Breaking Free from Fear and Torment
I lived with fear for over forty years. Fear was a companion I never asked for, but it stayed with me, showing up in my mind and emotions at the most inconvenient times. I was plagued by fear of storms, fear of water, fear of dying, fear of health problems, and even fear of the dark. Sometimes fear didn’t consume me daily, but when it struck, it locked me down so tightly that I couldn’t worship, I couldn’t pray, and I couldn’t function in freedom. What I didn’t realize until much later was that it wasn’t only fear—it was torment.
Many believers are fighting fear, stress, worry, anxiety, and depression without realizing that these mental battles often have deeper spiritual roots. Sometimes what we are fighting isn’t the surface manifestation, but the strong man spirit behind it. If you’ve been saying, “Spirit of fear, leave,” but haven’t received a full breakthrough, you may need to go deeper and discern whether torment or another stronghold is at work.
The Bible tells us, “For God has not given us the spirit of fear, but of power, and love, and self-control” (2 Timothy 1:7 MEV). If fear didn’t come from God, then we must recognize where it came from, renounce agreement with it, and evict it from our lives.
Recognizing the Strong Man Behind Your Battle
As I was writing my book Mind Battles, the Holy Spirit revealed to me that torment, not fear, was the strong man that had been gripping me. Torment paralyzed me in ways that were even stronger than fear itself. I had been brainwashed to fear from a young age. My mother carried fear, and without realizing it, I inherited the patterns she modeled. That generational cycle became my own because I accepted it, internalized it, and unknowingly came into agreement with it.
This is why identifying the strong man is so important. Depression often ties back to a spirit of heaviness. Anxiety can be tied to torment. Stress can be a symptom of fear. When we call out the wrong spirit, we only address the fruit, not the root. Jesus wants us to uproot the stronghold so that we can truly be free.
The Word of God says, “The thief does not come, except to steal and kill and destroy. I came that they may have life, and that they may have it more abundantly” (John 10:10 MEV). Torment steals your peace, fear destroys your faith, and stress kills your joy. But Christ has already won the victory, and His abundant life includes freedom in your mind.
Watch Now! Break Mental Strongholds a 10 minute episode on YouTube
Breaking Generational Fear and Curses
Fear often travels through generations. Exodus 20:5 reminds us that iniquities can visit from one generation to another. If your parents or grandparents lived in fear, worry, or torment, you may find yourself fighting the same battle. This isn’t to bring shame, but to give you clarity on what needs to be broken.
The first step is to break agreement with fear. Declare out loud that fear and torment are not yours and that you will not come into covenant with them. Break the generational curse by the power of Jesus’ blood. Renounce any words spoken over you that reinforced fear—words like, “Be careful, you’ll get hurt,” or, “Don’t do that, something bad will happen.” These words, though often well-intentioned, become seeds of fear in our minds.
Scripture says, “You will keep him in perfect peace, whose mind is stayed on You, because he trusts in You” (Isaiah 26:3 NKJV). Generational patterns do not determine your destiny. God’s peace can override every curse when you submit your mind and heart fully to Him.
Walking Out Deliverance from Torment
Deliverance is not always a one-time event. Often it is a process of continually renewing your mind, resisting the enemy, and standing in your authority until the torment loses its grip. I had to expose the enemy by asking for prayer, reaching out to trusted friends, and inviting my husband to pray with me when fear or torment tried to overtake me.
James 4:7 says, “Therefore submit yourselves to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you” (James 4:7 MEV). Submitting to God means choosing worship when you don’t feel like it, opening the Bible even when your mind feels tormented, and speaking out declarations of truth over the lies of the enemy.
I created practical exercises in my book Mind Battles to help people identify what spirit they’re truly battling, trace it back to the root, and walk through prayers of renunciation and deliverance. These exercises include charts, journaling prompts, and prayers you can personalize. If you haven’t gone deep enough in your deliverance, I encourage you to press in. Don’t settle for surface-level freedom when Jesus died to give you complete deliverance.
Questions to Ask Yourself
- Am I fighting the fruit of the problem or the root stronghold?
- Have I unknowingly come into agreement with fear, torment, or stress through my thoughts or words?
- Do I recognize generational patterns of fear, anxiety, or torment in my family line?
- Have I broken agreement with these spirits and curses through prayer and declaration?
- Am I actively resisting the enemy daily by renewing my mind with Scripture?
Prayer Declarations
Heavenly Father, I thank You that You have not given me a spirit of fear but of power, love, and a sound mind.
I break every generational curse of fear and torment in Jesus’ name.
I renounce every agreement I have made with fear, stress, anxiety, or torment.
I declare that the strong man of torment is bound and evicted from my life.
I choose peace, and I set my mind on Christ who is my Deliverer.
I will walk in victory and freedom, for whom the Son sets free is free indeed.
Resources for Your Freedom Journey
If this resonates with you, I encourage you to go deeper by reading my book Mind Battles, available at KathyDeGrawMinistries.org. This handbook is filled with strategies, prayers, and exercises to help you identify and conquer mental battles.
You can also listen to my Mind Freedom audio teaching with Joshua Mills, where I personally coach you in prayer and Scripture to break free from mental torment.
For additional training, visit training.kathydegrawministries.org where I offer courses in deliverance, prophetic mentoring, and Kingdom development to help you live in total freedom.
Anointing oil is another powerful tool for breakthrough. You can purchase Kathy DeGraw Ministries’ anointing oils at Amazon. Use anointing oil as you pray, declaring the power of the Holy Spirit to break strongholds and release healing.
Step Into Your Freedom
Friend, you don’t have to live another day in fear, torment, stress, or anxiety. Jesus paid the price for your freedom. If I could be delivered after forty years of fear, so can you. Take a step of faith, apply the strategies, break the generational patterns, and declare your victory.
If you’re ready to receive deeper deliverance, I invite you to join me at the Fierce Conference in Grand Rapids, Michigan on October 10–11, 2025. It is my most intense deliverance and healing event of the year with teaching, altar calls, prayer, and anointing. You can register at KathyDeGrawMinistries.org.
Don’t settle for partial freedom. Take hold of the full victory Jesus purchased for you. Freedom is not just possible—it is your inheritance.
