Category Archives: Educational
Book Review: The Path by Rick Joyner – Worth reading!
The Path: Fire on the Mountain, Book One by Rick Joyner
Wow! I LOVED this book. It was so incredibly refreshing to me. So many books I read are just the same stuff, in a slightly different format or from a different author’s perspective.
THIS IS FRESH!
When I was in college, I used to take notes if a book was good. I haven’t done that in many, many years. I took 12 pages of notes on this little book of 200 pages. That should tell you something.
Normally, I like to highlight in a book when something “speaks” to me. This was different. I wanted to write down the statements or concepts that really jumped out at me. I wanted to be able to meditate on them later and share them with others. That’s why I ended up with 12 pages of notes. Then I typed them into my computer for safekeeping because who keeps handwritten notes anymore? And how will I find them when I am looking for them next year? 🙂
Anyway, I’ll give you a synopsis of the book and then some special highlights that I liked. The story is written like an allegory or a parable. There’s no introduction explaining whether this is fiction or whether Rick Joyner experienced this story as a vision. In the Final Quest series (which this book mimics), he said in the intro that those books came as a series of visions he received from the Lord. But this book is silent as to the source. Was it a vision or did Rick write it in story form to illustrate the truths he wanted to convey? No idea. But either way, it’s pretty well written as a story.
It starts with the main character trudging through a dreary wilderness thinking that every step will be his last. He comes across of pool of living water. He drinks some water and suddenly his senses are sharp and clear, he feels rejuvenated and “alive” like he hasn’t felt in years. A man comes and speaks to him. His dialog with this man continues throughout the book and he later refers to him as Elijah, as in the prophet Elijah from the Old Testament of the Bible. Later he also meets someone referred to as Enoch, as in “Enoch walked with God and he was not, for God took him.” (Genesis 5:24, The Bible).
Elijah tells him to follow him. They walk for a while and arrive on a beach with a large cruise ship in the water nearby. There are a group of people who ask the main character to lead them through the wilderness. He agrees and off they go. The rest of the book is the story of their journey through the wilderness & their interaction with Elijah and Enoch.
The story line is meant to convey not only their journey, but the spiritual truths they need to “stay on the right path” in following the Lord. The story focuses mostly on their conversations along the way. There are a few areas of tension in the story – they run into lions a few times and then later there is possible division brewing in the group and they have to resolve that. Other than that, it’s mainly a lot of dialog meant to convey spiritual truths.
What I loved about it was that many of the truths presented are not your typical “Sunday school curriculum”. They are MUCH DEEPER than that. They are things I have discovered in my own walk with God, but have rarely if ever heard anyone talk about. I appreciated that Rick was willing to go out on a limb and deal with some tough issues that most people in the Christian faith ignore or deny. He did it in a respectful manner, but he was direct and firm. I like that. I am hoping that since Rick is well-known in the Christian world his book will be read by many. Perhaps it will inspire others to take the trek into the wilderness of true intimacy with Christ.
Here are some quotes or concepts from the book that impacted me – I hope something here will inspire you as well.
In general, leaders have given themselves to building organizations more than building PEOPLE. Great saints are becoming rare. (p. 9)
Your guidance must come from your heart, your spirit. You must see with the eyes of your heart more clearly than you see with your natural eyes or you will not stay on the right path. (p. 13)
You must drink from the living water as soon as you begin to thirst. Even drink when you are not thirsty. Staying close to it will keep you alive and on the path. When you are on the right path, it will always be close to you, so find it, drink it often and never go far from it. This is the MOST BASIC LESSON! (p. 8 & 13)
People are being led to the things of the Lord, but not to the Lord Himself. Many are lukewarm because they have so many distractions. Others are lukewarm because they are worn out from all the hype. Those who repent will be given the grace to change. (p. 19)
It is not just love or just power, but it is the power of love you must have. (p. 25)
To get the full benefit of the wilderness, you need to experience it with others. The purpose of the wilderness is to forge “koinonia”, a bonding together into a single unit that is inseparable, like a human body is inseparable. We will perish in the wilderness without it. It is forged by experience in the wilderness together. It is formed through love for Jesus that causes us to treat each other as we would treat Him (with respect). We must have koinonia for the life of Christ to flow through His body (like blood flowing through a human body). We need each other. I (the leader) may need you more than you need me. Those who have never tasted of this fellowship cannot understand it. To experience His glory and presence together is the greatest bond of all. (p. 52-55, 61, 69)
On this path, we earn to live in two worlds – spiritual and natural. The two worlds were meant to be connected by man. To live in both worlds is the natural state of man. Man is both spirit and flesh. The more you can do this, the more you will become who you were created to be. (p. 66)
We must not allow fear to control us, guide us or influence our decisions. Every day that we stay on course, resisting fear, we will become stronger in the Lord. There are many paths and almost all are very inviting. There is no formula – we follow a Person, not a formula. The right path seems to look harder and may be harder for a time. It is NOT the most inviting. We must have faith to see it, follow the Lord and not our own reasoning. The wrong path looks easier, tempts you to escape your difficulties. It leads to entanglements that few ever get free of. (p. 67-68)
If you see the Lion who lives in you, you will not be afraid of anything else. (p. 79)
The life of a disciple is to be taught by the Master (Jesus). The Lord has a special delight in teaching His people. God does not hide things from us, He hides them FOR us. I learned to hear the Word Himself through whomever He chose to speak or by whatever means. (p. 85-86)
Self-focus and self-centeredness are the nature of the immature. It is hard to find those who care about the deeper things of the Lord. Of those who DO care, few are able to resist worldly distractions to actually pursue a deeper relationship with the Lord – to be taught by Him. (p. 92)
For a truth to become life, it must be applied to our life. As you live what you learn, your words will have the power of life. You will not just teach the truth, but you will impart a love for the truth when it is your life. (p. 93, 102)
There is a lot of teaching today that keeps people self-centered rather than Christ-centered. This keeps them in immaturity. You must come to know the Teacher’s voice, regardless of how He speaks or who He speaks through. You must also learn to obey Him. To obey Him almost always requires risk and disregard for self-interest. When you seek the interests of Christ, then your own selfish interests will begin to seem as small and petty as they really are. (p. 94)
Seal these three things in your heart – to know His voice, to do His will and to abide in Him. These will keep you and they will lead you to the kingdom. (p. 97)
The result of experiencing the manifest presence of God is an insatiable desire for more of Him and a special fellowship (koinonia) with all who experience it. (p. 107)
Many people gave their lives to Christ but were then taught to follow people, movements or certain doctrines and were never led to Him. This leads to disappointment and a shallow, frustrating life – not the abundant life He promises. (p. 120)
We must get so close to Him that we are following HIM, not just principles. We often miss Him because we are looking for Him as we expect Him to be, rather than as He is. (p. 123, 147)
We cannot think of ourselves as better than others, but as servants of those who may not have had our experiences. Do not become proud of the grace you have been given! (p. 149)
The main purpose of the true church is to BE the temple – so we should look for the presence of the Lord. The way we find the true church is not by looking for a church, but by looking for the Lord. It is one thing to be in a place with good teaching, worship and ministry. It is something else when He is the true focus of attention. (p. 152)
Nothing else on earth can ever satisfy you like being in the manifest presence of the Lord. Because we were created to have fellowship with God, this is the deepest yearning of the human heart and nothing else can ever compare to it. (p. 160)
Thank you, Rick Joyner, for writing this book. It was like water in the desert to this thirsty soul. I am so eager for more people to “get” this – to realize that it’s all about HIM! Our focus is not supposed to be on church attendance, programs, good sermons, etc. There is no formula or principles – it’s about following a Person: JESUS. I wish, oh how I wish, more churches would focus on the manifest presence of the Lord because that is what we need more than anything. Why don’t more leaders realize that? Why is there such a drought of the manifest presence of God in our meetings and why doesn’t anyone say anything? It’s like the story of the Emperor’s New Clothes – everyone was afraid to tell the Emperor that he was naked. It’s time for something to change. I hope this new book can start a movement of believers who are not willing to settle for the same old thing in church anymore. We need HIM and only HIM.
Here’s the link to Amazon – you can preview some of the chapters before purchasing the book, if you like.
If you’re interested in the Final Quest series, here is a link to the Final Quest, Book One – free PDF online. Sometimes authors release the first book for free so that you (the reader) can decide whether the series is for you. This one is definitely worth reading. 🙂
You can also purchase the entire Final Quest series on Amazon – Amazon link
You asked to know ahead of time ….
Rating: Educational
This is funny. Ironic really. So many times I have heard people groan in frustration, “I just wish I knew what was coming! I wish I knew what the next step was or what to expect! I feel so frustrated not knowing what to do next. Aargh!”
When we follow the leading of the Spirit, or try to listen to our intuition to guide us, it often feels that way. We are listening, stretching our inner being, waiting for a signal, a sign, something to help us find our way. We often have no idea what to expect. We just keep plodding along, step by step, hoping there’s some direction in the seemingly randomness of our life experiences.
In fact, I’ve heard people reply to this frustration with, “God doesn’t tell you ahead of time what is coming because if you knew, you’d run the other way!”
Or others have said of themselves, “I’m glad I don’t know ahead of time because if I did I’d run ahead and probably mess it up.”
Lots of rationalizations to help us deal with the frustration.
However, I have always wished I knew what was coming ahead of time. I’m sure I’ve asked that question a million times, “What’s next, Lord?” And I’ve expressed my share of frustration over this issue.
Well, guess what? Now, I’ve experienced the flip side of this and it is just as frustrating. Let me explain.
For several weeks now I have felt this inner nudging that I need to call a certain person. I wrote it down as a note to myself. I rehearsed the dialog in my mind – what am I going to say? What do I need to tell them? How will they respond? I’ve done this several times over the last few weeks.
And yet, I cannot find it within myself to make that call. I don’t know why.
I’ve wrestled with – Why can’t I call them? It’s not a big deal. They are a friendly sort of person. I haven’t talked to them in awhile, but that’s not a big deal. The conversation should be pleasant.
Funny, isn’t it?
And then this morning, it dawned on me. It’s not time yet! I don’t know how I knew this, I just “knew”. I felt it inside. I AM supposed to call this person, but just not yet. That’s why I can’t seem to make myself do it. It seemed completely irrational, yet now I understand.
So, to me this is rather ironic. We often wish we knew what the next step was on our path and we get frustrated waiting and wondering what’s next. And yet, when I received the next step ahead of time, it was frustrating for me. I didn’t realize that it wasn’t time yet. I felt this nudge to do it, but I didn’t have the means to accomplish it.
Great insight. Now, I know. If you get a sense of direction, but you feel blocked, then just wait for the right timing.
It’s funny because yesterday when I was trying to figure out what to do next, I literally felt an arm holding me back. It felt like when you are kid and your parent puts an arm across the top of your chest from behind, holding you from going forward. It puzzled me. I felt safe, but I couldn’t move forward. Now, I’m beginning to understand.
Finding your way in the unseen realm is uncertain because you can’t SEE anything. I go mainly by feeling things (i.e. peace or no peace). Sometimes I get an inner “knowing”. Rarely do I get a “sign” or something that’s real obvious. And yet, looking back, things seem to be orchestrated beautifully.
Well, I learned my lesson today. It might help others, so I decided to post it. I’m beginning to get the idea that some things are orchestrated for us and other things are up to us. Wisdom is figuring out which is which. 🙂
Feel free to comment – What are your thoughts on getting direction?
Following Your Intuition – Or Not!
I rely on my intuition – it has helped me a lot in the past. I get a “feeling” about someone or something and it turns out to be true. Sometimes it is negative like “don’t trust that person”. Other times, it is positive like “she is gentle and kind”.
I often use my intuition when making plans. All my friends know this about me. When a friend calls and asks, “Hey, wanna have lunch on Wednesday?” I stop and check my intuition. Some people call this a “gut feeling”. Science has even confirmed this – they call it the enteric brain, located somewhere near your stomach. (I’m not kidding – go ahead, Google “enteric brain” and you’ll see what I mean.)
Anyway, in my “gut” I reach out and “look” at the calendar for Wednesday. I see whether it “feels” like a good decision to meet on this day. (I also check my calendar to see if I am free.) Sometimes, the way is clear – I know I can make plans on Wednesday so I confirm with my friend. Other times, I have a feeling that it just won’t work out. So I’ll tell the person, “Yes, I’d love to have lunch with you on Wednesday. Let’s plan on it and then see what happens. Let’s reconfirm Wednesday morning, ok?”
Often when I have that feeling that it won’t work, they will call me the night before and tell me they can’t meet. Something has “suddenly” come up – a child sick, being called into work unexpectedly, etc. Sometimes it will be something on my end as well. It has happened so many times that I’ve learned to rely on this “knowing” when I make plans with someone.
What I don’t understand is the “gray” area. For instance, last week a friend and I wanted to get together. I had just been thinking of her and she texted me that she wanted to meet. “Synchronicity”, right? So we made plans – I didn’t sense anything blocking our meeting. Then she called me a few hours before we were scheduled to meet and I could hardly hear her on the phone – she had lost her voice. She went to the doctor and he confirmed she was fighting an infection.
Finally, after bed rest and medicine, she felt better so we rescheduled. When we rescheduled, I had that feeling that it might not happen. It was not a strong feeling – more of a “gray” feeling. It didn’t seem “right” but it didn’t seem “blocked” either. Often in those scenarios, I’m not sure whether to make plans with a friend or not. But since we had already missed our first meeting, I figured, “Why not? Just go for it.” However, in the back of my mind, I kept expecting something would happen to cancel our meeting. I didn’t even put it on my calendar because my expectation was so strong.
Anyway, we DID end up meeting. We had a great time. It was wonderful to catch up with each other. Nothing happened to derail our meeting.
Odd, isn’t it?
So, what do you do when your intuition is right 89% of the time, but ever so often it fails you? It makes me nervous. Does that mean I should not rely on it when making plans? Is it too faulty? There have been times when someone calls me to schedule a meeting and I direct them to a specific day or time because of my intuition. Usually when I do this, things work out. But is this a false system of planning? Is it all just “in my head”?
A picture just came to me – a scene from the Adjustment Bureau. The movie explored the idea of whether Fate controlled our choices or not. The picture that came to me was the book that the Bureau members had that showed how each choice intersected with choices from other people – some were “meant” to happen, some were random and others were meant to be “blocked” by the Bureau members. Hmmm. Maybe that has something to do with my experience. The ones that seem “gray” to me are random – they could happen or they might not. Maybe it means they are not particularly significant. They don’t carry the weight of something that is “meant” to happen. Deep questions, huh?
Feel free to give me some feedback on this issue. You can comment below. What do YOU think?
Book Review: The Veil by Blake Healy – A Look Behind the Scenes of the Unseen Realm
Amazon link
I recently finished reading The Veil by Blake K Healy. Blake is a good guy. He teaches at the Bethel Atlanta School of Supernatural Ministry. I’ve seen a lot of flaky stuff on the subject of the unseen realm – his book is not like that at all. It’s very real, very believable and very down to earth. I enjoyed reading it. He says he has been able to see clearly the unseen realm since he was a child. He never thought he was different – he thought everyone could see what he saw. Until he reached a certain age where it became obvious to him that he was “different”. I liked his book because he didn’t make me feel excluded because I don’t “see” like he sees. Many people who have special giftings tend to give you that impression. He didn’t put himself on a pedestal at all. In fact, instead he tries to make “seeing” or “perceiving” the unseen realm something anyone can do. He even includes “exercises” in the back of the book to help you get started. Very cool! 🙂
I used the exercise with a friend this weekend and lo and behold, she saw an angel! In my living room, no less. That was cool. But more on that later ….
Here’s some highlights from his book:
Demons have no authority over you unless you give it to them. A demonic entity has no right to act in your life without expressed agreement from you. (p. 37) Lies are the only power that demons have, and lies are only powerful if you believe them. … there is freedom in revealing deception to be deception. (p. 41) … the interesting thing about demonic influence [is] it feels so real when you’re in the middle of it, but the moment you see it clearly it’s no more threatening than a paper-mache bunny. (p.48)
I really like that – Lies are only powerful if you believe them. Wow – so if the only power that demons have is the power we give them by believing their lies, then it should be fairly simple to keep them from influencing us, right? In my life, I have found it very hard to discern the lies I believe – ’cause they don’t LOOK like lies. If I believe them, then I believe they are true, right? If I KNEW it was a lie, then I wouldn’t believe it. It’s kinda complicated, isn’t it?
I’m very glad I discovered this little heart “exercise” called the Lie Detector. That’s in a book called Freedom through Forgiveness by Sandy Walker. It’s on the Resources tab above. I’ll post about that book at another time. Anyway, that little exercise has been majorly helping me find the lies I believe and uprooting them. And as a result, I feel a LOT freer. I had no idea I believed so many lies!
Back to Blake’s book – he says he’s never met anyone who didn’t have a personal angel. That’s kind of cool, isn’t it? 🙂 He says about 30% of the personal angels look like the person they are with. Kind of explains why people told Rhoda it was “Peter’s angel” at the door when Peter was supernaturally released from prison by an angel (Acts 12) – maybe they had seen these look-alike angels before.
I like Blake’s stories – he very simply describes what he sees: in a coffeeshop, in a church service, at a party. It’s very cool. I also really appreciate that he emphasizes that “it’s not about the gift”. It’s about asking the Holy Spirit to teach you and show you what is all around you. Reading his stories gave me a little nudge to start paying attention more. His descriptions stretched my imagination. For instance, here’s one I thought was cool:
Sometimes people would come with cuts and bruises on their faces [in the unseen realm]. As each word was prophesied over them [in prayer ministry], liquid light would form in the air, repairing the cuts and clearing the bruises. (p. 66) [brackets added for clarity]
So, back to my friend seeing the angel in my living room. Blake says that if you want to become more aware of the unseen realm, then pay more attention to it. I knew my friend wanted to become more aware of this realm. We were sitting in my living room with some friends. I told her, “Close your eyes, ask the Holy Spirit where to look. Then open your eyes and ask Him to show you something.” (this is a very brief summary of Blake’s exercise). She did. She opened her eyes and pointed to an area near my bookshelves. She said, “There’s an angel there.” We both smiled.
Then I focused on the area and “saw” a rather large figure. Taller than the people who were there. Then I remembered the last part of Blake’s instruction – ask the Holy Spirit to explain to you what you are seeing. So I did. I got the impression that the angel was there for protection. He was certainly BIG enough. 🙂
Blake says there’s an impartation on his book – in other words, it stirs up your faith to open your heart and believe that you too can see/perceive the unseen realm. I think he’s right. It certainly stirred me up. So if this is an area you’d like to grow in, give his book a look.
Here’s the link to Amazon – you can preview some of the chapters before purchasing it.
Let me know if you decide to read it and what you thought. Or if you have another cool book you’d like to recommend, please let me know in the comments below. Thanks! 🙂
Update May 2024: Blake has a Patreon account where you can sign up for Live Discussions, Questions and Answers with Blake and Training Classes on Seeing in the Spirit. He also offers Activation Sessions and even some one-on-one coaching. Here’s the info: How to See – Training and Live Discussions
Video: Experiences of the Unseen Realm
Rating: Educational
I found this episode of “It’s Supernatural” by Sid Roth where he interviews Jonathan Welton about his experiences of seeing the unseen realm. What’s cool is that they illustrate what he describes with actors playing out each scene. That really helps me to understand what Jonathan says he can see.
It’s a nice episode. I think you’ll enjoy it. Be prepared – it’s kinda “out there”.
Jonathan Welton: Seeing in the Spirit
Here’s the original link: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6je44kzcCgc
If you go to YouTube and watch the link, I’m sure you’ll find all kinds of other “related videos” too. 🙂
Spiritual Cleansing: Taking a Spiritual Shower Each Day
Rating: Educational
Spiritual cleansing is very important. Occasionally, I see a book that references house cleansing, but rarely do I see any instruction on a personal level. Let me share what I mean. I’ll start with examples of house cleansing and then conclude with personal cleansing.
I had a friend call me when he moved into a new place. He was renting a room from a Christian couple and he wanted to have the house “cleansed”. I don’t recall the details, but I believe the couple had been experiencing some unusual disturbances in the place. When they mentioned this to him, he asked me to come over and help them pray. He knew I was very sensitive to the unseen realm and that perhaps I could assist them.
We prayed prayers of cleansing all over the house. We played worship music while we did this. We put oil on our hands and anointed each window and door. We commanded that anything evil that was there would leave. After this process, both my friend and the couple that were living there said they felt more peace in their house.
I had another friend call and ask for a similar “house cleansing”. She had lived in this particular apartment for some time, but had recently had some bad experiences upstairs in her bedroom. She felt an oppressive darkness and felt something was there, but couldn’t see anything. She asked my brother and I to come and help her pray. We did many of the same things – anointed the doors and windows with oil, played some worship music while we prayed over the house. We even brought worship banners and waved them in different places of the house to remove any “spiritual dust”. Honestly, I don’t know exactly what this does, but it does seem to shift the atmosphere in the house.
Finally, we went up to her room. My brother and I immediately sensed a specific place of evil energy in her room. We went to it. She was amazed because she had not mentioned where it was in the room. My brother sensed there was an open door or portal above the foot of her bed. The Holy Spirit gave him some other insight into why it was there. She prayed some specific things in reference to this and then “closed” that door. We checked on her a week or so later and she said nothing else had happened since we prayed. She was at peace.
My husband and I often pray a general prayer of cleansing over our house before we go to sleep at night. “Lord, would you please remove anything from our house that doesn’t belong here.”
We also pray for personal cleansing, “Lord, please wash us off from anything we might have picked up today.” Believe it or not, most times I actually feel different after this simple prayer. I’ve also made it habit of praying this whenever I suddenly feel weird – irritable for no reason, heaviness without a cause, etc. In fact, we have become so accustomed to the feeling of peace in our home that if either of us gets a little cranky, we pray this for each other. It seems to “clear the air” and keeps us from being influenced by the enemy’s contaminants.
People who have never done this often ask me all kinds of questions about it. I tell them I just do it intuitively – whatever “feels” right as I listen to the Holy Spirit and pray. Because I am so sensitive, I know whether a prayer is effective or not. One minute I feel the tension in the air and then after we pray, it is gone. I don’t know exactly how it works. I just do it, like a little child.
On a humorous note, one night when my husband was very sleepy, he was praying and he said this: “Lord, please wash us off and wash off the house. Wash the cars, the yard and the dog.” I burst out laughing. I said, “Did you just tell the Lord to wash the dog?” I couldn’t believe it. I guess it makes sense – he was trying to cover all the bases. It just sounded very funny to me to ask God to wash our dog. 🙂 However, I remembered that there was a time when Jesus sent a bunch of demons into a herd of pigs so I guess that means you can have a dog that needs to be washed from any evil contaminant.
Do you have any specific ways you like to “wash” in the spirit? Feel free to share your thoughts below.
Spiritual Protection from Dark Forces & Evil Spirits
Rating: Educational
When I was new to the idea of confronting spiritual darkness, I met a couple who seemed to have a little more experience in this area. The wife could discern whether an object had a curse on it by holding it in her hand. The husband could discern spiritual activity (angels & demons) – he said he saw them like comic book characters.
When I met them (nearly 20 years ago), they reported having some experience in helping people get free of oppression from dark forces. I had very little experience so I listened to what they had to say. They seemed balanced – not flaky like other Christians I had known. They taught me some things that I still use to this day.
One of the principles they learned (from experience) was spiritual protection. They reported having really bad experiences of “backlash” after a ministry appointment unless they specifically prayed for spiritual protection. I have incorporated the prayer they taught me with other prayers the Holy Spirit has impressed on me from time to time.
Whenever you directly confront darkness or dark forces through prayer, intercession or in a ministry setting (i.e. praying for someone who is oppressed by evil), afterwards it is a good idea to pray something like this:
“I bind all Retaliation, Revenge, Retribution and Jealousy from off of me and everything associated with me. I cancel all witchcraft and any soulish prayers prayed concerning me or my family. I close every open door to the enemy’s realm and I seal them with the blood of Jesus. Thank you, Lord, for your protection. In Jesus name, Amen.”
Obviously, there is no set formula – you can adapt or revise this prayer to suit your own needs. I have added some parts to it over the years based on my own experience. My friends used to call this “binding the three Rs”. Later they learned that they should add Jealousy. The 3 Rs is still a shortened way to refer to this. My husband and I have also found it helpful to pray this on a regular basis, regardless of what kind of ministry we have been doing lately.
Sometimes when we leave a specific location and are on the way home, I will feel impressed to “cancel any trailing or lingering spirits”. Sometimes I will get a specific impression to “cut off all communication devices of the enemy” and I may also cancel “any watchers or listeners”. A friend of mine has seen watchers and listeners – they are creepy. Just like in a real war in the natural, you might have these elements, right? So it makes sense to me that you might need to pray specifically against these in the spiritual war we are in.
Another couple I know have a habit of praying a “golden dome of protection”. This is particularly helpful if you are in a setting where you feel uncomfortable in your spirit, but you do not want to leave. I have prayed this at a restaurant, for instance. I ask God to fill this dome with His presence around our table and remove anything that does not come from Him. Immediately I feel at peace and I feel comfortable staying at the restaurant. It feels like a personal “force field”. I have found this very helpful and have used it when needed.
How about you? Have you found any specific prayers of protection that have been helpful? If so, please comment below. It is good for us to learn from each other – we all get stronger that way.
Many people are not aware of the importance of spiritual protection against “backlash” and they suffer from lack of knowledge – would you please share this post in your favorite social media as a way to bring awareness to this issue? Thank you! 🙂
Elements of the Unseen Realm
Rating: Educational
So what’s in the Unseen Realm? There are quite a few things. Perceiving them varies depending on the situation and your ability to discern them. Obviously, we need to rely on the Holy Spirit to show us what is there and why.
Here’s what I think of when I think of the Unseen Realm.
Elements of the Unseen Realm
God the Father
Jesus
The Holy Spirit
Angels – guardian angels, warrior angels, worship angels, healing angels, etc.
Demons – evil spirits of every kind (i.e. unclean spirit, lying spirit, spirit of adultery, spirit of fear, etc.)
Powers – both good and evil ones
Principalities – both good and evil ones
Human spirits
Human souls
Soul-ties
Anointings, Giftings, Callings, Mantles, Spheres of authority
Blessings – current blessings or generational blessings
Curses or assignments – current curses (like a word curse) or generational curses from the past
Objects like listening devices, tracking devices, a sword, a scepter, a crown, armor or clothes, etc.
Structures like portals, doors, windows, etc from this realm to another one
Locations like Sheol, the Second Heaven, the Third Heaven, the Throne Room, etc.
Beings in heaven like the four living creatures, seraphim & cherubim, 24 elders, etc.
Other miscellaneous things like the Tree of Life, Living Water, the River of Life, etc.
I’m sure I’ve left something out – please feel free to add it in the comments below. There is so much in the Unseen Realm – people are often amazed to realize how much we are unaware of.
Spiritual Senses – Which one is your strongest?
Rating: Educational
When I began to perceive the spiritual realm, I wasn’t really sure how I “knew” the things I knew. Part of me was convinced that when I sensed something that it was really there and part of me tried to rationalize away the feeling and just dismiss it. We have all probably experienced that.
I learned from Arthur Burk in his series, Nurturing the Spirit, that our soul tends to rationalize away the impressions we get in our spirit because they don’t necessarily make logical sense. For instance, when I was a child and I sensed that there was something scary lurking at the end of the hall or under my bed, my natural eyes could turn on the light and see that there’s nothing there in the visible realm. “See, you’re just making things up!” my mind would tell me. Or as most children are told by adults, “There’s no boogey-man under the bed or in the closet. See?” They open the closet and look under the bed just to convince you. But as soon as they leave, what do you believe if you can still “feel” them in the room? Does it mean you are crazy?
Anyway, during my studies of trying to figure out how this “sensing” the unseen realm stuff works, I came across a book. I can’t recall the title, but the concept has stayed with me. The author suggested that since we have 5 senses in our physical body, perhaps we have 5 senses in our spiritual body. Since that time, I have met people who have experienced the unseen realm through their spiritual senses: sight, hearing, touch, smell or taste. Then there’s that “sixth sense” where you just have an inner knowing, but you can’t exactly explain why. Either your senses are picking something up and your brain comes to a conclusion so quickly that you are not conscious of it or perhaps the Holy Spirit gives you the information through a word of knowledge. Somehow you just know.
Some people who “see” in the spirit say they can see the unseen realm with their natural eyes just like they would look at you or me. Blake Healy in his book, The Veil, describes his sight that way. For me, I “see” things in my mind while my natural eyes are looking at the location where I sense a presence. It’s like I’m seeing in my mind the exact same picture I see with my natural eyes except there is an added element there, such as an angel. I learned this (or was strengthened in it) through Gary Oates’ teaching called “Open My Eyes, Lord”. Both of these materials are listed on the Resources tab above. In Blake’s book, he says he encourages people to increase their perception through whatever way they normally use to “hear” from God. Is it through pictures in their mind or a feeling or hearing words in their thoughts? Whichever way God speaks to them is a sense they have learned to trust, so he says that’s a good place to start when learning to sense the unseen realm. His book has exercises to help you “practice”.
I don’t often hear things, but I have met people who do. Touch is the one I guess I relate to the most – I “feel” things often, everywhere I go. I am also very sensitive to the presence of the Lord and often “feel” His presence. Taste and smell are the most unusual ones – not too many people mention these. I have smelled anointing oil in a service that was thick with the Presence of the Holy Spirit. I have read of people who get a bad “taste” in their mouth when certain demonic spirits are nearby. I’ve never experienced that one, have you?
One other thing I realized recently – I think we sense things differently in our spirit versus in our soul. For instance, my soul can easily detect anything that is evil or unclean. And it usually freaks me out – my soul doesn’t know what to do with the information. However, my spirit does know what to do – so I have to remember to consciously choose to connect with my spirit and then use my authority to remove anything evil that’s bothering me (in my home or near me in a public place).
I also have very sensitive discernment when it comes to dealing with people. That’s a gift in my spirit. When I look in someone’s eyes, 9 times out of 10 I can see their soul. My gift is emotional healing so I see clearly their soul wounds. I can often also see their gifting or original design from the Father. Sometimes I can also discern if there are evil spirits oppressing the person. As you can imagine, I have to be very cautious not to reveal all this information on my face when I’m introduced to someone I’ve never met. I get it all pretty quickly. Being in a party full of people can sometimes be pretty overwhelming to my senses, receiving all this information at once.
So, how do you sense the unseen realm? As I shared on another post, what helped me was finding someone who sensed things using a different method than I did. We would go places and share what we were each aware of. By comparing notes, we grew exponentially both in confidence and in accuracy in being able to identify what we were experiencing. So if you naturally “see” in the unseen realm, go find someone who “feels” and vice versa. You’ll be glad you did.
Discernment of the Supernatural Realm 