What Happens in a Deliverance Session? What to Expect, Step by Step

If you have never been to a deliverance session, you probably already have a picture of one in your head. Maybe it came from a movie. Maybe it came from a video of someone shouting while a person thrashes on the floor. That picture keeps a lot of people from ever asking for help.

I want to take the mystery out of it. I have been doing deliverance ministry for 18 years, and here is what actually happens in a Freedom Session with us, step by step, and why we do each part. Almost all of it comes straight out of Scripture. And the one doing the real work is not me. It is Jesus.

Who actually does the deliverance?

Settle this first: the minister is not the deliverer. Jesus is. Our job is to help you connect with Him and then get out of the way as much as we can. Jesus said, "apart from me you can accomplish nothing" (John 15:5). That is as true for the person ministering as it is for the person receiving ministry.

It is also why you do not need a famous name or a special ceremony. "These signs will accompany those who believe: In my name they will drive out demons" (Mark 16:17). The authority is His, and He shares it with ordinary believers. I explain more in why every believer has authority over demons.

Before the session

Good ministry starts with listening. "The one who gives an answer before he listens, that is his folly and his shame" (Proverbs 18:13). So before we pray over anyone, we want to understand what is going on: your story, your walk with God, what you are struggling with, and any patterns you have noticed in yourself or your family.

Our team prays before you ever arrive. Everything you share stays confidential. This is a safe place, not a stage.

You do not need a consultation call first. You request a session, we respond within 48 hours, and we find a time that works. Sessions happen in person in the Kansas City area or online, and Freedom Sessions are free and donation based.

To get ready, spend some time in prayer asking God to prepare your heart. Fast beforehand if you feel led. Bring the specific areas you want to address, and come with an open heart.

How long does a deliverance session take?

Our sessions are one hour. That is enough time to listen, pray, and walk through every step below without rushing.

Sometimes one session is not the end of the story, and that is normal. When the disciples could not drive out a stubborn spirit, Jesus told them, "This kind can come out only by prayer" (Mark 9:29). Mary Magdalene had seven demons go out of her (Luke 8:2). Freedom does not always come all at once, and needing a second session does not mean anything went wrong.

What happens in the session, step by step

Every session is led by the Holy Spirit, so no two look exactly alike. But most follow this shape:

1. Worship. We start by turning our attention to Jesus. It moves the focus off the minister and off the problem and onto the One who has all authority.
2. Scripture. We ground everything in God's Word. Our technique is not the foundation. His Word is.
3. Conversation. We ask questions and listen, both to you and to the Holy Spirit, to find where the enemy may have gained access.
4. The four steps of freedom. Repent, renounce, release, and restore (more on each below).
5. Filling and sending. We close in prayer, ask the Holy Spirit to fill you up, and send you out with a plan for staying free.

Where does the enemy get access?

Scripture names specific doors the enemy uses. Anger is one: "do not let the sun go down on the cause of your anger. Do not give the devil an opportunity" (Ephesians 4:26-27). Unforgiveness, sexual sin, occult practices (Deuteronomy 18:9-14), envy and selfish ambition (James 3:14-16), and idolatry show up in Scripture too.

But not every door was opened by your own sin. Access usually comes one of three ways:

• Your own choices: deliberate sin or involvement in the occult.
• What was done to you: trauma, abuse, or harm at someone else's hands.
• Your family line: patterns passed down through generations. You can read more about breaking generational curses.

Jesus never blamed the people He set free. He showed them compassion, because many of them were victims, not willing participants.

We are also not looking for a demon behind every struggle. Scripture names three sources of trouble: the world, the flesh, and the devil. When Peter spoke from his own human thinking, Jesus rebuked Peter, not a demon (Matthew 16:23). Part of a good session is telling the difference. If you are not sure what you are dealing with, start with these signs you may need deliverance.

The four steps: repent, renounce, release, restore

1. Repent. Repentance means breaking agreement with sin: a real change of mind and direction. James gives the order: "So submit to God. But resist the devil and he will flee from you. Draw near to God and he will draw near to you" (James 4:7-8). Submitting to God comes before resisting the devil. This is not about blaming demons for our sin. It is about taking responsibility and receiving the forgiveness Jesus already paid for.

2. Renounce. Next, you say out loud that you are breaking any agreement you made with darkness. In Ephesus, new believers "came forward, confessing and making their deeds known" (Acts 19:18), and then burned their occult books in public. Renouncing rests on what Jesus already finished: "He has destroyed what was against us... He has taken it away by nailing it to the cross. Disarming the rulers and authorities, he has made a public disgrace of them" (Colossians 2:14-15).

3. Release. Then we command any spirit to leave in the name of Jesus. Jesus did not just pray about demons. He spoke to them, and the people were amazed: "He even commands the unclean spirits and they obey him" (Mark 1:27). We speak directly, in His name, and we keep going if there is resistance.

4. Restore. Getting something out is only half of it. Jesus warned that when an unclean spirit leaves, it can come back and find the house "empty, swept clean, and put in order," and then bring "seven other spirits more evil than itself" (Matthew 12:44-45). So we fill the house: with God's presence, with new ways of thinking that line up with Scripture, and with people who will walk with you.

Truth replaces lies

Jesus called the devil "a liar and the father of lies" (John 8:44), and lies are where a lot of bondage lives. A lie like "God is harsh and always disappointed in me" produces fear and shame. Fear and shame make you avoid God. Avoiding God makes the lie feel even more true.

So in a session we look for the specific lie and answer it with a specific truth from God's Word. "You will know the truth, and the truth will set you free" (John 8:32). This is where deliverance and inner healing work together. We do not just cast something out. We take apart the beliefs that let it in.

What if a demon manifests?

Sometimes a spirit reacts when the name of Jesus comes up. That can sound scary from the outside, so let me tell you what it is like from my side.

Even today, after 18 years, there are times I am face to face with someone, a demon is manifesting, and it speaks out at me: "You can't cast me out. You don't have the courage. You don't have the strength. You don't have the faith."

And I have to ask myself, "Do I have that?" Then I step out in boldness and faith, knowing the grace of God on my life, and I say, "You need to take that up with Jesus. It's not about me anyway. You're going to come out in the name of Jesus Christ." And that's it.

The authority in that room was never mine. It rests on Jesus, who said, "All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me" (Matthew 28:18). A manifestation is not the goal, and it is not a show. When one happens, we stay patient and gentle, keep our eyes on Jesus, and keep going.

After the session

Freedom is meant to last. After a session we point you to:

• Scripture and prayer right away, to ground what God just did.
• Short-term support for the practical changes that follow.
• Long-term discipleship in a healthy church family (Hebrews 10:24-25).
• Specific next steps aimed at the areas where you were most vulnerable.

Do not measure freedom by feelings. Look for fruit over time: more love, joy, peace, and self-control (Galatians 5:22-23). Paul's goal for the church was "until Christ is formed in you" (Galatians 4:19). Deliverance clears the way for that. It is not the finish line.

What a deliverance session is not

• It is not a show. No theatrics, no audience, no shame.
• It is not a way to blame demons for sin. Repentance is part of every session.
• It is not a replacement for your doctor. We work alongside medical and mental health care, never against it. If that is part of your story, read mental illness or demonic? first.
• It is not a formula. We follow the Holy Spirit, not a script.

Take the next step

Everything in this post comes from chapter 11 of my book, Jesus the Deliverer, where I lay out the whole biblical framework I use in sessions. You can get the full digital book free, along with the Freedom Pathways curriculum and a 5-part teaching series, in the free Starter Kit.

And if you are ready for a session yourself, you can request a free Freedom Session. One hour, in Kansas City or online, and you do not have to have it all figured out before you come.