"Native Americans call Satan the Trickster, and it is true that he tricks us into thinking his thoughts are ours," notes an author who is partly Lakota Sioux. "The tauntings, whisperings, and temptations of the Prince of Darkness are everywhere."

And so they are.

No?

"Since many people choose to listen, the ripple effect of evil shadows everyone's lives whether we choose darkness or not," she says.

Think of how many ways the devil employs to trick you. He misdirects. He antagonizes. He plants niggling thoughts. He disturbs your peace. He makes you fearful. He makes you lazy. He inspires gluttony. He likes you to be critical. He disrupts sleep.

Not only does he get us thinking negative thoughts, but he also gets us to doubt ourselves and God's power to forgive.

"To dwell upon a thought is to give it energy," she has written. "To act upon a thought is to give it life."

Contemplate that for a moment (from a non-Catholic Christian book called The Ripple Effect).

"When we give something place within our nature, it manifests itself physically and spiritually," it states. "Giving place to negative thoughts by repeating them, pondering them, gnawing on them, gives them energy and thus the power to transform us into their image."

We don't abide by all her views on spirituality (this comes from a near-death episode, and they can be fraught with challenges in discernment), but she is a sincere, good person and the passages on evil are compelling -- and in line with Catholicism. With such accounts, we adopt the advice of Paul, who said to "take what is good and leave the rest." We exercise that with all mysticism.

The author herself had an experience during which several demonic creatures tried to attack her but she says angels appeared (they looked like monks) and they caused a shield -- sort of a glass dome -- to form over her, demons trying in frustration to climb up it and get at her (to no avail).

When a negative thought comes, she advises, we should remember God's love for us. "Often," she opines, "we can recognize something evil inside as it is mirrored back by people around us."

With Christ, she says, even attacks by the evil one can accrue to our benefit -- sharpening our spiritual acumen when handled in faith through Jesus.

"We live in troubling times. Evil seems to be reaching new depths and broader acceptance in the lives of many. But truth is also expanding in the world, surging with new light and new ideas and generating exciting opportunities and challenges. For many this is a frightening time as old orders change and new values seep in. Time is speeding up."

We have certainly noticed that: how quickly the clock ticks these days.

When we face evil, do we judge -- or do we pray for whoever may be in the clutch of darkness?

Praying for such a person may not only save a soul but also neutralizes the power of negativity.

The arrows of Satan, the fiery darts, have trouble penetrating a person who is sending out waves of prayer. Waves of patience. Waves of love. This is our own "protective dome": praying for all who are in darkness.

"Many of us were among the strong ones, ready and determined to come and bless this world in these chaotic times," she believes. "Now's our chance."

On that we can certainly agree!

[Michael Brown's books]

[Retreats:  Los Angeles, Santa Barbara and Announcing a retreat in Louisiana]