The Shame Banana — My Inner Healing Experience with the Emotional Polarity Technique ™

Hey there Friends of Eden! It is pretty common for me to talk about inner healing and its importance to our spiritual walk, but today I want to hit it from a slightly different angle. My friend Grace recently contacted me because she has been working as an Emotional Healing and Spiritual Coach. She knows I am a strong supporter of inner healing, so she wanted me to try it out and let you all know what the experience was like when working with her, what it did for me, and how you can take advantage of her services too. I’m always up for learning new things in the inner healing arena, so agreed to give it a try. In the interest of fairness to those in my life, please keep in mind that I’m being vulnerable about inner healing issues which at times may negatively reflect on other people in my life—but this has as much to do with my own perceptions or misperceptions of them as it does with how they have treated me. It isn’t my intent to dishonor anyone by writing about this, but help you see how very-real life issues can be successfully prayed-through and healed to bring freedom.

Before I go into how my session went, let me tell you about EPT ™. According to Grace’s website, WhenYouNeedGrace.com, this therapy uses a combination of forgiveness and positive affirmations (another way of saying that is positive declarations/statements) to help us heal and walk in greater freedom. The body stores trauma and pain on a cellular level, which we are often unaware of, and EPT ™ helps release those negative emotions and helps us create new, more life-giving patterns. While some could be leery of this as some kind of “new age” technique, let me remind you that forgiveness is about as Christian as it gets, and choosing life-giving confessions with our words is an age-old biblical principle which we can find echoed in Proverbs 18:21 which says “The tongue has the power of life and death, and those who love it will eat of its fruit.” In other words, the things we say, affirmations, declarations, and positive statements, have the ability to release life to us while negative statements, complaining, and grumbling all will release death to us in some manner. The benefit of working with Grace is that she uses these methods to help uncover hidden things in the heart. Proverbs 20:5 says, “The purposes of a person’s heart are deep waters, but one who has insight draws them out,” and Grace is definitely a woman of deep insight into the human heart. If you want to read more about EPT ™, how it works, and look at some common questions and answers, go to Grace’s About EPT page here. Now that we’ve got that covered, on to my session!

When Grace had first approached me, I recognized that I needed to identify a somewhat discrete problem, something that I thought could be addressed in a single session. While this isn’t necessary for everyone, in this particular set of circumstances I have already been working with someone consistently over time, so I didn’t want to pick an issue we were already working on. I wanted to choose something separate so I could more readily identify a difference after a single session. As I was thinking about what to choose in the week leading up to the session, I was talking with a very close friend and what came up during that conversation was me hearing myself say “Who I am is not okay.” When I heard myself say that, I felt like the Holy Spirit was putting his finger on the issue and showing me both a deep heart issue of mine, as well as something that I could more directly work on with Grace that was different than what I had been focused on elsewhere. While I wasn’t necessarily expecting one session to fix the entire life-message (which sounds deep-seated), I did believe that it was a good single-problem subject that we could work with and use as a launching place for freedom. Now, for the EPT approach in general, the client does choose the issue/problem/topic they want to focus on for that session—I just had a more specific goal in regards to identifying something I thought would be good for a single-session issue. Clients do not normally need to be that specific in what they choose to focus on.

We started the session by chatting briefly, partly because we were connected years ago when Myspace was still a thing through a mutual friend whom we both love, then got down to “business” (I make it sound like this was super clinical, but it wasn’t—Grace is quite warm and friendly and easy to talk to). She explained the basic framework for the technique/process so I knew generally what to expect, then we did a quick exercise to focus my attention more closely on what we were doing. After that, she asked me four statements to help identify my “readiness to heal”. While that might sound odd, in Nursing we use an arbitrary pain scale of 0-10 to get an idea of someone’s pain level before and after we give them medications, and this was much the same. Grace asked some specific questions to get an idea of where I was at the start of the session, so she could go back over them at the end and help us both see how effective the “treatment” was.

Grace explained that she uses something called applied kinesiology, also known as “muscle testing,” to help identify the emotion, location it is trapped in the body (even in Chinese medicine it is understood that negative emotional energy can get lodged in different organs/tissues that then contribute to physical diseases). Then she explained that the process typically involves starting with current issues dealing with that emotion and then working backwards in a person’s life, a bit like working through layers on an onion.

The first item that came up was the emotion of “dread”, which she tested was connected to my left kidney. Now, the location of the emotion may or may not matter much, in that in some instances a person can tie it to physiological problems they are actively dealing with, and in other cases it may simply be something either hidden/undiagnosed, or as is true in this case, simply not bad enough to cause an observable physical problem. Where it does matter is that from what Grace told me, the left kidney is tied to framing a problem or issue, where the right kidney has to do with solving it. In my case, the issue was one of not even feeling (emotionally) that I was able to even identify or frame how to begin solving what felt like an unsolvable problem. Fortunately for me, it actually is fixable, and Grace helped me do just that.

We briefly discussed the feeling of dread and where it came from, and identified together that it was tied to hopelessness—both that of my dad and that from my own feelings that I won’t ever measure up for him. The next step was to identify the inception point—where it all started. Interestingly enough, it began with something I’ve already done inner healing work around before—a seemingly silly event that clearly has had a larger impact on me than might be apparent at first—the Shame Banana.

What on earth is a shame banana? Let me tell you the story:

One evening, I had already been put to bed, but I was hungry, so I came downstairs to ask if I could have a snack. My dad was in the dining room adjacent to the kitchen and I have no idea where my mom was because she wasn’t down there. I forget if I suggested or if he did, but he said that I could have half of a banana, then to give the rest to him. I went back to the kitchen, ate half the banana, and went to hand my dad the rest. But, being a kid, I was playing with my food like kids do, so instead of eating half of it like an adult would, I took bites along the side of the banana longways, meaning that I literally had bites down the length of the entire fruit. Well, I did eat only half, and then went to give him the other half, at which point he erupted at me in anger (or at least that’s how it seemed to roughly-7-year-old me). I was berated for intentionally ruining the food so that he wouldn’t want to eat it, and then told me I might as well just eat the rest of it considering I had made it un-want-able to anyone else.

Well, that made me feel pretty bad at the time. I wasn’t intentionally doing anything other than getting a snack. It had never occurred to me until after he said something that eating the banana the way I did would reasonably make someone else not want it, but even when I tried to explain that, he didn’t believe me. Well, not only did I feel un-believed and misjudged, I also felt shame about eating the food (and then having to eat the rest of it) even when I had originally been the one asking for the snack to begin with. I forget what happened after that, but presumably I went to bed, and then carried the pain of the shame banana with me for the next 30 years.

 

Grace had some pretty simple solutions to help address this, and interestingly, forgiveness was actually a super useful tool to help do just that, something I have since used on my own and suggested to friends even without working with Grace because the way she used forgiveness was really different. It wasn’t just about forgiving my dad, but forgiving myself for the ways I responded, believed, and other things in the situation as well, helping set me free from the ways I had judged myself and created my own negative self-talk as a result of this event.

We began with forgiveness statements—first for myself.  I forgave myself for:
-Believing that since my dad didn’t understand me that I must not be good enough.
-For believing that I wasn’t good enough.

Grace pointed out there that how I ate the banana was actually pretty creative, and was a creative way to address an issue—how to eat half a banana. The problem came in with shame telling me that something was wrong with me and my creative way of seeing things. I also forgave:
-My dad for not seeing and appreciating my creativity.
-Myself for believing that the way God made me is inherently problematic versus being inherently problem-solving.

While reading these, one or two of the forgiveness statements (we took these ideas and made statements of “I forgive myself for . . .”) might seem a bit of a jump, but I have for many years realized that I often see problems that are about to crop up as a result of doing things a certain way, whether at home with my family, at church, and at work, but it is often not well-received because no one likes being told that the things they want to do the way they want to do them are going to cause more problems, which is where this whole creative-thinking thing ties in. Grace helped me to reframe the matter, looking at the fact that my ability to notice problems and solve them is actually my superpower, not a problem. As we prayed through and declared these things, we did a simple breathing exercise to help release the old patterns and trapped emotional energy. Each time we did this, I would yawn—which according to Grace is pretty common, and lines up very much with similar experiences I have had with other inner-healing methods. The yawning is indicative, among other things, of the trapped energy being released.

After we prayed through forgiveness statements, Grace then did a sort of re-assessment partway through to identify if we sufficiently hit the different problem-points on the issue or if there was still more to resolve. The forgiveness portion of this is in a way a de-identifying with the problems, removing any internal agreement I have within my psyche with those beliefs. While helpful to a degree, there is another step that needs to be taken next—replacing them with God’s truth. Thus, we went on to identify some positive-affirmation statements to help replace the negative beliefs.

The ones we came up with were:
“My ability to see things differently is a gift, regardless of who receives it or doesn’t.”
“How others receive or do not receive me is not a measure of my worth—it is a statement of where they are at.”
“Free of these old patterns, my design is no longer inherently problematic. I see and bring solutions.”

I also wrote down one other thing we hit that was sort of a side-issue but still relevant, and that may speak to you.
“I forgive myself for believing that food is connected to love and punishment. I give God permission to recalibrate my relationship with food according to His original intent.”

After going through all of these things—the identification and nature of the problem, where I was at with those issues (Grace’s initial assessment questions), forgiving and releasing them, and reframing them with positive affirmation statements, we did a reassessment. We had initially looked at my level of Distress, which was an 8 and went down to a 1, my level of Elation, which went from a 0 to a 6, and my Stage of Healing (Grace would have to explain that to you because it is specific to EPT), which went from a 3 to a 7 (on a 1-7 scale).

Overall, my experience with Grace and EPT was really good, and actually I recently recommended my wife connect with her about some stuff as the person we normally work with has been very busy with other life-stuff, and I found that the work we did together was a combination of professional, Holy-Spirit-led, comforting without being coddling, and generally just helpful. I felt like Grace was approachable, easy to talk to and work with, and the method she used was one I could see myself using in the future. And as I said before, I learned some things that I’ve been able to use since then, and I’m not particularly new to inner healing.

I hope this has been an informative, interesting, and helpful article for you, to introduce you to Grace, EPT, and the kinds of things this inner healing technique can help people get free from. I have definitely appreciated the time we spent together, and I would happily do it again. If you want to set up an appointment with Grace, check out the FAQ on her website, or see if working with her is a good fit for you to help get you unstuck or moving forward in some way, her website is WhenYouNeedGrace.com. Take a look, bookmark it, and tell your friends. Get the inner healing you need today so you can be the person you want to be tomorrow. Bless you!

 

 

immortalityabundantlife healingwholeness innerhealingemotionalhealing fragmentsalters DID SRA

Eternal Life In The Age To Come

In Mark 10:29-30 Jesus said some pretty spectacular things. “Truly I tell you,” Jesus replied, “no one who has left home or brothers or sisters or mother or father or children or fields for me and the gospel will fail to receive a hundred times as much in this present age: homes, brothers, sisters, mothers, children and fields—along with persecutions—and in the age to come eternal life.”

One of the things I think we sometimes forget is to look at things in context. Sure, I suppose we could say that the “age to come” is in heaven after people die. God has lots of rewards stored up for us in heaven, so that statement would make a lot of sense at face value. The problem is with the last phrase Jesus uttered–“and in the age to come eternal life.” When Jesus made that statement he had yet to go to the cross, die, and rise again. At that time he and all of his disciples were technically still in the Old Testament Age. It was only after his death, resurrection, ascension, and I would even argue another ten days later on Pentecost when Holy Spirit came in power that the new age began. Thus, when Jesus was promising his disciples they would live forever, I don’t think He was just saying that they could live forever in heaven after they died. That would contradict many of the other things He had told them previously. No, Jesus was saying that after he rose and destroyed the power of death over their lives and they entered the age of the New Covenant, they could have eternal immortal life free of death in every form.

Am I saying we are already living in the age to come? Not necessarily—otherwise how would they have had time to receive one hundred times more of what they have given up in the present age? What I am saying is that we could be, and if nothing else that we have relegated many of the promises of God, and most especially those regarding eternal life, to a far off heaven-when-you-die reality instead of a Kingdom-here-and-now version that Jesus spoke of. In fact, Jesus prayed in the Lord’s Prayer for “your Kingdom come, your will be done, on earth as it [already is] in heaven” for a reason. It wasn’t so we could jet out of here and go somewhere else, but so we would transform earth and make it like heaven, ushering in the age that has not yet come because earth hasn’t become like heaven yet.

This is a serious challenge for many because it flies in the face of so many things we have been taught. And yet, those things we have been taught often fly in the face of what Jesus directly said and demonstrated. Jesus taught that we are not supposed to die. He taught that if we die we are supposed to get raised from the dead and keep living. He explained publicly that while the forefathers of the Jewish people ate manna, literal bread from heaven, and still died, that those who ate of Him, the bread that came down from heaven, that they would not die.

In all honesty, a single article like this doesn’t have sufficient length to explain what Jesus was talking about, nor to answer all of the questions that arise when opening this subject up. That’s why I’ve written a book that discusses the subject quite extensively. The Gospel of Life and Immortality is a one-of-a-kind book that begins by explaining how God led me into this particular perspective of the gospel message. The second chapter is dedicated entirely to looking at what Jesus taught on the subject so we can be incredibly clear that this is in fact the true gospel message and not “something else,” and from there we look at the Old Testament, Paul’s teachings, and much, much more. Toward the end the book covers very practical considerations, answers common questions not otherwise answered in previous chapters, and gives some practical steps we can take to walk this out in our lives. If this subject has gotten you curious, questioning, or hungry to hear more, click the book title to pick up a copy of The Gospel of Life and Immortality today!

There Is No Such Thing As Normal Wear And Tear

One of the things we have gotten used to in everyday life is that thing have a “shelf life”—that everything eventually wears down and dies.  We expect this with our appliances, food, vehicles, houses, and everything else we own.  In fact, we are fairly quick to say as much when we talk about our bodies and our health as well.  I can’t tell you how many of my patients at the hospital tell me things to the effect of “well, what can you expect when you get old?  Things wear down and stop working right.”  They say this in response to pain and health problems they have found they and others tend to experience as they grow older.  And while I understand this experience is common, this isn’t what God has promised us in Christ Jesus.  In fact, it isn’t even what God designed for humans to experience when He created mankind to begin with.  In other words, this idea of “wear and tear” may be common, but it isn’t normal.  There is no such thing as normal wear and tear.

When we look at the Bible, we see this in a few different places, but most notably we see it in the lives of the Israelites after they left Egypt and before they entered the Promised Land.  Deuteronomy 8:4 says, “Your clothes did not wear out and your feet did not swell during these forty years.” (some translations say “blister” instead of “swell”).  Deuteronomy 29:5 says, “Yet the Lord says, “During the forty years that I led you through the wilderness, your clothes did not wear out, nor did the sandals on your feet.”  Two different places we see the Bible explain that God caused their clothes to remain in good condition without growing threadbare and their feet taking no damage from all of the walking.

Think about it—what clothing do you know of that you can wear regularly for 40 years and have it still be in a good, usable condition?  I’m not talking about your favorite shirt you had when you were a teen that you still wear but have to wear another shirt under it because it’s basically see-through, but an actual good-working-condition piece of clothing.  Unless you’re in your early 20’s reading this, then you don’t have any clothing from back then because we find that our clothes wear out.

But the Israelites didn’t have this problem.  They didn’t have to make new clothes the entire time they were on the journey, and they didn’t have to wait for damage to their feet and legs from overuse to heal before they could continue their trek.  Not only that, but that was what the Israelites experienced under an inferior covenant than the one we live with.  Think about the implications it has for our lives.

If there is no such thing as normal wear and tear, then what kinds of things do we experience in our lives that we shouldn’t be experiencing, and what should our life experience actually look like?  I cannot tell you how many people who hear me talk about life and immortality and God’s plans for us to live and not die tell me things like “Just wait until you’re older” or “Come talk to me once you’ve gotten a few more years under your belt.”  What I don’t think people realize when they say these things is that I’m well aware of our common life experiences.  What I am not is stupid.  I understand that most people die.  I understand that commonly people age and have health problems as they get older.  In spite of that, the Bible tells us that we need to shift our beliefs to better align with what God is saying and doing in the earth, so I expect that is what we should be focusing on, not arguing with me over how things commonly tend to happen.

It doesn’t matter what our common experiences are, we need to learn to walk in faith instead.  We need to be people who say “my experiences will be dictated by my faith” instead of “my faith will be dictated by my experiences.”  I cover this topic of “common experience” versus “normal experience” in my book “The Gospel of Life and Immortality,” which I wrote to help people walk in this revelation to a greater degree.  It can be really difficult when all of life is shouting at us that things are hopeless, that nothing we do will work to stop death, and that decay is our inevitable doom.  But in Jesus Christ, none of those things are true.  We have the greatest hope of all mankind because Jesus has truly defeated death, hell, and the grave through His sacrifice once and for all, and now our job is a work of faith—to believe on the One that God has sent so that we can be saved, healed, delivered, and set free in every way.

 

 

 

 

 

Life Through The Lens Of Immortality

The revelation of immortality in Christ Jesus, while technically preached by Jesus himself, is otherwise a fairly new revelation for the Body of Christ.  Certainly there have been men and women throughout history who have both believed and accessed this reality, but for most of the rest of us, it is either entirely new or something we are on the journey to apprehend.  For those who are skeptical or downright rejecting of this gospel message, it can often be because they believe it is inconsequential, a “side issue” in Christianity, or somehow unrelated to living out our faith.  I suggest, however, the exact opposite—that the revelation of immortality is the primary​ means by which we as followers of Jesus Christ can walk in all the promises of God.

 

Yes, that’s a pretty bold statement, but there’s a reason good reason that I am saying this.  Consider first of all that the primary issue mankind faces is that through the fall, sin entered us, and through sin, death—for as the Bible tells us, the wages of sin is death (Romans 6:23).  Now, when you understand that’s the primary problem that Jesus came to solve, every *other* problem becomes subsidiary to that.  And in truth, it they really do—it’s just a matter of mindset.

 

Consider that all poverty is death in your finances.  Relational brokenness is death in your relationship.  Job loss is death in your employment.  Even things like being unsure about what to do in a situation and needing wisdom could be viewed as death of your inner peace. Ultimately, most problems in life can in some way or other be characterized as a manifestation of death.  Why does this matter?  Because immortality is the solution.

 

How?  Immortality is the result of the life of Jesus Christ constantly flowing in and through us, sustaining us in an ongoing manner.  In every way that Christ sustains us, death is incapable of manifesting.  As Jesus sustains us in our finances, we experience abundance there.  As He sustains us in our relationships, we have vibrancy between one another.  As He does the same with our jobs, our peace, with our belongings, our bodies, and more, we have abundant life, fruitfulness, and grace abounding in every area—all as a result of the life that Jesus Christ brings and constantly releases to us!

 

So how do we access this?  First, it requires us to shift our mindset to understand that death is actually the problem, then to understand that Jesus is and has always been the solution for death in all of its forms.  Second, we have to believe that He provided the solution for us to live forever.  As we do this, and as we pursue immortality in our bodies, we will find it carries over into every other area of our lives.  There are a few reasons for this.  First, as we live in a greater measure of all God has for us, it will naturally touch every aspect of our lives.  Second, it has to do with our faith.  As we increase our faith and enhance what we expect from God, we will ultimately receive the results.  Third, we have been positioned on earth and given dominion over it, so when we take dominion over death in our own bodies, how much more will that dominion extend to creation around us?  Consider that death is really the biggest challenge that mankind faces.  I mean, demons are a problem, but we’ve been given authority over them and can make them submit and flee in Jesus’ name.  But death?  That’s really where people get challenged.  If you stand in front of a demon and start commanding them, you’ll notice that they respond (even if not always how you expect) to the name of Jesus.  But if you stand in front of a dead body to raise it back to life?  Well, historically speaking, most often nothing happens—which is part of why I wrote the book Faith To Raise The Dead, to help equip the Body of Christ to overcome in those situations.  Overall I do believe there are a few reasons people tend not to return when we pray to raise them, but the point I am making here is that death is honestly a huge challenge for most believers, and in many cases a bigger challenge than dealing directly with the demonic.

 

If we really want to break through our faith-barriers and all that holds us back in life, then we have to increase the stakes.  We must challenge our faith—and the best way to do that is to go after the BIG enemy, death.  After all, the Bible tells us that death is the last enemy to be destroyed.  That doesn’t mean we can’t have victory over it here and now—it just means that we have to put some effort into it, and we have to start setting our sights higher than we have before.  There is a saying (I’m not sure who said it first) that goes, “Shoot for the moon.  Even if you miss, you will land among the stars.”  The idea here is similar.  If you set your sights, and your faith, on immortality, defeating death in your body, then you have set your sights so incredibly high that at that point, anything else is easy in comparison.  Furthermore, even if for some reason you don’t fully apprehend it, your faith is already going to be high for what God can do and you will certainly see Him move in every area of your life accordingly.

 

If you want to learn more about the promises of God in scripture regarding immortality, pick up a copy of my new book The Gospel of Life and Immortality today.  The book is over 300 pages of rich content—explaining the scriptures, offering useful tips on how to navigate real-world issues, and providing practical steps to help access this revelation.  It’s great for personal learning, and for those who are ready to dive in as a group, it can be gone through chapter by chapter in a group setting as well.  Grab your copy and one for a friend today!

 

 

 

 

 

The Gospel of Life and Immortality — Now Published on Amazon!!

Hey Friends of Eden! I am excited to announce my newest book, The Gospel of Life and Immortality, has now been published on Amazon in both Print and on Kindle!!

gospel life immortality undying imperishable incorruptible resurrection body
The book takes the reader through a fairly logical progression explaining what the Gospel of Life and Immortality even is by looking at what Jesus taught on the subject, where we can find these truths in the Old Testament, Paul’s teachings on the subject, and much more. I also do what I typically do in my books, which is attempt to address down-to-earth aspects of the subject, as well as practical steps we can take to walk in this revelation.

I began writing the book multiple years ago, and the past year and a half in particular has been a challenge to get the book finished and ready to print (Originally I had planned to publish it last fall and ran into a series of setbacks). You may have observed that this subject is growing in popularity, and it will continue to do so because this is a major subject that is on God’s heart to share with the Church right now so that we can walk in all that God has prepared for us.

The book title is taken from 2 Timothy 1:10-11 where Paul states that God appointed him an apostle, teacher, and preacher of the gospel of life and immortality. Many years ago God spoke to me and confirmed that this, too, was something He has called me to do—to spread the message of life and immortality in Christ Jesus. I am excited about this book because it is an important step in what God has called me to do. Within the pages of this book are a transformative message, albeit a challenging one for most. It goes against much of what we have historically been taught about life and death, but I systematically go through the scriptures to unveil this revelation that God has saved for this hour. Pick up a copy of The Gospel of Life and Immortality in Print or on Kindle today!

 

 

Restoring Communion with the Animal Kingdom Part 2: Mindsets and Personhood

In Part 1 of this subject we discussed the responsibility that we carry toward the Animal Kingdom and how walking in a greater measure of communion with that Kingdom will cause us to need to bear more responsibility for them than we do currently. If you haven’t read it, you can catch up here: Restoring Communion with the Animal Kingdom Part 1: Responsibility and Cost. Today we are going to talk a bit about the personhood of animals and how we need to shift our mindsets to match with what is actually true, not what we have tended to believe previously. We will also be looking a bit more into what this will cost us to properly steward in the Kingdom of God.

I was giving our dog Seraphina a shower recently with flea shampoo and Sunshine was mentioning how she thinks I’m better with the dog (as far as how I treat her) than Sunshine is. Not that Sunshine is bad or abusive in any way—just that she thinks I tolerate and manage the dog’s behavior better. I replied that I think it’s probably because I recognize the dog has her own thoughts, will, personality, and emotions, and I don’t think we always take that into account enough as people. Sunshine said, “Well yeah, but she’s still just a dog.”

I replied, “Yeah, she’s a dog, but that’s exactly my point. What if part of our problem is that we relegate her to ‘just a dog’ status and ignore her will, emotions, and intellect?” It took a bit of convincing to get her to believe that dogs have a mind, will, and emotions (and I’m still not sure she’s entirely convinced), but it got me thinking.  Before going further, I’ll explain to you what I pointed out to my wife about animals having a mind, will, and emotions. Regarding Seraphina’s mind, we have the ability to train her to do things. She knows how to recognize certain commands and words, such as “outside”, “go home”, “crate”, “potty”, “Seraphina”, “puppy”, “food”, “hungry”, “no”, and more. Not only can she recognize these words, but she knows what they mean and in some cases what behavior is expected of her when we say those words to her. This requires intellect, or said another way, a mind.

As for Seraphina’s will, that is clearly evident in her behaviors, especially when we take into account the fact that she does have a mind and can understand some of what we tell her. When she is playing outside on our property and we tell her to “go home,” she knows she is supposed to, well, go home. The thing is, when she hears us tell her that, stops, looks at us, and then runs in the opposite direction she is enacting her will. A rebellious will mind you, but a will nonetheless.
Now for the emotions. When we first got Seraphina as a puppy, she had clearly been mistreated. It took a week before she started playing like a normal puppy would do and it wasn’t because she had some kind of developmental delay—it was because she was too afraid. I had to reach into her crate and pull her out of it and we would take turns holding her on our laps while she laid there shaking until she realized we weren’t going to hurt her. She wouldn’t take food from our hands for a while and we had to stop touching the food and move away before she would eat it. This animal was experiencing high levels of fear. Now, this is only possible if animals can experience emotions because fear is an emotion. Seraphina likewise experiences happiness, sadness, hope, disappointment, and other emotions as well, and if one observes her long enough, these various emotions become visibly evident. This is what I explained to my wife about our dog, but the same matters apply to all other animals.

In reality, the main difference we see between a dog and another animal, such as a beetle, is the level of intellect available. Theoretically all animals possess a mind, will, and emotions, but what allows them to display and/or experience a greater range of those things has everything to do with intellect or brainpower, or said another way, the size and complexity of their brain. Now, here’s where things get trippy. The human soul consists of a mind, will, and emotions, and as I have already proven, animals have the same. The level of intelligence they have, the intellect of their mind, will vary, but they still have one. The thing that’s fascinating is that when we realize that the human mind is not stored in the brain but the brain is the physical interface for the mind and the body, then it means that animals also have a soul that exists in a soul dimension similar to how we do (While some might like to use Greek and Hebrew to argue with me about this, I’m not talking about the spirit of the animal, I’m talking about their soul, and they aren’t the same thing. Argument over.).

Now, what would happen if we shifted our mindset and actually believe that animals have a mind, will, and emotions, have intellect, personality, and desires, and then treated them accordingly? I’m not even talking about if we could talk to each other, like I suggested in the prior installment, but what would it look like? How would we shift how we treat animals when we understand more about how they are made and what they experience? I believe if we truly understood this and changed our interactions with animals, we might see a difference in how they interact with us.

Now, I want us to come back around and take another look at this subject of cost. What price will we have to pay to communicate with animals and restore our relationship with the Animal Kingdom? Keep in mind as I discuss this that I’m not saying we should shy away from wanting things due to the price that may come as a result, but I do think it is important to think things through before we dive headlong forward without preparation. Luke 14:28-30 “Suppose one of you wants to build a tower. Won’t you first sit down and estimate the cost to see if you have enough money to complete it? For if you lay the foundation and are not able to finish it, everyone who sees it will ridicule you, saying, ‘This person began to build and wasn’t able to finish.’” If we want to steward the gift, we need to consider the price.

When we understand that animals have intellect and personality and have their own feelings and desires and then we are able to talk to them, what will that change for us? Let me throw out some ideas to consider—things that might ‘cost’ if we really could understand and communicate with animals like we are talking about. Going to the Veterinarian’s office might prove traumatic, as you will be exposed to the fear and pain of the animals present. An animal shelter would be even harder to go to, much less work at. Depending on how the animals are treated, the Pet Store, Zoo, and Circus might also become off-limits as well. If you’re a hunter, you might give up hunting simply because when you hear the dying cries of the animal you just shot, it will mean a lot more than it did before. Animals won’t just be ‘dumb beasts’ anymore to you – they will be your friends. If you’re a meat-cattle farmer, you’re probably going to need to find a new profession. Try telling all your animal- friends that you’re going to have to kill them once they get big enough. I mean, I’m sure they’ll understand, right?
This may sound entirely overboard to some and it may seem these things won’t matter much, but think again. Animals don’t just communicate using words like we do, and they certainly don’t use human-language when speaking to us. The communication is at its root soul-to-soul or spirit-to-spirit, whether it sounds like we hear them with our physical ears or not. If we shoot an animal with earplugs in, we may still hear their dying cries because it isn’t limited to the audible range, and as such simply going out of physical earshot is no guarantee either.

How do I know any of this? Have I had animals speak to me directly? Not that I recall. But I know others who have, and I have had enough experiences talking with plants, stars, angels and other non-physical beings that I have a few clues that indicate this is how it works. I have also experienced animals responding to my thoughts or words even if I didn’t hear theirs.

For one example of this, my wife and I were sitting in our car which we had parked on the side of a street. We were sitting in the car talking to each other with the sunroof closed but with the divider open so that we could see the glass above us. A black cat walked toward us, hopped up on the hood of the car, slowly walked up the front pane, over the top, and down the back, then hopped off and walked away a short distance. My wife and I both enjoyed this very much, as we got to observe the cat walk on the roof as well as the rest of the car. I even recall saying to her “I wish the cat would do that again – that was cool.” Within about 15 seconds the cat trotted over, hopped back up on the car hood, went quickly over the top and back down, and left. He/she looked back at us at one point and we both had the distinct feeling the cat was asking “There. Did that make you happy?” The cat was nice enough to humor our request, but it seemed like it found the request somewhat annoying. Clearly though, the cat heard our thought-request and complied when it was physically incapable of hearing us due to the windows being shut—and even if the windows had been open, the cat likely wouldn’t have understood my English. And yet, the cat did exactly what I wanted, meaning it understood what I wanted through nonverbal communication, proving my point.

I once had a dream that suggested there are many people out there who have had similar experiences communicating with animals, and that some do it regularly but have simply been unwilling to talk about it, especially in the Church, for fear of negative labels and derision from others. I firmly believe that people often don’t want to take risks and share things because they feel unsafe—and often times other people make it unsafe to share. My hope is that by opening this subject up we can help empower people to start conversations about this topic and walk forward into greater communion with the Animal Kingdoms together. Let’s get started!

Restoring Communion with the Animal Kingdom Part 1: Responsibility and Cost

There are many people out there who would like talk to animals. Or rather, I should say that want to hold conversations with animals (talking to them isn’t hard, but understanding when they talk back is another matter entirely). In addition to just talking to animals, there is a desire for the separation between Man and the Animal Kingdoms to be removed, that the veil between the two would be torn once and for all.

The Bible says that there will be a day when the lion will lie down with the lamb, and a little child will lead them. This is typically relegated to a far-off future post-return of Jesus in the Second Coming. But the veil was torn over 2000 years ago and there is no longer a separation, so we can have connectedness and peace now. And while one could say that the temple veil represented separation between God and man only, I suggest that is not so. Jesus died to set us free from every curse and bondage and place that was less-than God’s intent, so it would stand that all separation of every kind brought in through the Fall of Man was dealt with, not just that of God and man.

The fear of Man was placed upon animals at a time when (I theorize) that there was a dietary deficiency as a result of the flood. It is possible that it was the atmospheric change that scientists have theorized that caused this change, or it may simply have been that so much of the earth was covered with water that many plants simply died after that length of time and some of those plants became extinct. It is possible that any number of other things transpired to cause this change—we will never know outside of divine revelation.

What we do know is that as is recorded in Genesis, after the Flood the rules changed. Animal began to eat animal (suggesting that all animals had been herbivores prior), and Man started to eat animals as well. I imagine it was due to survival needs and in order to protect creation that God placed fear of Man into animals. And why not? After all, He loves animals too. It would be uncharacteristic of God to tell mankind to make animals a target and then in turn give animals no internal warning system whatsoever to let them know Man is now a dangerous species. Due to this warning system, however, animals run away from people unless they as a species have been tamed over a long period of time.

If walking in a forest, deer usually run away when they see a person. If a squirrel or bird is hanging out at a bird-feeder, they will typically run or fly away when a human approaches, even if the person approaches slowly and with no negative feelings directed toward that animal. It’s almost as if something about our very presence tells the animals to “get away.” I believe it is time for this fear to be removed not just conceptually, but in practice.

Before we take another step to start asking God to remove that fear, I think we need to look at some things honestly. For starters, why do we want this ability with animals? If it’s because we “want to,” because we love animals, or because we have some other positive, non-threatening reason, then it stands to reason that pursuing this ability is worthwhile. After all, Jesus purchased it at a very high price, so why should we not live in it? However, this ability doesn’t come free of charge–anything that God gives us comes with a measure of responsibility. An example of this is our diet—do we eat meat? And are there hunters among us?

If the second of the above answers was “yes,” we are at the greatest risk for misusing and abusing this capacity. If you think about it, are we really going to lure animals into a sense of false security only to then trap or kill them and eat them? This is probably the very reason why God put fear there in the first place. If we decide we want to live at peace with the Animal Kingdom then we actually have to live at peace with them. I’m not saying one has to become a 100% raw-food vegan, but in reality if we want to live in a manner that respects the lives of animals then we must treat them differently than we have collectively in the past.

Animals are a large part of our economy, not just the food chain. Almost every restaurant in the U.S. alone serves meat in 80% or more of its food dishes, and often the percentage is much higher than that. There are some farmers who raise nothing but meat-animals, and there are many jobs that do nothing but handle dead animal-flesh. Some examples: taxidermist, butcher, meat-attendant-at-grocery-store, meat packing company employee, food-processor-of-dried-meat-products-employee, professional game hunter, restaurant cook/chef, rancher/ranch hand, trucker-who-ships-meat-and-livestock. If we stopped eating meat, we would actually remove thousands and thousands of jobs from the economy. While those people would eventually find other jobs or work in other similar job-areas that don’t involve meat, the point is that carnivorous behavior is actually quite ingrained into our culture. To take a step away from that and choose to be vegetarian actually limits food choices greatly, which is a consideration we have to look at. Even if we all decided to go vegetarian (which isn’t likely), there would have to be some kind of scalability to the process to phase out of old ways and into new ones. In reality, if we start collectively changing our habits now, it will likely take a generation (about 20+ years) before we see a significant difference.

A few years ago I was preaching at a gathering in Washington State and as per the custom of that group, they gathered together prior to the meeting for food and fellowship potluck-style. I didn’t tell anyone at the time that I was vegetarian (I’m not currently but was then), and I didn’t believe in imposing my dietary choices on other people for a single evening. But as a result there was actually only one food item there that I could eat—macaroni and cheese. And don’t get me wrong—I like mac and cheese. But with a large gathering and literally only one food item that wasn’t meat, it kind of makes the point I’m getting at. And I’m not just talking about foods that have touched meat or have pieces of meat in them. I mean that every one of the non-mac-and-cheese items offered were all different forms of cooked meat—thus there was no “eating around it.” And please don’t hear this as a complaint—I chose not to make my food preferences known, and I enjoyed both my meal and the company I kept while eating it. I am using this example to point out that if we want to live at peace with the Animal Kingdom, we will need to make some mental shifts in our lives, resulting in some physical shifts and possibly dietary changes as well.

Let’s revisit the responsibility issue of a greater dominion over the Animal Kingdom and ability to communicate with them better. Let me explain what I mean—for every area of supernatural connection that we gain, whether it be with Animals, the Nature Kingdom, Stellar Spirits, or some other group, we open ourselves up to a greater measure of responsibility. For example, if I can talk to animals then when they approach me with problems, it stands to reason that I will need to at least attempt to do something about it. Additionally, many animals habitats worldwide have been drastically altered and managed by humans, and as such they are going to need our assistance for a number of the problems they run into because we’re often the ones that caused them to begin with.

Being Dr. Dolittle could have its high points, and I’m sure it does, but it also comes with its own price. What if we were busy trying to order our pets around and it told us it didn’t like it when we talked to it like that? How would we handle a rebuke from an animal? I’d be shocked if Balaam was expecting the response he got from his donkey when he was busy beating it. And to be honest, Balaam was pretty blessed that he got a donkey who wasn’t inclined to fits of rage, as kicks from donkey hindquarters can be deadly when aimed properly. And what are we going to do when the deer take over our yard and eat our garden to shreds during hunting season because they’re running from the hunters and know they’re safe at our place?
Or what if our neighbor’s cat comes for a visit and tells us what he sees the father doing to the child late at night when mother is sleeping and he thinks no one is watching? How do we handle that? Precious few authorities on the planet would believe us if we said “the cat told me the father is molesting his child”, and it certainly won’t stand up in court of law. I get that got real dark real fast, but these are the kinds of problems we will actually run into. Are we prepared for them?

I’m not saying we should shy away from wanting things due to the price that may come as a result, but I do think it is important to think things through before we dive headlong forward without preparation. Luke 14:28-30 “Suppose one of you wants to build a tower. Won’t you first sit down and estimate the cost to see if you have enough money to complete it? For if you lay the foundation and are not able to finish it, everyone who sees it will ridicule you, saying, ‘This person began to build and wasn’t able to finish.’” If we want to discover how to restore communion with the Animal Kingdom, I believe it is good to do so, as it is part of what Jesus purchased for us. I believe that in the same way God is restoring the revelation of life and immortality to us, God is also restoring our ability to communicate with the Animal Kingdom—but I think we need to also consider what it will cost us. It is my hope that by discussing this, we will be able to reason through some of the things we need to learn and understand as God releases this to us so that we can properly apprehend, live in, and steward the gift.
We will be covering more about this subject in Part 2, dealing with Mindsets and Personhood. Come join us next week!

 

 

When We Release Power, Creation Responds!

One of the things that is easy to forget as we go through our physical-focused three-dimensional lives is that we are sons and daughters of Heaven who have been given authority to transform all creation in the cosmos.  I had a simple situation at work the other night that reminded me of this, and just how important it is that we come into a greater understanding of our true identity in Christ.  I had just started the night shift (I’m temporarily working nights after being on days for a while) with my coworker Eddie and as I bid the offgoing shift farewell I said “Have a great night!”  Eddie turned to me and said “I felt that.  It felt like you were talking to me.”  That’s because when we release power, creation responds.

Curious, isn’t it?  At face value all I did was say “goodbye,” but in truth what I did was decree well-being upon the night for those I was speaking to.  It was a simple statement too, but my coworker felt the power that was released when I said those words, and he felt that power enter him as well.  I hadn’t done some super-spiritual proclamation over the day shift to let them know that I was being spiritual and releasing virtue upon them to shift their night.  And I didn’t have to.  All I had to do was say the words and the universe around me shifted in accordance with what I spoke—enough so that someone else felt the change.

Is there something super-amazing about Michael that makes this different for him than everyone else?  No—I’m the same as you—a guy who is gradually deepening his understand of who God designed me to be long before the universe was even spoken into existence.  And yet, one thing that becomes increasingly clear to me as I go on this journey of growth and transformation is that we get to choose what kind of reality we will experience.  Not only that, but we also get to decree that reality and life to others and when we do we release power to perform our words as the sons and daughters of God.  Creation responds to our words.  Why?  Because we have become the divine offspring of the Word of God who spoke creation into both being and function.  Remember what Jesus said to the disciples before He ascended to heaven?

“Then Jesus came to them and said, “Then Jesus came to them and said, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to Me.  Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey all that I have commanded you. . .” Matthew 28:18-20a

Did you catch that?  Jesus acknowledged that all authority in both heaven and earth had been delegated to Him, and he subsequently delegated it to the disciples.  But he didn’t stop there.  Jesus instructed them to go make more disciples and then to teach all of them to do the same things Jesus had taught the original disciples.  You and I are meant to do the same things Jesus both did and taught the early Church to do, and we have been given the same authority that Jesus gave them.

One of the biggest barriers to living in this truth is actually our thought-habits.  We get into patterns of saying and doing things that are not consistent with what Jesus taught us, and we don’t realize or remember that it all begins with what we think about—because what we think has an impact on what we speak, and what we speak has an impact on the world around us.

The more we understand and recognize that *every* word we say influences creation, the more we will choose our words carefully and wisely, and intentionally build speech habits that release life and transform creation in healthy ways.  Jesus addressed this point when speaking to the Pharisees and said some very interesting things that we’re going to take a look at:

 

You brood of vipers, how can you who are evil say anything good? For the mouth speaks what the heart is full of.  A good man brings good things out of the good stored up in him, and an evil man brings evil things out of the evil stored up in him.  But I tell you that everyone will have to give account on the day of judgment for every empty word they have spoken.  For by your words you will be acquitted, and by your words you will be condemned.” Matthew 12:34-38

 

Jesus castigated the group for the things they spoke, and explained something fascinating—that we will have to give an explanation for every empty word we have spoken, and that our words will either acquit or condemn us.  The phrase every “empty word” literally says every argos rhēma, which can be translated a variety of ways.  Some translations say “every idle word” but the underlying concept is that every word that is lazy, idle, or accomplishes nothing will have to be explained.  Think about that.  It isn’t just that we have to pay attention to whether we are speaking life or death with our words (which we do need to do) but that we need to make sure our words accomplish something.  That sets the bar of expectation to a whole new level.

Jesus understood that the words He spoke had power to transform reality—and He regularly performed miracles and healed the sick from that position of a son of the Most High God who walked in that revelation and authority.  He taught the disciples to do the same, and has given us this same charge—to transform all creation through the intentional (and not idle) use of our words because He has given us the authority in both heaven and earth to do so.  The encouragement in all of this though, is that when we release power, creation responds!  As I mentioned in the beginning of this article, all of this came out of a simple encounter at work where I decreed over coworkers how their night would go, and in fact I do that at work regularly.  I intentionally tell people when I am coming on and going off shift how their shift is going to become, and I have developed this habit precisely because I know that when I speak, I get to influence my workplace.  And the only difference between my workplace and my home, or my workplace and yours, or anywhere else, is simply who is transforming creation through their powerful words.  So let’s remember to be intentional with our words to manifest heaven on earth!

What We Tolerate, We Empower

I posted something on social media the other day about gratitude, and how important it is to be thankful to God for even small things (In this case it was God showing me that a supplement I had started taking contained an item I have a food allergy to, and I didn’t realize it when I started taking it). While some of the conversation the post generated was nice, one comment was unnecessarily-instructional, informing me how I needed to pray to deal with the food allergy—as though it had never occurred to me before that I’m not supposed to have food allergies and that God has planned significantly better for me. I replied in the most positive way possible—thanking the individual for reminding and encouraging me to pursue God’s best for my body and my overall health. My reply got me thinking, however. How often have I tolerated these food allergies? I’ve had them for years so I’m definitely used to them, and have developed eating habits around them. I have certain supplements I take when things get out of hand because over the years I have found they work well for me. But in the midst of my dealing with the problem as it comes and managing my life around it, how much am I tolerating it because I am used to it instead of addressing it on a spirit, soul, and body level to become totally healed and set free from it?

I don’t actually know, which is why this got me thinking even more. I already do inner healing sessions regularly (I currently work with a woman who is highly skilled in what she does and has been a God-send for me—check her services out at Risen Light Works), so I’ll plan to do one or two that really hone in on any emotional issues and beliefs I have that are contributing to it. That will at least help deal with some of the soul-level issues that contribute. I already have supplements worked out that help me, but what am I doing on a spiritual level to deal with it? Certainly I could deal with demons, but I generally do deliverance in conjunction with inner healing, so I already expect to deal with that. But how am I inviting allergies and/or contributing to the issue in a spiritual level? That’s worth looking at.

We have to remember that it’s not always the big things that cause us problems in life. Certainly big-ticket items like abuse in any form, traumatic events and memories, and massive life stressors negatively impact us, but they’re low-hanging fruit in that they’re really obvious and we don’t have to look far to see their effects in our lives. No, it’s the little things that are harder to notice. Song of Solomon 2:15 says, “Catch for us the foxes, the little foxes that ruin the vineyards, our vineyards that are in bloom.” This verse is a really good reminder that while the big things like trauma, grief, abuse, and other pain can be big destroyers, quite often it’s the little things running around and messing stuff up in our lives. The little things are insidious because they become easy to ignore. A lot of little things can build up and collect over a length of time before anyone starts to pay any notice, but those little things truly do add up. A single termite doesn’t matter, but a bunch of termites will destroy a house.

In order to truly look at this issue, we have to look at the topics of sowing, reaping, and agreement. Sowing and reaping is an extensive subject, such that I have written entire book chapters about it in my book The Power of Impartation. You can also search the term on this website and find multiple other articles I have written about it for free so I won’t discuss it in depth here, but sowing and reaping is definitely a key. Agreements are a separate-yet-related issue. What I agree with I automatically sow into and reap, but how do agreements come into play with health problems?

Agreements have to do with things we come into alignment with. The way we align ourselves and what we align ourselves with causes attractive and repulsive forces in the spirit, and those things directly affect our lives in visible and invisible ways. If I come into mental assent with the presence of food allergies, then I am in unconscious ways deciding that those food allergies are permitted to remain in my body and negatively affect me. If I come into subconscious or unconscious agreement with the presence of allergies in my life, then I will have a hard time getting rid of them. Why? Because I’m the one giving them permission to stay!

So, now I need to identify ways I may be tolerating food allergies in my beliefs and actions. Do I take supplements because I’ve given up and am settling and tolerating them, or do I take them while I am *on the journey* toward wholeness? In honesty it’s probably a bit of both, but that’s where the heart-check comes in. How am I tolerating this in my life? Because what I tolerate, I empower.

That might seem like an unlikely statement—that the simple act of tolerating something bad empowers it—but there is no true neutrality in the Kingdom. There are people and even I believe spirit beings that try to remain neutral, but it’s an impossibility. We are either supporting light or darkness with our actions, but also with our inaction. Inaction has helped many dictators rise to power. Recent lockdowns and shutdowns in the past few years have been able to occur largely because of inaction—that we tolerate evil and wickedness and go along with it just enough to not resist. Passivity and tolerance of evil empowers it because it lets it run free without attempting to stop it. So the question I have to ask myself is “how am I tolerating food allergies?” And what other un-health am I tolerating in my life?

As we identify the things we are tolerating in our lives, unconsciously or subconsciously coming into agreement with, we can them break those agreements, stop tolerating them, and as a result we will even shift things like our physical health!
Often it begins with identification, but once you identify the problem, then you can do something to fix it. I encourage you to take a moment to run a sort of personal inventory on the little problems in your life. What kinds of things have you been tolerating recently? And what do you want to have happen instead?

 

Receiving a Spirit of Adoption and Divorcing the Other Fathers

I want to do some teaching today that touches on the importance of receiving the Spirit of Adoption—aka the Holy Spirit.  It definitely is sort of an “identity in Christ” message, but it isn’t one that is really taught. In fact, I have only ever heard one person teach on this subject, and it was a few weeks after I wrote this.  As such, I would be very surprised if most readers have encountered some of the things we’re going to look at today—and a lot of it is straight from well-known scriptures too. The reason I say this is that I expect this will be a significant theological challenge to some.  Before going further, I get that this topic is not likely to win me any Popular Theology awards in Christian circles, but I think it is important we take a deeper look at why our identity in Christ matters, and to do that we have to take a long, hard look at what I broadly refer to as the Other Fathers.  I’m going to be breaking a lot of theological boxes today, so I highly recommend that anything you have questions about that you take time to mull over, pray about, and really think about the broader implications instead of just rejecting things that don’t fit the “normal Christian teaching” box.  Besides, if you’re reading this, I would hope that you know by now that I don’t do a lot of “normal Christian teaching” here anyway.  And if you are new, welcome! . . . and buckle your seatbelt!  Fair warning, this is much longer than most of my articles but the subject matter doesn’t lend itself well to breaking it into multiple posts, so here it is all at once.

The subject of the Other Fathers came up for me about a year and a half ago.  I was chatting with a close friend on the phone and a guest at her house briefly joined in the conversation and mentioned something about “the Other Fathers” in reference to some inner healing stuff we were discussing.  I had the opportunity to ask her a bit more about it at a later date, and the things she told me not only made a ton of sense, but I could see where it all fits in with the scriptures, and not only that, but the Holy Spirit has brought me more understanding on the subject since.  I think there is a lot of potential benefit for the Body of Christ from an inner healing and deliverance perspective, so let’s first begin by looking at where we see the Other Fathers in scripture, see how the subject ties in to other aspects of our lives and spirituality as a whole, and what we can do about them.

First, let’s take a look at the Lord’s Prayer—more specifically, how it begins.  It goes, “Our Father, who is in heaven, holy is your name.”  Interesting, isn’t it?  Jesus began the prayer by identifying which Father he was referring to, and specified the holy one in heaven.  If there is only one Father, why did he bother specifying it in the first place?  That’s like saying you are speaking about “that white man standing over there” when there is literally only one person over there to begin with.  Adding that he is white, male, and standing are unnecessary details considering he’s the only one present.  If there is only one father possible, I don’t think Jesus would have specified which one He meant when he was teaching His disciples to pray.  But there’s more.

John 8 is very fascinating chapter where Jesus is talking to the Pharisees.  The entire chapter is important for context, and there are multiple more verses in that chapter than I will quote here that support my point, but for brevity’s sake I will only quote some of the more obvious parts in the middle.  The context of this passage is that Jesus is teaching in the temple courts, and the Pharisees are trying to entrap him.  The portion we will cover here begins with Jesus speaking, and the italics are my emphasis on the subject of Fathers.  It says:

“I am telling you what I have seen in the Father’s presence, and you are doing what you have heard from your father.”

“Abraham is our father,” they answered.

“If you were Abraham’s children,” said Jesus, “then you would do what Abraham did. As it is, you are looking for a way to kill me, a man who has told you the truth that I heard from God. Abraham did not do such things. You are doing the works of your own father.”

“We are not illegitimate children,” they protested. “The only Father we have is God himself.”

Jesus said to them, “If God were your Father, you would love me, for I have come here from God. I have not come on my own; God sent me. Why is my language not clear to you? Because you are unable to hear what I say. You belong to your father, the devil, and you want to carry out your father’s desires. He was a murderer from the beginning, not holding to the truth, for there is no truth in him. When he lies, he speaks his native language, for he is a liar and the father of lies.”  (John 8:38-44)

 

If we read this chapter closely, we see that both Jesus and the Pharisees understand the concept of spiritual fathers, because that is what is largely being discussed here.  Jesus starts by differentiating between what He has seen in God the Father’s presence, and then tells the Pharisees that they are following the directions of a different father.  The Pharisees retort that Abraham, who is a servant of God, is their father, to which Jesus reveals that their actions are something Abraham never would have done in a million years, and thus invalidates their claim.  He goes a step further to affirm a second time that they have a different father.  They angrily deny that they are illegitimate children of another father and then Jesus a third time challenges them on this.  He makes an if/then statement say if God was their father (which He isn’t) then they would love him (which they don’t).  Jesus then really drives the knife home as he states “You belong to your father, the devil . . . (v44a).  Jesus wasn’t just being insulting here though.  He stated three times that the Pharisees had a different spiritual father than Jesus did, and he even specified the third time that the devil really and truly was their father.  The last part of the verse, Jesus states again that the devil is the father of lies.

The thing is that Jesus wasn’t using figurative language, but rather describing a very real spiritual reality.  God the Father in Heaven is unfortunately not the only spiritual father out there.  In fact, most cultures have some sort of spiritual father figures—and most people have heard of at least some of them.  Some of the ones that come more immediately to mind are Zeus, Odin, Ra, Osiris, Horus, Cronus, Jupiter, and Anu, but there are many more.  You will observe that these are all the names of mythical gods, but that isn’t a coincidence.  These beings, and most other mythological gods and other beings, are based in reality.  Yes, they do exist, and more than just in the minds of men.  Many of these beings fall under the category of “spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms” mentioned in Ephesians 6:12.  I wish they didn’t exist, as it would make things a whole lot easier, but they do.  Genesis 6 speaks of how cosmic heavenly beings, the “sons of God”, mated with the daughters of men and birthed the Nephilim, of which Nimrod was the greatest.  So how does this relate to us and spiritual fathers?

Well, consider what it says in Romans 8:15, that “The Spirit you received does not make you slaves, so that you live in fear again; rather, the Spirit you received brought about your adoption to sonship. And by him we cry, ‘Abba, Father.’”  We have all heard this verse many times, and it ties in very importantly to the issue of our identity in Christ, but there’s something else it alludes to that I had never noticed before this subject came on my radar.  It says we have not received a spirit that makes us a slave again to fear—which means we already were slaves to fear once.  Have you ever thought about who we were adopted from when we got adopted into God’s family?

Think about it.

In a natural family, there is a father and mother.  In fact, genetically and biologically speaking, for a child to be birthed there has to be a father involved somehow, as his DNA is required to produce a child.  In Vitro via sperm donor, natural intercourse, whatever—a father has to be involved in some manner.  Yet, the scriptures seem to make it clear that God was not necessarily our original father. After all, my biological dad didn’t adopt me in order for me to become part of my family.  If I had been adopted, then my biological dad would have had to have made me and then I would have been adopted into another family with a new father (to clarify, I’m not adopted).  But this is the language this passage uses.  It speaks quite plainly, here and elsewhere in scripture that we were not born naturally of our heavenly father, but have to be adopted into His family.  This means quite simply that we each have to have Other Fathers somewhere that are in some way responsible for our existence.  Kinda trippy, right?  And not only that, but that we weren’t just their children in some way, but according to Romans 8:15 we were also their slaves.  I mean, what are the implications of that??

Here are some of my questions and thoughts on the subject, and these you can take or leave as you see fit, but I want to offer a perspective to ponder before we continue on.  What if when the Bible says in Jeremiah 1 that “before you were formed in the womb I knew you” that it is speaking of a pre-existence before earth—what I call “pre-incarnation?”  What if we actually all existed as spiritual beings in the spiritual realms, chose with God to come down here, but on the way got waylaid and ended up in some cases in kingdoms of darkness in the spiritual realms where we ended up enslaved by Other Fathers?  What if this spiritual battle we are in didn’t just start with Adam on planet earth but has been going on for aeons of time and eternity throughout the spiritual spheres?  What if what we see and experience on this physical earth is only a vague fraction of all that has occurred throughout the myriads of ages, and that this spiritual battle is far vaster than we have any concept?  What if the only way to fix any of this was for Jesus to do what He did on the cross—and even when it says that He sets the captives free, what if he was talking about all the children of all the Other Fathers? And what if somehow that included some of us?

Regardless of whether those musings are true or not, there is one things that is certain.  We must become aware that the Other Fathers do exist, and realize that Jesus actually directly taught on this subject himself.  As a result of this knowledge that they do exist, we must divorce from them in any ways we are connected in to them, and then as we come across their influence in our lives or those around us, destroy that influence and set captives free.  In reality, this doesn’t always have to be a hard thing, but in some cases and situations it might require more targeted prayer, for which I will provide an example prayer one can pray down below.  However, I did promise to tie this in to other aspects of our lives before looking at what we can do about them.  I already did that to a certain degree, but let’s look at the identity-in-Christ issue and how this relates.

If Jesus is setting us free from the Other Fathers through our adoption as sons of our Father in Heaven, then it is as He said—whom He sets free is free indeed.  That just means that when Jesus sets us free we can trust that He has truly set us free, and that we won’t still be drawn back to the Other Fathers somehow later on.  It also means that we get to walk in, enjoy, and live out all of the things that it means to be sons and daughters of our Heavenly Father.  That means we get to walk in all of the authority He has provided for us, enjoy all of the blessings He has held onto for us in spiritual places in Christ, and we get to freely access Him—our Heavenly Father Himself!

So many believers struggle with the idea that we can come freely before God the Father, and that He isn’t about to smite us with some sort of heavenly smiting.  Where does that fear even come from?  Sure, it comes in part from our earthly fathers at times, but I suggest it also comes from the Other Fathers. Zeus, among others, is well known for having a big temper and for being a bit free with the lightning bolts.  You don’t want to cross that one because he is mean.  When I was in India in November of 2018, I asked one of the pastors there why the people served Kali and some of the other evil Hindu gods since they knew they were cruel spirits, and he explained that they do it out of fear—bad things happen to them if they don’t, or if they do it wrong, and until Jesus comes along, they really don’t have any other choices anyway. But Christ did come along and has provided a way for all of us to break free from every ungodly spiritual influence, including but not limited to the Other Fathers, and has made a way for us to permanently join His family forever!  This is how this subject relates to our spirituality as a whole, and it is fantastic news!

The final thing I said I would do is look at what we can do about the Other Fathers.  First, we need to recognize that there actually are Other Fathers out there, and that there are still many in this world who serve them.  For those who haven’t figured it out yet, we are in a spiritual battle.  There are those in this world who actively serve the enemy, who regularly perform magic, ritual sacrifices, and more in order to help the enemy gain power and influence in this world.  The Other Fathers are part of an evil spiritual army that seek to enslave not just all of mankind, but all spiritual beings for all eternity.  They are part of the force who were cast out of Heaven (Rev 12:4), and have set themselves against God the Father, seeking to dethrone Him and rule in His place, as though that were even possible.  In an attempt to gain sufficient power to do this, they have to include mankind, whom God has made in His image and likeness, and engage our free will to help them.  Thus, we must be on guard against the Other Fathers as well as other human who are either deceived or who lust after power and are actively taking part on the enemy’s side right now.

Next, I want to remind us that faith is a powerful protection against the enemy, Other Fathers included.  Ephesians 6 tells us that faith serves as a shield, so if we want to be protected from any ungodly influence, the first thing we should do is engage our faith to believe freely on Jesus, that He has provided us with the Holy Spirit, and that the Holy Spirit is the guarantee we have dwelling inside of us that we are legitimately and truly adopted as children of our Heavenly Father—whom scripture calls the Father of Heavenly Lights in whom there is no twisting and turning of shadows (James 1:17).  By engaging our faith to agree with our identity in Christ, we can give ourselves a degree of protection from their influence, as well as any other negative spiritual influences in the earth.

Finally, we must pray.  This is both an ongoing and active thing, in that we must continually pray for God to destroy the designs of the enemy in both the heavens and the earth and to raise up Godly people to will and act according to His perfect will to transform the earth realm to be like it is in the Highest Heaven where God the Father abides.  We must act in accordance with our prayers, releasing both mercy and justice in the earth, and also train others to take part in this spiritual battle alongside us.  And, in some cases, especially where people have been ritually abused or co-opted or deceived by the enemy in other ways to become willing participants on his side, we have to specifically target the Other Fathers in prayer to break free from their power and influence.  I have provided an example prayer below that can be used to pray through breaking off the influence of Other Fathers:

 

Prayer To Divorce From The Other Fathers

“Heavenly Father, in the name of Jesus Christ I fully align myself with the new creation that I am in Christ Jesus.  I receive the free gift of your Holy Spirit, the spirit that testifies that I have already been adopted as your son/daughter and have become an heir of your Kingdom.  I break every agreement, oath, contract, ritual and document whether known or hidden that has placed me or any aspect of my God-created humanity as part of any other kingdom or as a child, servant, or slave of any of the Other Fathers that are not you, the One True God and Heavenly Father of Jesus Christ of Nazareth.  I fully divorce myself from every Other Father and any other spirit beings that have laid any claim upon me, and I send the angelic host to break, shatter, and destroy any shackles, chains, or other bonds that would seek to prevent any aspect of my God-created humanity from coming fully under the Lordship of Jesus Christ and receiving the freedom of the Children of God.  I hand over every spiritual device, object, or other spiritual matter that in any way denotes my position, power, influence, or authority of kingdoms other than God the Father’s and I reject and renounce anything I have received in any way through my involvement, known or unknown, in those kingdoms and inheritances.  I decree that whom Jesus has set free is truly and completely free, and I receive that freedom in every aspect, level, layer, and area of my being in spirit, soul, and body throughout time and eternity.  I lay claim to all of the inheritance that has been laid up in heavenly places in Christ Jesus and receive it as a replacement for all ungodly inheritances that I may have received from those who do not serve the Most High God.  I receive all of this freedom, wholeness, and abundance in the name of the True Lord Jesus Christ of Nazareth.  Amen.”

 

 

I have recently published a good all-purpose prayer to deal with freedom in the soul as well, which you can find here:

https://www.thekingsofeden.com/2022/02/a-general-prayer-for-freedom-in-the-realms-of-the-soul/

Bride Ministries (a ministry I recommend but which I am not part of) has two significantly longer prayers that can be used for similar results:

Freedom from Constellations

Freedom from Fallen Angel Bloodlines and Genetics

These prayers are very specific and were crafted to deal with a lot of spiritual realities that most people are unaware of, and often times are unaware of some of the things they are being influenced by.  Accompanying the prayers are lists of names that might apply and be worth praying to break off the influence of.  In many cases, these names will correspond with Other Fathers, which is why I reference the prayers here.  The best way to use those lists is to read through them slowly.  If any of the names feel like they jump off the page, feel more noticeable somehow, or cause some kind of emotional or physical response, then they should be included when praying to break off those influences.

If someone likes those two longer prayers, or wants help in knowing what kind of prayers to pray in a variety of life situations including general prayers, warfare prayer, prayers against witchcraft, and those for deliverance from evil spirits, you can get a copy Dan Duval’s two prayer books:

Prayers that Shake Heaven and Earth

Advanced Prayers that Shake Heaven and Earth

I own both and have found them useful in my own life journey, and hope that they, along with this teaching on the Other Fathers and the subsequent prayer, are helpful and freeing to you as well.  God bless you!

 

 

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