According to the U.S. Department of Defense, between 2001–2020 more people were killed in the Windy City than in the combined military conflicts in Afghanistan and Iraq.
Spiritual leaders in the city are joining together, hoping to change that narrative. Their weapon is the power of prayer and the gospel.
Pastor Dimas Salaberrios, a former drug dealer from New York, knows firsthand the reality of gun violence. After fasting 40 days for an end to the violence, he felt compelled to take America where it happens in his film “Chicago: America’s Hidden War.”
“I would say in Chicago there is definitely a demonic presence that I sense when I’m praying and interacting with people on the street,” explains Salaberrios.
Pastor Corey Brooks, who heads a ministry in Chicago called Project Hood (projecthood.org), agrees with Salaberrios. “There’s a real spiritual battle going on in the city of Chicago for the lives of people. There seems to be a spirit of murder throughout the city.”
Through his ministry, Brooks reaches out directly to gang members. “We have a violence prevention team of ten full-time employees that go out into the neighborhood to help make sure there is no retaliation for violence.” Salaberrios says a similar effort saved him from a life of crime and violence in New York.
“Three women reached out to me when I was a street god, one of the largest drug dealers. They said, ‘Can we pray for you?’” explains Salaberrios. “When they laid hands on me the power of God knocks me to the floor, demons come manifesting out of me. They started praying in the name of Jesus. I felt a peace come over me like never before and I quit selling crack cocaine.”
Brooks believes that the same power and peace can now make a difference in their city.
STEVE WARREN, taken from CBN News.
Taken from Prayer Connect magazine. To subscribe.
