I greet you in Jesus’ precious name! It is Saturday morning, the 23rd of May, 2026, and this is your friend, Angus Buchan, with a thought for today.

We start in the Book of Acts 19:16:

”Then the man in whom the evil spirit was leaped on them, overpowered them, and prevailed against them, so that they fled out of that house naked and wounded.”

Then we go back to the Gospel of Matthew 17:21. This is Jesus talking:

”However, this kind does not go out except by prayer and fasting.” 

Now remember what happened, the sons of Sceva, seven of them by the way, saw what Paul was doing, casting out demons from people who were demon-possessed, and they thought to themselves, “Well, we can also do that”, and they went in to deliver a man from an evil spirit. But what did this man say? He says, ”Jesus I know, Paul I know, but I don’t know you!’ And with that he attacked all seven of them, stripped them naked and wounded them and they ran for their lives. What happened there? Well, the same thing that happened with Jesus when the disciples came to Him after He had cast out a demon from a young boy who kept on harming himself, and they said, “Why could we not do that?” Jesus said, “This kind only comes out by fasting and prayer.”

I remember the story of William Duma, a wonderful, powerful man of God. He lived in the Umkomaas area of KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa. He was coming home one night in his little motorcar, driving towards the township. He was on a dirt road and, all of a sudden, out of the bush came some robbers. He had had to stop his car because they had put logs across the road. As he got out of his car they came running to him with knives and clubs and they were going to attack him. He looked at them and he said, “Do you know who I am?” And they stopped in their tracks. He said, “I am the son of God. If you touch me, you touch God.” And with that, they dropped their knives and their clubs and their steel pipes, and they ran for their lives, and he moved the logs out the way, got in his little motorcar and proceeded to his destination.

Do not attempt to do things for God if you are not prepared to do them. You see, William Duma spent hours in prayer and fasting, in reading the scriptures and spending time with God. They recognised Christ in him, but you and I, if we are not going to spend time with the Lord, we must not try and take on those things which God has prepared for those who are equipped, but if you are, if you are a prayer warrior, if you are one who spends time in fasting and time with the Lord, you can do the very thing that Paul, the apostle, did.

Jesus bless you and have a wonderful day.
Goodbye.