At times, you can experience physical sensations that come from the spiritual realm. Such sensations can make you feel instantly hot or unnaturally cold. The sensation you feel can sometimes give you a clue about the presence of a nearby spirit. Changes in body temperature, however, are not always signs of demonic activity. It can also be a way to experience the power of God. Many times in sessions and on the prayer lines, people feel heat or extreme cold in affected areas of their body.
This is why we must grow in our levels of discernment. We need to be able to discern between good and evil, because many times the enemy will try to mimic what God is doing. This is done so the enemy can spread confusion or fear.
As you pay attention to the spiritual atmospheres around you, you will notice that patterns form. For me, it is when I am in an area with strong witchcraft ties; my body begins to experience vertigo. When my back just below my left shoulder blade feels like it is being stabbed, it is usually an indication of someone cursing or talking bad about me. When I am around controlling people, I get very tired and have to fight falling asleep. I have learned these signs are “tells” for me, so when they occur I can easily discern what is going on around me and take authority over it.
Find someone to begin practicing discerning atmospheres with you. Make a list of how you feel and what you hear internally as you move throughout your day. You may want to pick up my workbook, Atmospheres 101, to get you started.
NOTE
1. De Silva, Prosperous Soul Foundations.
SHIFTING ATMOSPHERES
Take no part in the unfruitful works of darkness, but instead expose them. For it is shameful even to speak of the things that they do in secret. But when anything is exposed by the light, it becomes visible, for anything that becomes visible is light. Therefore it says, “Awake, O sleeper, and arise from the dead, and Christ will shine on you.”
—EPHESIANS 5:11-14
Shine in this verse is from the word epiphausei, which means “to shine upon or give light to.”1 As followers of Christ we have a mandate to let our light so shine as to bring glory to God:
Nor do people light a lamp and put it under a basket, but on a stand, and it gives light to all in the house. In the same way, let your light shine before others, so that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father who is in heaven (Matthew 5:15-16).
Shifting atmospheres is a way to shine in such a way that you draw people to the one true God. We should be walking transmitters of His character and release His attributes into every atmosphere we encounter.
Jesus referred to Himself as the light of the world, and John later stated:
God is light, and in him is no darkness at all (1 John 1:5).
As I write this, I am reminded of a session I facilitated recently that resonates with Matthew 5:16. A woman came in to see me to try and discover why she continually self-sabotaged her efforts for weight loss. She explained that during the day, she did really well with her dieting plan, but at night she would self-sabotage by gorging on snacks. I asked the Lord to show her the root cause of this. As a result, God took her back to a memory of when she was thirteen years old.
In this memory, she had finally managed the courage to expose the sexual abuse that was rampant in her home for the past several years. After bringing the family’s sin into the light, her mother completely shut down and stopped talking to her. In her memory, she was in the kitchen at night grabbing Oreo cookies and a glass of milk when she turned and saw her mother ignoring her in the living room. She bravely asked, “Why won’t you just talk to me?”
Her mom said, “I will when you apologize for having an affair with my husband.”
She felt this was absolutely ridiculous, so she simply grabbed the cookies and milk and headed back to her room instead of apologizing.
Once she forgave her mom in our session and told her body it did not have to carry her mother’s shame any more, a demonic presence flew out of her chest and knocked me back in my chair as it left. Immediately, the room got brighter. In this example, a demonic spirit was partially hiding her “light” through its residence in her life (see Matt. 5:14-16).
IF WE ARE TO BE BEACONS FOR GOD IN THIS WORLD, WE MUST ERADICATE ALL FORMS OF DARKNESS THAT WORK THROUGH US.
I was once in a deliverance conference where the lecturer was telling a similar story. A pastor had called his friend to come pray for his church because the past four pastors had fallen into sexual sin. He did not feel like he himself had any open doors, but his wife felt a strong conviction from the Holy Spirit to see if the church was housing a spirit of perversion.
While the pastor and his friend prayed through his church building room by room, they sensed an evil presence in one of the lower basement classrooms. After repenting for the prior leaders’ partnerships with this spirit, they commanded it to leave and invited the Holy Spirit.
The next morning after service, several members of the congregation confronted the head pastor: why had he not asked them to help paint the inside of the church? They remarked how the church seemed so much brighter, and he could not convince them that he had not painted the walls.
If we are to be beacons for God in this world, we must eradicate all forms of darkness that work through us. Our homes should be peaceful and our neighborhoods safe. Our businesses should be the friendliest and most profitable. When we understand and properly shift atmospheres, we strategically release the nature of Jesus. By imparting heaven’s broadcasts, we become the open heavens through which God broadcasts His virtues into the world.
Once we realize we are picking up outside influences, we can easily renounce ties with them. When you identify the spirit you are sensing, you expose it to the light and cripple its power. Many times, a simple declaration is sufficient for shifting the atmospheres around you. What follows is a sample declaration:
I see you [fill in whichever atmosphere you are discerning]. I am not partnering with you and I send you back.
This declaration is a starting point for you to begin practicing your discernment and spiritual authority. If you want to shift atmospheres for others as well as yourself, you will need to do a bit more work.
After you discern an atmosphere, your next step is to ask the Lord what opposing message He wishes to impart in its place. I use the word “opposing” because Satan is always working against the things of God. If the Lord wants to restore peace, prosperity, and unity, then the devil will most likely be broadcasting messages of chaos, poverty, and offense.
If you partner with a prevailing spirit in any way, you will need to ask God to forgive you before you move on to the next phase of displacement. Doing so realigns you with the nature of God and covers you with His grace. God’s forgiveness repositions us under His wings where we are kept safe from the enemy—and this is powerfully shown in one of my favorite psalms:
He who dwells in the shelter of the Most High will abide in the shadow of the Almighty. I will say to the Lord, “My refuge and my fortress, my God, in whom I trust!” For it is He who delivers you from the snare of the trapper and from the deadly pestilence. He will cover you with His pinions, and under His wings you may seek refuge; His faithfulness is a shield and bulwark. You will not be afraid of the terror by night, or of the arrow that flies by day; of the pestilence that stalks in darkness, or of the destruction that lays waste at noon. A thousand may fall at your side and ten thousand at your right hand, but it shall not approach you (Psalm 91:1-7 NASB).
AFTER YOU DISCERN AN ATMOSPHERE, YOUR NEXT STEP IS TO ASK THE LORD WHAT OPPOSING MESSAGE HE WISHES TO IMPART IN ITS PLACE.
When you are engaged in spiritual warfare, make sure you are in the shelter of the Most High.
As we stand in the gap for ourselves and others, we partner with God’s mercy to deliver the oppressed—even if we are technically not oppressed ourselves. There is something powerful in humbling ourselves before the Lord and offering ourselves to His will that activates us with His power, covering, and victory.
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Repentance is not just saying we’re sorry but is also an acknowledgment that our actions were not in line with God’s. When we ask God to forgive us for partnering with a specific spirit, we acknowledge both our wrongful actions as well as our intentions to refrain from them. The powerful response of God to our repentance is the very nature of grace.
Once we identify and renounce the broadcasts and work through repentance, we are ready to begin shifting the atmospheres. This is the step of displacement. It is done by replacing the enemy’s schemes with God’s truth. To clarify the difference between renouncing and replacing, view the following chart below for some examples:
FEELING RENOUNCING REPLACING
JEALOUS “I see/sense you, jealousy, I am not partnering with you, and I send you back in Jesus’s name.” “Forgive me, Father, for partnering with jealousy. As You forgive me, I invite You to release humility and acceptance into this atmosphere.”
ANXIOUS “I see/sense you, fear, and I will not partner with you. I send you back in Jesus’s name.” “Forgive me, Father, for partnering with fear. I invite You, Holy Spirit, to come and release Your peace into this place.”
HOPELESS “I see/sense you, hopelessness. I am not partnering with you and I send you back in Jesus’s name.” “Forgive me, Father, for partnering with hopelessness. I hand You any lies I am believing that partner with this broadcast. I invite You to fill me and this atmosphere with hope, expectation, and faith.”
PERVERSION/SEXUAL SIN “I see/sense you, perversion, and I send you back in Jesus’s name.” “Forgive me, Father, for any agreements I have made with sexual sin. I invite Y ou to come and release purity into the atmosphere.”
CONFUSION “I see/sense you, confusion, and I renounce you in Jesus’s name.” “Forgive me, Father, for partnering with confusion. I invite You to release clarity, peace, and order in its place.”
ANGER/RAGE “I see/sense you, anger, and I am not going to be counseled by you. I send you back in Jesus’s name.” “Father, forgive me for agreeing with anger. May the gifts of love, peace, kindness, patience, and self-control invade this atmosphere.”
SADNESS/DEPRESSION “I see/sense you, sadness. I am not partnering with you. I send you back in Jesus’s name.” “Father, I ask You to forgive me for letting sadness and depression steal my joy. Your joy is my strength, so I ask You to release it in this place.”
These prayers are not to be seen as formulas but as examples of ways to pray. As we pick up the broadcasts of the enemy and reject them, we will need to inquire of God what He wants us to release. Many times, I find it is the opposite of what I have been picking up. Other times, He has very specific strategies for what to release into the atmosphere. What’s important is to listen to Him and release what He wants us to pray.
Months ago as I was teaching in North Carolina, my team and I kept sensing a spirit of poverty over the area. Instead of sensing that God wanted us to pray and battle against poverty directly, I felt the Holy Spirit prompting us to publicly honor the assistant pastor and his family for all their hard work over the years. At the same time, Teresa sensed that we needed to ask God to release His angels over the church. When I asked her how to do this, she shrugged and said, “I don’t know. You’re in charge. You get to figure it out.”
I had no idea how to cooperate with God to see His angels released. All I had was this prompting to honor the assistant pastor. After getting permission from the head pastor, we brought up the assistant pastor with his family Sunday morning and had them stand in front of the congregation. I spoke to the audience, who were mostly college students, and said, “All week long you have been telling me how much you love this guy. So I am giving you an opportunity to put your money where your mouth is and come show him how much you love him.”
Our team started the rush by bringing their offerings. Immediately, the congregation sprang out of their seats and brought cash, stuffing it into the family’s hands and pockets until the money overflowed out onto the ground. As this was happening, we felt a shift occurring over this family and within the church. When the family got home and counted all the money, the youngest son said, “Dad, when people came up and began placing money in our hands, I saw the doors of the church open and a bunch of angels came in and lined up along the walls.”
Who could have guessed that honoring this family publicly would release the presence of angels? Needless to say, a tangible economic shift took place over both this family and the church. I have been told it still holds today.
LISTEN TO HIM AND RELEASE WHAT HE WANTS US TO PRAY.
Shifting atmospheres can occur on a personal, regional, or national scale. We will examine more closely how to shift some of these atmospheres in subsequent chapters. We need to recognize, however, that the higher you go in terms of scale, the more powerful the demonic spirits you encounter. I find it unwise to take on a principality or ruler (higher level demons) alone or even directly. Be sure to partner with the Holy Spirit and stay under the shelter of the Most High.
We were never designed to agree with the devil’s works. We can empathize with those we pray with but should never allow our sympathy to outweigh our ability to come above the devil’s attacks. Cory learned this well while ministering in New Zealand.
We had been invited to a new church and were asked to work with individuals who sought inner healing. Cory received one client, a middle-aged woman, who shared about her struggles with neck pain. Sometimes it was so severe she had to lay down for several hours until it passed. After praying with the Holy Spirit, Cory realized that this pain was not merely coincidental. It was the direct result of demonic oppression.
It turns out her husband was involved in cult practices that opened a door to the demonic. Even though she was saved, this opening allowed unclean spirits to take advantage of her life, which eventually gave way to fear and spiritual attacks. Before long, she was experiencing mood swings so violent that her husband (also demonically oppressed) asked her to seek help. Six months later, she sat in a small room with her father and Cory to work through these issues.
When asked when these neck pains started, she revealed the dark patterns in her life that brought about her anger. Her husband was himself a rager, so she resorted to what she thought was strength (rage) to stand up to his violence. As they worked through these issues, Cory asked the Holy Spirit if there was anything else demonic in this area that needed to be addressed.
After this woman, Mary, was asked to repeat a prayer, she began to twitch uncontrollably. Her voice lowered several octaves. Obviously, the demon that oppressed her spirit was taking over. Unfazed, Cory retaliated with his favorite weapon—joy. While laughing off the demon’s approach, he invited the Holy Spirit’s presence. Instantly, the demon left. There was no competition. Mary, blinking as if awakened from a trance, looked at Cory and told him that her neck pain was gone.
BE SURE TO PARTNER WITH THE HOLY SPIRIT AND STAY UNDER THE SHELTER OF THE MOST HIGH.
The most encouraging aspect of this story is how quickly the evil spirit left. Once the Holy Spirit invaded, there was no competition. Mary renounced her partnership with sin and handed over to Jesus the access it had to her. She left the room both physically and emotionally healed as well as delivered. Such is the power of the God in our lives. No matter how strong the enemy appears, he is no match for the Lord:
Then he said to them, “Go your way. Eat the fat and drink sweet wine and send portions to anyone who has nothing ready, for this day is holy to our Lord. And do not be grieved, for the joy of the Lord is your strength” (Nehemiah 8:10).
Mary’s story is an example of when it is fairly easy to renounce partnership with an evil spirit. Some deliverances (personal shiftings of atmospheres) might take more time depending on the hierarchy of the demon and number of strongholds in a person’s life. Eventually though, when an inferior kingdom comes into contact with a greater one, the weaker will fall.
NO MATTER HOW STRONG THE ENEMY APPEARS, HE IS NO MATCH FOR THE
LORD.
One example of how not to deal with atmospheres was experienced by Cory while on a ministry trip to Scotland. He and his brother, Tim, stayed in the upstairs room of an old cottage. Each night, Cory experienced nightmares. He later recounted how he saw a demon in his room each night but because of his lack of discernment training he shrugged it off as imagination.
Later, he discerned this demon was actually a spirit of fear. But there was another spirit suffusing the room, unknown to Cory but correctly discerned by Tim—anger.
Days before, when Tim and Cory first entered the room, Tim’s seer eyes perceived the spirit lounging on his bed, and it told him, “This is my place. You are not welcome.”
Undeterred, Tim plopped his bags on the bed and said, “Yeah, well, you better move ’cause I’m ready for a nap.”
The demon recognized Tim’s impenetrable confidence, so it left and moved on to bother Cory instead. While we can laugh at it now, my oldest son did not handle the situation as well.
By the last night, Cory was being harassed so badly that he decided to check with his brother to see if these “figments of his imagination” were real. Lying in bed, Cory turned to his brother.
“Tim.”
“Yeah?”
“Have you felt anything creepy in this room?”
“Yep.”
“You have?”
“And we’re not gonna talk about it.”
Up to this point, Cory’s strategy had been It’s ok, he’ll say no. He’ll prove there are no demons in this lodge, and we’ll brush things off and move on with normal life. But Tim’s response startled Cory, whose previously held belief that demons were real but rarely interfered with our affairs was broken. Staring up at the unlit ceiling, Cory witnessed the darkness get darker. A feeling of suffocation swept over him. Immediately, everything he had come to believe about the spiritual realm was shattered.
Shifting Atmospheres Page 9
