Ishbane

One of my favourite books is called The Ishbane Conspiracy, by Randy, Angela and Karina Alcorn. I’ve read this book over 5 times already and I know I’ll read it many more times over the years to come. The book is reminiscent of The Screwtape Letters (C.S. Lewis), as each chapter consists of a letter written between two demons – Lord Foulgrin and Prince Ishbane. In these letters they discuss how they are going to draw four humans (the main characters of the story) away from God and win them to Satan. In their letters they bring up countless tactics that you then see played out in the lives of these humans in the “story” part of the chapter. The main storyline is somewhat geared towards teenagers, as the main characters are all teens – but the things the demons discuss are applicable to anyone of any age.
I want to share excerpts from the letters… I think they’re great eye openers to show little ways that Satan works in this world; ways that are sometimes easy to disregard or be covered up. So, the following bits of reading are parts of various letters taken from the book. In them will be mention of the names of the characters, but insert your own name or your friends’ names and you’ll see just how much these words can hit home.

I’ll start today with a letter that is particularly appropriate for this time of year:


To Foulgrin, From Prince Ishbane:

New Year’s is one of my favourite seasons. It means Christmas – or as we prefer to call it, the “winter holidays” – is safely behind us. We’ve buried the manger under mountains of toys, videos, and designer clothes. But there’s always the threat of the Carpenter rearing His head and being seen for who He is. The Enemy has this annoying habit of enabling some of them to see through our blanket of materialism. They grasp the terrifying significance of His invasion of the dark planet. As long as the Carpenter stays in the manger, it’s tolerable. But if they see Him crucified and risen, beware. All heaven could break loose.The New Year always raises hopes in these bloated bags of chemicals the Enemy calls His image-bearers. We dash their hopes until they become cynical, resigned to eking out their miserable existence. Then they die and victory is ours. The New Year inspires innumerable resolutions broken before the frosts of February. All their efforts at self-reform divert their attention from the Enemy’s offer of lasting supernatural change…