Above all, keep fervent in your love for one another, because love covers a multitude of sins (1 Peter 4:8).

A missionary couple stopped by my office to talk about their misbehaving five-year-old daughter. The father lamented, “Neil, Sarah is so difficult to handle that we have to drop her off at my parents’ home every other weekend so we can get away. We want to love Sarah, and we are going to choose to do that. But she is so difficult to be around that there are times we just hate her! She is ruining our home, and the pressure on our marriage is threatening to pull us apart.”

I encouraged them to ask Sarah what was going on in her mind when she acted belligerently. They seemed a little skeptical, but they agreed to try. To their surprise Sarah admitted to receiving all kinds of bizarre thoughts as well as having frightening experiences in her room. The parents made an appointment with me and brought Sarah with them. Together we took a stand against the enemy. I heard from the parents six months later that Sarah was living a “normal” life.

Another father pulled me aside after a speaking engagement. “Neil, I have a problem with my 14-year-old daughter, Mindy,” he began. “There’s a barrier between us to the point that we can hardly talk. What should I do?” I suggested that he read my book The Bondage Breaker to become informed enough to help her.

While he was reading the book at home, Mindy asked him what he was reading. As he explained to her the material about the battle for the mind, she poured out her own story of mental assault. Finally knowing the true nature of her problem, he was able to work with her toward resolving her conflict and their differences.

When an emotional barrier has been erected between parent and child, it will be difficult for the parent to resolve the spiritual conflict. If the problem persists for any period of time, the child will summarily reject all authority figures. Your child may be difficult to like at this point, but you must love your child enough to discern the true nature of his bondage.

Dr. Anderson, Freedom in Christ and Harvest House Publishers www.ficm.org