel it’s important or not to interpret it, these dreams show just how much Satan wants to keep us from God and His love, joy, and peace.
How to Battle a Spiritual Warfare Dream
Now, we need to look at how we can battle these night terrors/bad dreams. I found four ways we can fight in this battle.
Call on the Name of Jesus
Like my friend did in her spiritual warfare dream, call on the name of Jesus. The name of Jesus is powerful, and it has all authority in heaven and under the earth.
The seventy-two returned with joy, saying, “Lord, even the demons are subject to us in your name!”
Luke 10:17 ESV
The devil and his demons hate the name of Jesus, so when you resist him and cry out for Jesus, they will flee.
Bring it into the Light
If you’re struggling with dreams of spiritual warfare, tell someone. Bring it into the light and seek help from someone you trust. Whether it’s a mentor, a parent, or a pastor, ask them for help, and ask them for prayer.
Sometimes, we feel too weak to pray for ourselves, but other Christians can help strengthen our faith and point out things that we didn’t notice before.
If you feel like you need further help with either counseling or someone who’s been there before, ask your mentors, parents, and pastors if they know of anyone who could help.
Play Worship Music
When experiencing spiritual warfare in your dreams, try to play worship music in your bedroom throughout the day and listen to it when you can. This powerful act of faith can saturate your room and your life with God’s words of peace and protection, forcing anything that doesn’t worship Jesus to leave.
If you feel as if you can’t fight any longer, let the Holy Spirit fight for you through music that praises God and Him alone. Demons flee at the name of Jesus and scatter when people praise Him, so creating an atmosphere of worship may be what you need to fight back against the schemes of the devil.
Fight Back with God’s Word
The most powerful weapon we can wield when going into spiritual war is the Word of God.
If you’re scared to go to bed at night, meditate on a bible verse or ask someone to pray through scripture with you before you go to bed. The Bible is like a sword and demons don’t stand a chance against its power and authority.
Stand therefore, having fastened on the belt of truth, and having put on the breastplate of righteousness, and, as shoes for your feet, having put on the readiness given by the gospel of peace. In all circumstances take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming darts of the evil one; and take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God, praying at all times in the Spirit, with all prayer and supplication.
Ephesians 6:14-18 ESV
God does not want us to feel like we have to fight this battle alone. He is here with you, helping you put on His armor and fight against the spiritual attacks in your dreams. He wants to give you peace and rest, and He’s with you no matter what happens.
You’re not Alone
If you’re struggling with spiritual warfare dreams, you don’t have to be ashamed or feel alone. You’re not the only one experiencing these hard dreams, so reach out for someone for help and healing.
Know that you are not having these dreams because you deserve it or because Jesus doesn’t love you, in fact Jesus shows just how close He is in the hardest, darkest parts of our lives.
Haven’t I commanded you: be strong and courageous? Do not be afraid or discouraged, for the Lord your God is with you wherever you go.
Joshua 1:9 CSB
You are not alone in wanting to be free of these tiring dreams. Dreams are a very real way in which the spiritual world meets ours, and this intensity of your dreams just goes to show that though the devil is trying to discourage and harm you, God is fighting for you and has already won the battle.
The Lord advances like a warrior; he stirs up his zeal like a soldier. He shouts, he roars aloud, he prevails over his enemies.
Isaiah 42:13 CSB
Because of Jesus’ sacrifice on the cross, He has saved you and is fighting in your spiritual warfare dreams. Let Jesus be your warrior, and know that He is protecting you as you put your head down to sleep tonight.
Jesus will help you call on His name, worship Him, bring others into the situation to help you, and fight back with His Word. He loves you and wants to help you rest, sleep, and dream peacefully.