Emotional Healing: Fragments and Alters

This is an excerpt from my newest book Emotional Healing in 3 Easy Steps.

It’s been said that time heals all wounds, but the truth is that time doesn’t heal emotional wounds. Rather than being healed over time, emotional trauma can plague us our entire life. Emotional trauma creates a wound in our soul much like a flying piece of metal can cause a wound to our skin. Although our skin has a way to heal the wounds it receives, our soul doesn’t have the ability to heal itself.

Emotional trauma has the potential to affect the entire soul, but God designed a way to limit the damage of emotional trauma by allowing the soul to create what are known as fragments. A fragment is a part of the soul that contains the memories and emotions of a traumatic event. It’s like a part of our personality that’s been frozen in time. Fragments prevent the wounded parts of the soul from becoming the dominant influence over the core of the soul. In effect, the fragmenting of the soul compartmentalizes the wounds and minimizes the damage that can be done to the rest of the soul.

Fragments usually only have awareness of a single event or a string of repeated events and their related emotions. The fragment normally lies dormant in the soul until an event occurs that is reminiscent of the one that caused the fragment to be created. When one of these events happens, the fragment can be triggered and it may take control of the soul. When this happens, the person responds the way they would at the age they were when the fragment was created. If the fragment was formed as a toddler, the person may crawl on the floor or try to hide behind furniture. If the fragment was created as a teenager, the person may act like a rebellious 13-year-old. The emotions they display are not appropriate for the current situation. Instead, they are the emotions that were experienced at the time the fragment was created.

A soul fragment will assume control when they perceive there is a threat to the individual. The actions of a soul fragment are usually an overreaction to the situation because they have less understanding of what is normal and acceptable behavior when compared to the core of the personality. When the threat goes away the core of the soul regains control, the fragment once again becomes dormant.

I know a woman who has a terrible fear of going into basements. When I asked why she had this fear, she said it was because she had been molested by her uncles in a basement when she was a child. At the time she was molested, a part of her soul was wounded which created a fragment dominated by fear. Today, whenever she thinks about going into a basement, the fragment is triggered and she feels fear.

A similar but different part of the soul that is created by trauma is known as an alter. Like a fragment, an alter retains memories and emotions of specific events, but unlike fragments, alters can have unique personalities of their own that are distinctly different from the core of the personality. A person with many alters is usually diagnosed with Dissociative Identity Disorder, or what was once called Multiple Personality Disorder. A severely traumatized person can have hundreds, or even thousands of alters.

When an alter is triggered by an event, the individual’s will and emotions come under the control of the alter. The person behaves in correspondence to the personality of the alter, while the core of the personality is rendered ineffective. The core personality sometimes feels like an observer to what is happening to them, instead of the participant. Some describe it as like having someone drive their car while they watch from the rear seat. Sometimes the core personality is completely unaware of what’s happening to them—a condition known as dissociation. When the event passes and the core assumes control again, it’s not unusual for them to have no idea what they said or did during the episode.

The goal of emotional healing is to heal the fragments and alters and to reintegrate them into the soul, preventing future episodes of painful emotions and dissociation.

For more information, check out my book Emotional Healing in 3 Easy Steps.

Keys to Healing and Deliverance - Steve Harmon

Steve Harmon discusses the keys to successful physical healing, emotional healing and deliverance.

 

Can Back Pain From a Car Accident be Relieved Through Emotional Healing?

As we checked in to the hotel we talked with the woman behind the desk about our plans for the week. I told Susan we were the featured speakers for the meetings that were being held at the hotel that weekend and gave her some background information about us. I explained that the main focus of the weekend was supernatural healing. She attends a Charismatic church and wanted to know more about healing so we talked for a while. I was tired from the trip and wanted to get to our room and unpack our bags so I pulled out a copy of my book Divine Healing Made Simple from my one of our bags, autographed it and handed it to Susan. "We'll be here for nine days," I said. "We'd be more than happy to answer any questions you have." She thanked us and we went to our room.

The following day I received a message from a woman named Emily who works behind the registration desk at night. She found Susan’s copy of the book and began reading it. When she was halfway through the book she contacted me through Facebook and asked for prayer. She’s been suffering from chronic back pain from four different car accidents and she asked about emotional healing. We set up a meeting at Anna Wingate’s house for prayer on Sunday afternoon. (Anna was the organizer of the meeting.)

When Emily arrived at Anna’s house we spent about 10 minutes getting to know her. When you make an appointment for healing or deliverance and evil spirits are involved, it is not unusual to feel fear, anxiety, and an increase of the symptoms you want to be healed of as the appointment time draws near. Evil spirits are aware of what’s going on as the time of healing and deliverance draws near. They know their time is short and they frequently manifest as increased fear, anxiety, and pain just before or during the healing encounter. Their goal is to frighten their host, hoping to get them to cancel the appointment. Emily had been feeling some anxiety that morning. When I asked how her back pain was doing she said, “My back feels like it’s on fire.”

We had Emily sit on a couch with Anna on her left and my wife on her right. I sat in a chair and observed as Anna ministered emotional healing to her. Most people who do emotional healing follow a script, which gives them a pre-planned set of instructions for the healing process. Anna has a script that she uses often and it works for her. I have a different script that I recently developed that I had been using during The Gathering.

Anna’s script includes questions about things like witchcraft and Freemasonry in a person’s family history, as well as discerning generational sins and/or curses. Other parts of her script include walking the person through forgiveness for anyone who has offended them and a meeting with the Father. When Anna was done with her prayer session I asked if I might try my own approach. Emily agreed to have me pray with her.

There are many different approaches to emotional healing. Each method has its own strengths and weaknesses. The script that I use is very specific. My goal is to identify the negative emotions a person is feeling and have Jesus heal them. I began by asking Emily if she had been abused either sexually, physically, or verbally as a child. I started with this question because it seems to be the most common cause of emotional wounds. Emily said she had been verbally and physically abused by her father. Most approaches to inner healing would have her forgive her father. Forgiveness is an important part of the process, but she had already forgiven him. Forgiving others does not heal the wound in our soul caused by the emotions we feel toward them. So rather than focus on forgiveness, I focused on healing the specific emotions she was feeling.

The next step in the process is to have the person recall a specific event where this emotion is strongly felt. When they’re feeling the emotion, I have them tell me what the emotion is. I asked Emily if she could recall a specific event from her past that evoked a strong negative emotion. She recalled a birthday from her childhood where her father promised to take her out for dinner. That night he went to a bar and got drunk and forgot about her. When he came home she asked if he would take her out for her birthday. He grudgingly agreed to take her to McDonald’s, but as she walked to the car he kicked her all the way to the car. “So when you recall your father kicking you, what emotion comes to mind?”

“Worthlessness.” She replied.

Once we’ve identified an emotion, I have the person repeat after me as I lead them through a simple script that asks Jesus for healing.  “Okay Emily, I want you to repeat after me. Jesus, I ask you to take this feeling of worthlessness from me.” She repeated what I said. “ I don’t want it anymore. I ask you to heal the wound in my soul caused by it.” Again she repeated what I said. “In place of worthlessness  I ask you to give me honor.” She repeated my words again. “ Jesus, I receive your healing.” She repeated this and when she was done I had her recall the event with her father again.

"So there you are, waiting for your father to come home. He gets there and you ask if he’ll take you out for dinner. You’re on your way to the car and he’s kicking you. What emotion do you feel?”

“I guess… It’s just disappointment.”

“Okay, were going to do the same thing for disappointment. Just repeat after me. Jesus, I ask you to take this feeling of disappointment from me. I don’t want it anymore. I ask you to heal the wound in my soul caused by it. In place of disappointment I ask you to give me hope. Jesus, I receive your healing.” When she had said these words after me I asked her again to recall the event with her father and tell me what emotion she felt.

“Fear.”

“Okay, were going to do the same thing with fear, just repeat after me. Jesus, I ask you to take the feeling of fear from me. I don’t want it anymore. I ask you to heal the wound in my soul caused by it. In place of fear I ask you to give me courage. Jesus, I receive your healing.” When she was finished saying these words I asked her again to recall the event with her father and tell me what emotion she felt.

She paused for a moment and finally said, “Nothing. I can remember it all, but there aren’t any emotions I can really feel.”

“Cool. That means you’re healed of the wounds in your soul from that event. Let’s move on to the next one. You said you had been married twice. Did either of your ex-husbands abuse you?”

“Yes. They both did.”

“What kind of abuse was it, did they hit you or was it verbal abuse?”

“Both my ex-husbands hit me and we got into a lot of arguments.”

“Okay. We’re going to do the same thing. Is there one event with your most recent ex-husband that causes you to feel a strong negative emotion?” She told me about how they would argue and her ex-husband would punch her in the face to end the argument. “Okay Emily, so there you are with your husband and you get into another argument. It escalates into a yelling match and he punches you in the face. Tell me what emotion you’re feeling.”

“Anger.” She replied as tears streamed down her cheeks.

“Okay we are going to do the same thing with anger that we did with the other emotions. Just repeat after me. Jesus, I ask you to take the feeling of anger from me. I don’t want it anymore. I ask you to heal the wound in my soul caused by it. In place of anger I ask you to give me peace. Jesus, I receive your healing.” When she was finished I had her take a short break because she was crying. After she regained her composure, I asked her again to recall the argument with her ex-husband and tell me what emotion she felt.

“Hurt. That’s the only way I can describe it.”

“Okay. We’ll go with that. Are you ready?”

“Yes, I‘m ready.”

“Jesus, I ask you to take the feeling of hurt from me. I don’t want it anymore. I ask you to heal the wound in my soul caused by it. In place of hurt I ask you to give me healing. Jesus, I receive your healing.” She repeated each sentence after me. When she was done we went back to the same event. “Okay Emily, so there you are with your husband and you get into another argument and he punches you in the face. Tell me what emotion you’re feeling.”

“Fear.”

“Okay. We’re going to get rid of fear whenever you’re ready.”

“I’m ready.”

“Okay, repeat after me. Jesus, I ask you to take the feeling of fear from me. I don’t want it anymore. I ask you to heal the wound in my soul caused by it. In place of fear I ask you to give me confidence. Jesus, I receive your healing.” When she was done I had her recall the argument one more time. “What emotion do you feel?”

“I’m not really feeling anything this time.”

“Awesome. So those emotional wounds are healed. Thank you Jesus! Let’s move on to your first husband. Is there any event from your first marriage that causes strong negative emotions?” She told me about an event that caused similar feelings to those she had when she got into a fight with her second husband. We followed the same steps as before. She identified each emotion, and asked Jesus to heal them then we went back into the memory of the event to see what emotions were left, until all the negative emotions were gone.

“I have a question for you Emily. How does your back feel right now?”

“It feels really good,” She said with a beaming smile. “It was really bad when I got here, but now there’s just a little pain right here,” She said pointing to a spot on her right side in the middle of her back.

“Now that we’ve removed the rights that the spirit of pain had to afflict you, it should be easy to heal the pain you still have.” I had her stand up and we prayed a quick prayer for her back to be healed and the pain immediately left.

I gave her a short lesson on why back pain from a car accident would require emotional healing, which I’ll summarize next:

Evil spirits are very opportunistic, like most predators. Predators take advantage of weakness because weakness gives an advantage to a predator. A shark becomes aggressive when it smells blood in the water. Vultures gather around dying animals. Demons flock to people who are suffering trauma; both physical and emotional, because trauma weakens us physically and emotionally.

Emotional trauma causes fragmentation of the soul which results in wounds in the soul itself.  It also causes the development of memory fragments and/or alternate personalities, or alters. When we engage in emotional healing, we’re dealing with the fragmented parts of the soul and the emotional wounds.

Strong negative emotions in our soul allow opportunities for demons to torment us. I refer to this as a demon’s “legal right” to harass us, though some people object to the use of this term, because they feel demons have no legal rights to us whatsoever. Call it whatever you want; when we hold onto negative emotions like shame, guilt, anger, fear, etc. these emotions provide a place of attachment for demons. Healing the emotional wounds removes the point of attachment for demons. Once demons have nothing to hold onto, healing is much easier and in some cases, the healing a person is seeking manifests as soon as the emotional wounds are healed.

The reason why I ask people to recall a traumatic event is that I’m trying to heal that particular part (fragment) of their soul that is holding onto that emotion. In order for a fragment to be healed, it must come to the forefront of the person’s consciousness. When I have them recall the event and feel the emotion, I’m working with that part of the soul responsible for that emotion.

When Emily had her car accident, she may have suffered physiological damage to her body, but she also suffered emotional damage to her soul. The most likely scenario is that an evil spirit or two attached themselves to her soul at the time of the accident, using whatever negative emotions she experienced as their point of attachment. As time passed and her physical injuries were healed, the pain in her back remained because the emotional wounds were still there, providing a home for spirits of pain. Unlike physical wounds that heal over time, emotional wounds remain in our soul until they are healed by Jesus. As long as an emotional wound remains intact, the symptoms caused by the spirits attached to the wounds will not leave. The only way to have the symptoms healed is to have the emotional wounds healed.

I used this same approach to heal the emotional wounds of several other women during The Gathering and in each case the person was not able to feel the negative emotions afterward.

One woman that my wife and I prayed with had been having a lot of problems with her marriage. She said her husband treats her more like a brother than a wife. There hasn’t been any romance between them in years. We used this approach to heal her of the emotional wounds related to the way her husband treats her. She came to the brunch on Sunday morning with a glowing smile and handed me a gift bag. “Something big happened last night. I thought I’d buy you two a gift to show you my appreciation. There are two gifts in the bag. The first is for you. The second is for your beautiful wife. When I was leaving this morning to come here, my husband said he loves me…TWICE!!” She walked in a new air of confidence that definitely wasn’t there the night before.

God is doing some amazing things in the area of emotional healing these days. I hope you join us and receive the healing you need. I’ll be writing more on emotional healing in future messages, so stay tuned.

The Helicopter Dream

Over the last two months I've shared a number of stories about my past. The reasons for sharing these stories are many. One reason is that I needed to be healed of the fear of what people would think if they ever found out about my past. With the help of some very supportive friends, I finally dragged the skeletons out my closet and dealt with the fear and insecurity once and for all. Instead of the rejection I expected – I found people drawing even closer to me. It’s been a very liberating experience.

I suspected that if I opened up about my past, others would too, but I didn't anticipate the degree to which it would happen. After I began writing about my past, dozens of friends began discussing theirs and many are in the process of being healed. Some even started support groups to help deal with their past.

But one story in particular touched me more than any other. It involved a dream from God that was given to a young woman I didn't know.

In the dream, she saw a rescue helicopter hovering above her town. She knew that the helicopter came to deliver an important message, but she didn't know what it was. In the dream, she heard conversations with a grieving girl who was healed emotionally and as the transformation on the inside occurred, she was changed on the outside.

She began looking for the helicopter image and when she got to my Facebook page, realized it was the same one from her dream. She sent me a private message sharing the dream and asked if I could interpret it. I didn't have a good interpretation, but we kept in touch over the next few weeks.

About a month after her dream, I began writing about my affair and divorce. When I wrote that I felt like I’d been emotionally abandoned by my wife and that I knew that my actions had destroyed the trust of my daughter, she sent me another private message:

"Wow read your post today. My dad did something similar when I was your daughters age. I remember the shock of it,up until that day I always wanted to marry a man just like my dad. What your post made me think was, wow he had a side of the story too. He was probably tormented too. He probably felt terrible too. I read your post and just felt respect for your courage to expose yourself. I felt mercy towards you, felt like you deserved grace. And your a stranger. Shouldn't those things be extended first to a loved one? Like my own father?.............how in the world did it take 18 years to realize his decision wasn't personal it was his own mistake not intentionally to hurt those he loved, just an attempt to find something HE was missing. The truth shall set you free, interesting that truth is a person too. Liberating to realize sometimes we need set free from other peoples bad decisions because it was never about us anyway. Thank you

During her parents’ divorce, all she could see was her father’s selfishness. She couldn't see his pain or loneliness. She had no empathy for him and never considered his side of the story – until she read my story. But she realized that she needed to forgive her father and let the mistakes of the past be buried.

God has used my story to touch the hearts of a lot of people in ways I never imagined. That doesn't make my mistakes right. I did some terrible things that can never be justified. But when we're willing to talk about our mistakes in a desire to be healed of the shame, guilt and anger they can bring - there is healing for ourselves and others.

I would encourage you to share your life with others – the victories and the mistakes. You never know how your testimony might help someone who is struggling with the same problem. God can bring healing and restoration in the strangest ways.

Yesterday, Today and Tomorrow

This story is part of a series written in September of 2012 during our trip to Australia to teach on healing.

For 19 years, the people at AccessChurch have been sending teams into the streets of Brisbane to minister to those who are less fortunate. The teams visit hostels, half-way homes, and other locations where the poor and mentally ill live.

We arrived and went to work with the crew making sandwiches, heating up meat pies and filling containers with sweets, like doughnuts. Access also serves hot coffee, Milo and tea. After preparing the food, we loaded it into a van and set off.

Our first stop was a hostel for abused women and children. We set up two portable tables in the parking lot, put out the food, said a prayer over it then began handing it out.

A middle-aged woman named Debra stood next to a beautiful tree; the glow of the street light illuminating it's tri-colored flowers. I asked Debra what kind of plant it was.

“It’s called ‘Yesterday, Today and Tomorrow’.” She drew my attention to the white flower and said, “This one’s ‘yesterday.” Pointing to a light purple petal, she said, “This one is today”. Pointing at the dark purple one she said, “And this one is tomorrow.”

I thanked her and asked if she had any pain in her body that she wanted to be healed of. She said she had back pain and a lot of emotional trauma from the recent loss of 3 family members to cancer. I asked if we might pray with her.

I placed my hand in the small of her back, asked the Holy Spirit to touch her and commanded the pain to leave. I asked if she felt anything.

“It feels like electricity going up and down my spine.”

“Why don’t you try to touch your toes?”

She reluctantly agreed, thinking the chronic pain would make it difficult. But she put her hands to the ground with ease. A look of shock came over her when she realized she was healed.

We prayed for healing of her emotions and the power of God began to work in her mind and heart. His presence made it hard for her to remain standing so one of the crew slipped in behind her and prevented her from falling to the ground.

We talked with Debra for quite a while afterward, sharing our experiences and giving her tips on how to keep her healing. My wife and I gave her a hug then helped the crew load the van. It was time to go to another location.

During the first two nights, we’ve seen a number of people healed of chronic pain. We’re having a blast watching God display His power and love to these wonderful people.

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Keeping Your Healing

Meatloaf and Healing Your Neighbor

I stopped at Costco on the way home from work to get some things for dinner. I ran into an engine company from the Gilbert Fire department. All four firefighters were wearing shorts. It's mid-November. And they're wearing shorts. One guy said he wears shorts year round. I guess I'm still getting used to the climate here.

As I entered the store, walking briskly and looking for people showing signs of disability, I heard a woman behind me say to her husband, "I wish I could walk like that".

I stopped and turned around to see her hunched over the shopping cart, walking slowly. I held out my hand, introduced myself and asked if she really wanted to walk like me. She said she did and I asked if she wanted to be healed. She said, "I'd love it."

We chatted for a few minutes. She told me she suffers from arthritis. Betty told me she didn't expect an 86 year old woman to walk like a young person. I shared a few stories of people older than her who had been healed and asked if I could pray with her and she agreed.

I asked the Holy Spirit to bring His presence and touch her and commanded arthritis and the spirit of pain to leave then asked what she felt. She reported feeling tingling in her hands. I placed my hands over hers and told the pain to leave. The only thing she ever felt was tingling in her hands. I told her I believed she was healed and that it might take anywhere from 10 minutes to a few days for her to feel the full effects.

I was hoping for more immediate confirmation, but I've learned that many people feel nothing at all and they're still healed, only realizing it days later.

I had a desire to make meatloaf tonight and for some reason I wanted to make a lot if it. I picked up a 5 pound package of ground beef and a three pound package of Jimmy Dean sausage. I got a few other things and headed home.

At home, I made quick work of the meatloaf. Here's the recipe: One finely chopped large yellow onion, 3 eggs, lots of minced garlic, salt, pepper and sage, five pounds of ground beef and three pounds of sausage. I shaped two massive loaves and put them in the oven at 350. My daughter and wife were curious to know why I on earth I decided to make enough meatloaf to feed an army. I really didn't know why. But it didn't matter, because it was time for a walk. We walked to a nearby park where a 5K run was in progress. We found a quiet spot at the edge of the lake and watched a glorious sunset. Then we walked home.

When we got home, the aroma of the meatloaf was amazing. It filled the house with a spicy, savory smell. But the oven was making the house a bit warm, so we open the front door to cool the house down.

Suddenly, we heard a voice at the door. It was the woman who lived a few houses down. We greeted her and asked what we could do. She told us she'd been having problems with a neighbor and wanted to talk about it. She was upset at how her neighbor had been treating her. She hadn't slept the last two nights. We chatted at the front door. As we talked she kept looking toward her house, expecting her husband to come over and commented on how wonderful the meatloaf smelled.

Her husband finally arrived and said he couldn't resist the smell coming from our house, so he came over to find out what it was. Once I told him what it was, he said he loved meatloaf. We told them they were welcome to stay for dinner since we had plenty.

We ate and chatted and Chona told us she had degenerative joint disease which affected her knees and ankles. I told her she wouldn't have it when she left.

So let me explain that.

When I began this journey in healing a few years ago, I never would have said something like that. I wouldn't even ask people what they felt after praying. I was afraid that nothing would happen and I didn't want to hear about it. I had no faith. Since then, I've seen God heal people over and over and over and while not everyone is healed yet, my confidence in God is so much greater that it once was. At times I think it's appropriate to say that out loud.

When I declare that a person will be healed, I'm really doing a couple of things: First, I'm putting the enemy on notice. I'm letting him know I plan to evict him and the sickness or pain he's causing. Second, I'm letting God know that I'm trusting Him to do what He said He would do. Third, I'm letting the person who needs healing know that I don't see their condition as something that's hard to heal. And lastly, I'm building my own faith in preparation for the battle.

After dinner we moved to the living room and put Chona between my daughter and I on the couch. She was gracious and allowed me time to teach her about the authority we have in healing. She's a believer. I taught from Luke chapter 10 then asked if she knew what God's presence felt like. She said she did. I shared some of the dreams I've had about God's presence and told her I would ask Him to touch her with His presence.

While I asked God to bring His presence to touch her, my daughter and wife prayed over her knees and ankles. As we prayed, my wife got the impression that God wanted to heal her emotions. After a few minutes, we asked how she felt.

"Wow....I came here so angry and now all the anger is gone. I feel nothing but peace. And there's no pain in my legs."

We had her stand up and walk around the living room. Her husband said that normally, someone would have to help her get up off the couch. But now she could do it by herself and all the pain was gone. She was overcome with joy.

The presence of God healed her emotions and the authority of believers healed her joints. That's the complete healing God wants to do - body, spirit and soul. After she was healed, we spent a few minutes teaching her about the battle with the enemy over her healing. We told her that the symptoms might return, but if they did, it doesn't mean she lost her healing. It would be spirits of pain trying to convince her she wasn't healed. We told her that if the symptoms returned, all she needed to do was command the spirits to leave in the name of Jesus.The bible says "Submit yourself to God - resist the devil and he will flee. Now that you're healed, you need to put up some resistance against the plans of the enemy." They went home praising God and we were blown away by God's goodness.

If you're willing to be used by God, He'll use you in the same way He uses us. If you open your door to your neighbors and desire that God would bless them, they will show up and so will God. As you host them, you'll host God's presence. Power encounters will happen and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom. People will be healed and set free. Word will get out and they'll come to meet the people whose home will be called the house of God.

Open your doors and invite God's presence into your home. Then expect great things to happen.

It's been two days since Chona was healed. She stopped by today to give us a report. She was hiking a trail on the mountains near Phoenix this weekend. Every time the pain in her legs tried to return, she commanded it to leave. She's still doing great and ever since her visit, she's been telling strangers and friends about Jesus.

Healing at Home - Body, Soul & Spirit

Last weekend was my weekend off work. I’ve been praying for about 3 or 4 patients a day when I’ve been on duty. I didn’t see any miracles of healing last week, but patients I pray with are beginning to write and share their stories. I’ll be posting one in a day or so. I spent a busy weekend around the house with my wife and kids. God decided to do a few cool things at home last weekend.

I know we humans are a three-fold being; body, spirit and soul. But think I suffer from spiritual amnesia. I often forget about the reality of the spiritual dimension and the fact that my spirit is the most important part of my being. I don’t like the fact that I’m involved in a constant spiritual battle. But that's a fact of life I'm learning to accept. This is a discussion about the body, spirit and soul and how the problem of pain is treated in each one.

My daughter came home from swim practice on Saturday with pain in her ribcage. We thought she may have muscle strain from the long workout. A year ago I would have grabbed the Advil and a glass of water. I don’t do that anymore; it’s not the way I roll. Because of what I’ve seen in the last year, my first reaction to everyday injuries is different. I knelt beside her with my eyes closed, placed my hand on her ribs and commanded them to be healed. Within a couple of minutes the pain was gone. God didn’t show me anything in the spirit.

The same day, my son Danny developed abdominal pain while doing homework. Lying curled up on the couch, unable to go on, he told me he was tired and felt sick all over. I walked over to him and closed my eyes, placing my hand on his abdomen. I saw a vision of something like a man wearing a black hood. It resembled someone dressed as an executioner. I commanded it to leave and spoke healing into his body. Within a minute or two the pain and all his symptoms were gone. He got up and continued doing his homework. About 30 minutes later he developed pain in the middle of his back. I repeated the process, again seeing a spirit and telling it to leave. We went through this same process with him about 6 months ago.

My son has many dreams of being in battle. God is constantly trying to sharpen his awareness of the spiritual battles in life. He had some visions in church this weekend. He began to ask God to show him some things to build his faith. He received some prophetic words about his spiritual gifts. The previous weekend an angel woke him up to tell him to write down a dream that he had. He’s growing in the spirit – it shouldn’t come as a surprise that the enemy would try to put the fire out. That’s the nature of the battle. God is always at work, helping us to grow but the enemy sends messengers of gloom, pain, or discouragement.

At the spiritual hunger conference a few weeks ago, I was healed of chronic shoulder pain. The woman praying for me asked if I was carrying a burden that wasn’t mine. As soon as she asked, the Holy Spirit showed me that I had allowed problems my wife had at work, to become my own problems. I unknowingly transferred the burden to myself and with it, the pain. I told Jesus I was sorry for carrying a burden that wasn’t mine, and released it to him. The pain in my shoulder was immediately gone and hasn’t returned. This was an issue of the soul, which is responsible for our mind, will and emotions. I was holding onto emotions of anger because of a situation my wife was dealing with at work. The emotion of anger cause a physical pain to be manifested in my body. Once the emotion was dealt with, the pain left. I suspect many people suffer chronic pain syndromes, like perhaps fibromyalgia, because of emotional issues that are never properly identified and resolved.

What I’ve noticed is that there are physical ailments with no apparent spiritual or emotional issue, as in the case of my daughter’s rib pain. It’s just a physical injury. These things can be healed with simple prayer. Advil will probably work, too - so would a cold pack - and yes, I still use them sometimes. But I'd much rather allow God to do it.

Then there are times when a physical problem has a spiritual or emotional root to be to be identified and dealt with. A pattern of recurring pain that leaves and returns or pain that occurs without injury should be suspect. The same is true for conditions in which multiple exams and testing reveals no physiologic cause for a condition. They should probably be treated as spiritual or emotional issues.

Sometimes God reveals a spiritual being that brings the condition with it. Spirits have no physical body - they prefer to hitch hike on us. Attitudes of the heart like sin, rebellion, bitterness, hatred , unbelief and many others provide a shelter for spiritual hitch- hikers and the pains and diseases they carry. It all gets transferred to us. We may need to get rid of a certain behavior or attitude to get rid of the critter and be healed. That makes a lot of people uncomfortable, but Jesus healed multitudes by removing demonic parasites. I believe he knew a little more than you or I do.

These things don't make sense to the natural mind, particularly if you're schooled in modern medicine's approach to healing. But there are spiritual laws in effect that aren't taught in med school. Spiritual laws (like gravity) are like natural laws; they can't be broken. Apparently one of the spiritual laws goes something like this; if you shoulder a burden that doesn't belong to you - it creates the same pain as if you were dragging a telephone pole around. In the natural, you would advise your patient to stop carrying heavy things around for no reason. Concerning the spirit we must do exactly the same thing.

I hope this post helps you grasp the realities of spiritual warfare a little better. It’s real, it’s all around us, and we have the tools to wage the war victoriously and win the battles. Awareness of the battle is the beginning of victory. I hope you win the battle you’re in today.