Dreams can be interesting, but i would be careful not to put too much into them. Sometimes the extra cheeze on last night's pizza can affect them as much as anything else. However, in saying that, I would also recognize that God can speak to us in them, and that demonic influences can also at times seek to confuse us with them in times when we are under spiritual attack.
This I will say about your dream. It had aspects to it that are interesting.
1. It was communicated to you that someone was possessed and needed help. Timing is everything. It is one thing to know that someone is possessed, another to know that it is right to help at that time. Like the man you met on the street, you might have guessed that he was possessed correctly, but approaching him alone when he was carrying the baseball bat would probably not have been a great idea.
2. Despite the fear aspect (what happened to the priest) you went. In dealing with the demonic, there are times that we have to press past our fears and respond in a wise manner. Satan, or the demon, may throw all sorts of feelings or fears at us to seek to disuade us from acting.
3. In arriving, you focused not on the girl for proof of the presence of an evil spirit, but went to another room to pray. There while praying, you became fully aware of it's presence to the extent that you were willing to identify publicly that the person was possessed. Many people depend on outward signs, or even what others have told them to ascertain if someone is possessed. This leads to many mistakes. I have seen people go as far as to seek to cast demons out of someone simply because they smoked! This type of response and guessing game leads to many errors in judgement and doctrine. In the dream you prayed, and became aware of the demon's presence not through man but God, and began to wrestle spiritually, and then also saw the demon clearly. The fact that it was literally in the spotlight speaks loudly of the fact that it was clearly identified to you by the Holy Spirit. If this dream was of God, perhaps He was showing you to depend on Him alone for true discernment. Outward actions, or comments by others might cause you to suspect that a person is possessed, but clearly discerning it through prayer allows for proper action coupled with direction.
4. You faltered, even when aware that others were around you doing the same thing in singing the same song. The people passing by singing the same song might have been a reference to the others who were already praying around the girl. Perhaps you faltered because you realized that singing the song the way it was, wasn't enough, at least for you. So a difference did come. For although you were singing the same song {perhaps praying like others that the girl would be delivered} you ended up doing two things differently from the rest of the people:
a. You sang the same song in a forceful way, or might I say, stepped out in authority in what you were doing.
b. You addressed the demon directly with what you were saying.
Many will pray for someone to be delivered, but do not take authority over the demon. (Sometimes because they do not truly know if one is there) This usually ends in failure, as until some authority is exerted by someone, not much usually happens. It was not until force was exerted that the demon was driven away in your dream. Even Jesus commanded the demons to leave.
But be aware of wandering off the other side of the path, for some seek to use authority over a demon in a person, even when it has not been clearly revealed to them by the Holy Spirit that the person is even possessed. This can thoroughly confuse people who have no problem with a demon, but perhaps with a sin or sickness. Personally I do not believe that a christian can be possessed. Oppressed yes, but not possessed. (Stronger is He that is in us, then he that is in the world.)
5. You approached the girl afterwards, and gained the knowledge that she was changed, not just by appearance, but by a discerned inner knowledge that she was indeed delivered. You made sure the job was done.
Casting out a demon, like healing, usually requires some measure of faith, which comes hearing, and hearing, through spending time in the word of God and prayer. If you have some measure of discernment in these things, God may use you at times if you are willing to hear from Him. While any Christian can have the authority to cast out a demon, few have the gift of discerning of spirits.
You said in a later post in this thread that many things began to happen to you when you began to spread the gospel more earnestly. Without doubt, this is often the case. As such, you may be called upon at some point to deal with someone who is possessed. This doesn't mean we necessarily seek it, as it is an unpleasant affair. But at the same time, what right do we have to refuse freedom to someone when it is in our power to give it? If the Lord has allowed you to experience some spiritual warfare in all of this, it is with the intent that you learn to overcome in the power of His might. The strength that you gain may be well used in the future in times when others would fail on their own.
I pray God gives you wisdom in all of this.
Cliff
