Why Should I Be Baptized? by William Dupley

Five people were baptized in our church a few Sundays ago, including a small girl. I spoke to her father this week, and he said my daughter told me that all of her fear was gone since she was baptized.This week, I was discussing Baptism with a friend of mine. He had ministered in Haiti, and he said it was very common for people to experience deliverance when they were baptized. Deliverance also occurred when people were baptized at a camp meeting that Toronto Airport Vineyard conducted at Staynor camp in 1992.

I remember praying for a lady once at church, and when I laid my hands on her, she fell down to the floor in the form of an idol and went into a trance. I wasn't quite sure what happened, but I figured there had been some power encounter between the Holy Spirit and some spiritual force. I asked her friend who was with this woman if she was a Christian, and she said yes, she was. I asked her if she had been baptized. She said yes. I then spoke to the spiritual force and told it that you have no right to be on this woman because she had identified herself with Christ through the waters of Baptism, and you belong to the old man. I command you to leave and go to the tank, where the Baptism occurred. Immediately, she was delivered and came out of the trance.

Why does this not always happen
I've seen many people baptized, and I rarely see people experience deliverance when they are baptized. I suggest this is because they are not taught what really happens when someone is baptized. Often, Baptism is taught as a symbolic activity. I have heard it said it is the outward sign of an inward commitment, sort of like joining the union and getting the union badge that you put on your coat. Nothing could be farther from the truth. In fact, these statements rob the true power of what Baptism accomplishes in our lives.

Types of Baptism
The Greek word for Baptism is baptízō – properly, "submerge" (Souter); hence, baptize, to immerse (literally, "dip under"). It does not always mean water baptism. It means to be immersed in something.

There are three different types of Baptism mentioned in the New Testament. Each has a different purpose.

1. Baptism into Christ
When we accept Christ as our Saviour and Lord, three things happen
1. We are baptized into Christ. We are immersed in God.
Gal 3:26 You are all sons of God through faith in Christ Jesus. 27 For all of you who were baptized into Christ have clothed yourselves with Christ
2. Our Spirit becomes one with God's Spirit.
1 Corinthians 6:17 But whoever is united with the Lord is one with him in Spirit.
3. We become a new creation.
2 Cor 5:17 17 Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away. Behold, the new has come!
Jesus commands us to baptize people in Matthew 28:19 20 as part of the process of disciplining people.
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, 20 and teaching them to obey all that I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, even to the end of the age."
I don't think Jesus is saying that we just water baptize people in the name of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit in this verse. Rather, I think Jesus is saying that we immerse people in the (love of the) Father, (the grace of) Jesus, and (the fellowship of) the Holy Spirit since he is talking about making disciples in this verse. A key part of making disciples is helping them develop an intimate relationship with God.
2. Baptized in the Holy Spirit
When we accept Christ, our Spirit is united with Holy Spirit, but there is an additional experience that Jesus prophesied would happen to us in Acts 1:4-5
4 And while they were gathered together, He commanded them: "Do not leave Jerusalem, but wait for the gift the Father promised, which you have heard Me discuss. 5 For John baptized with water, but in a few days you will be baptized with the Holy Spirit."
This prophecy was fulfilled in Acts 2: 4
4 And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other tongues as the Spirit enabled them.
When we are baptized with Holy Spirit. Our entire body is immersed in the Holy Spirit, and His presence overwhelms us. We feel his presence penetrate our physical being. Just as water soaks us when we are immersed in water, so Holy Spirit soaks our physical being. We also begin to manifest the gifts of Holy Spirit as outlined in I Cor 12

3. Baptism in water
The Book of Acts describes many events where people believed and were immediately baptized. They were immersed in water. In fact, it seemed that in most cases, a person was baptized immediately upon repentance and acceptance of Christ. There is one particularly fascinating example. There was an Ethiopian eunuch who was responsible for the entire treasury of Ethiopia. He had come to Jerusalem to worship and was going back to Ethiopia. An angel directed Philip to catch up with his caravan, and he heard him reading the book of Isaiah. Philip asked him if he understood what he was reading. He said how can I unless someone guides me. They had a further discussion, and Philip began to tell him the good news about Jesus.

The Ethiopian made the most remarkable request after hearing what Philip had to say.

Acts 8:36 Now, as they went down the road, they came to some water. And the eunuch said, "See, here is water. What hinders me from being baptized?"

38 So he commanded the chariot to stand still. And both Philip and the eunuch went down into the water, and he baptized him.
Now, I want you to capture what happened here. This was a very wealthy man, and he would have had an entourage. He would have been dressed in very expensive clothes, yet it was so important for him to be baptized that he was prepared to get out of his chariot, go down to a muddy hole filled with water, and be baptized. I suggest there was something very compelling that Philip told him about the benefit of being baptized.

Jesus was Baptized in Water
Jesus felt it was so important to be baptized in water that he was baptized in water himself.
Matt 3: 13 At that time Jesus came from Galilee to the Jordan to be baptized by John. 14 But John tried to prevent Him, saying, "I need to be baptized by You, and do You come to me?" 15 "Let it be so now," Jesus replied. "It is fitting for us to fulfill all righteousness in this way." Then John permitted Him. 16 As soon as Jesus was baptized, He went up out of the water. Suddenly the heavens were opened and He saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove and resting on Him.

Jesus never sinned, yet He felt it was important to do this, and the question has to be asked: why did He do this? Jesus said, "It is fitting for us to fulfill all righteousness." I suggest He did this to demonstrate what has to be in our hearts when we are baptized. He humbled himself and publicly declared that His entire life was committed to God and that He was completely dedicating His life to living according to God's will and commands.

A leader leads by example. I think Jesus did this to be an example to all of us.

What happens when you are baptized in water
I do not believe that Baptism is just some symbolic or ritualistic activity. Jesus had no use for those things. I do not wish to minimize the symbolic aspect of Baptism. Baptism is a powerful and symbolic visual aid, a prophetic act demonstrating outwardly what the Lord has done and is doing inwardly. It speaks loudly to the fact that this person needs a bath to be cleansed and needs a burial of the old man to rise up in the newness of life in Christ. But to say it is just symbolic negates the spiritual transformative aspect of Baptism.
Romans chapter 6 :3-7 describes Baptism in great detail and what really happens when we are baptized.

3 Or don't you know that all of us who were baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into his death? 4 We were therefore buried with him through Baptism into death in order that, just as Christ was raised from the dead through the glory of the Father, we too may live a new life.

5 For if we have been united with him in a death like his, we will certainly also be united with him in a resurrection like his. 6 For we know that our old self was crucified with him so that the body ruled by sin might be done away with, a that we should no longer be slaves to sin— 7 because anyone who has died has been set free from sin

Let's start by looking at what happens when we are baptized:
1. We are baptized into Christ Jesus.
2. We were baptized into his death.
3. We were buried with him.

Now let's look at the results, what we can expect as a result of being baptized
1. We may walk in the newness of life (The newness of life is the life that God intended for us to live)
2. We will be resurrected.
3. Our old self was crucified with him so that the body ruled by sin might be done away with (rendered powerless)
4. We will no longer be slaves to sin

Let's look at some other results of being baptized
1. He will forgive your sins. Acts 2:38
2. You will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit Acts 2:38
3. He will wash away your sins. Acts 22:16
4. Whoever believes in him and is baptized will be saved, but whoever does not believe will be condemned. Mark 16:16. This Scripture is not saying that you have to be baptized to receive salvation. Salvation is by grace. Whether we are baptized or not, we will be saved if we believe in the Lord Jesus Christ. However, the word for "saved" used here is the Greek word "sozo". The word "sozo" means "safely rescued, delivered out of danger in to safely used principally of God rescuing believers from the penalty and power of sin into his provisions of safety." It is clear from this verse that a real spiritual transaction occurs when we are baptized that delivers us from the results of our sins.

5. You are baptized into the body of Christ (the family of God) (1 Cor. 12:13). In other words, it is also an initiation into the fraternity of Jesus.

These actions and results don't sound very symbolic to me. It clearly sounds like a dramatic spiritual transaction occurs.

Who is buried, who is crucified?
Romans 6:6 states
"Knowing this, that our old self was crucified with Him, in order that our body of sin might be done away
The King James bible reads
6 Knowing this, that our old man was crucified with Him, that the body of sin might be done away with, that we should no longer be slaves of sin.

We read here that it is our old self or old man that is buried. Now, you may wonder who this is. I suggest that your old self or old man is the spiritual being you were before you were born again and became a new creation. Our old man has committed a lot of sins and has also inherited a lot of curses from the generations that have gone before.

When we are baptized, the old man is buried. We choose to bury him. He's put to death. It's an execution, and anything related to the old man goes with it.

Sins give rights to demonic forces. The spiritual world is very legalistic. Negative Spiritual forces cannot attack us or touch us unless we give them legal rights to do that. Prov 26:2 clearly states this.

Like a flitting sparrow, like a flying swallow, So a curse without cause shall not alight.

However, when we do sin, or our parents sin, it gives rights for a curse to come upon us. When we are baptized, we put to death the old man and the rights that are associated with the old man are made null and void. The spiritual forces that are associated with those rights must leave. They have no legal right to be there. That is why Baptism is so important. This is how Baptism saves us. The act of Baptism rescues and delivers us out of danger. It delivers us from the penalty and power of sin into Our Heavenly Father's provisions of safety".

Deliverance is the children's bread.
I have experienced three seasons of deliverance emphasis in the church. There was a great emphasis on deliverance in the late 1970s, it came around again in the 1990s, and it's starting again in the 2020s. The challenge with deliverance is that people often become consumed with looking for demons. Only one-third of Jesus's ministry was focused on deliverance. If you are spending more than one-third of your ministry time on deliverance, I suggest you readjust your focus. However, ignoring deliverance is also a mistake.

Jesus called deliverance the children's bread in Matthew 15. A Canaanite woman had asked him to deliver her demon-possessed daughter. His response was unusual. He said
24 He answered, "I was sent only to the lost sheep of the house of Israel." 25 The woman came and knelt before Him. "Lord, help me!" she said. 26 But Jesus replied, "It is not right to take the children's bread and toss it to the dogs." 27 "Yes, Lord," she said, "even the dogs eat the crumbs that fall from their master's table." 28 "O woman," Jesus answered, "your faith is great! Let it be done for you as you desire." And her daughter was healed from that very hour.
Jesus called deliverance the children's bread. We are the children of God, and deliverance is our bread, too. It's something that we can expect.

First John 3:1
See what great love the Father has lavished on us, that we should be called children of God! And that is what we are!

How do you acquire the results of Baptism?

The first step in Baptism is repentance.
Acts 2:38 Peter replied, "Repent and be baptized, every one of you, in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins. And you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.

Repent means "to change one's mind or purpose". When we repent, we choose to change how we think, what we do, and how we behave, from the way the world thinks to the way God thinks. We start by asking God's forgiveness for our sins. I recommend that this be done thoroughly and not just as a general statement. We commit sins individually. We should ask forgiveness and repent the same way. Remember, our sins provide the spiritual world with legal rights over us, so the more thorough we are with our repentance, the more legal rights are broken. Now, I don't believe you need to repent of every sin you did. I don't think we can remember them all, but I think we can repent for sins in categories.

The Sozo ministry has a good structure for examining ourselves and structuring our repentance. There are four categories they would suggest that you consider when deciding to get serious in the area of repentance. These categories are Sexual sin, Occult, Hatred, and fear. I recommend that you take the time to do this well and not be in a hurry. I also suggest you ask God's forgiveness for generational sins as well. Often, the sins of our ancestors can affect us because they have given rights to the spiritual world to affect their descendants.

The second step is a public declaration.
When we are baptized, we publicly declare our allegiance to Jesus Christ, identify ourselves with the cross of Christ, and are baptized into Christ. We acknowledge that our old man is about to be crucified and buried in the tank, and because we have repented of his sins, the spiritual forces related to the old man must stay in the tank and have no right to be on you.

Now, if you did not understand this when you were baptized and thought that you were just making an outward sign of an inward commitment, you can correct that situation today. There are no time issues with our Heavenly Father. He lives outside of time. I suggest that you can make that declaration today, even though you may have been baptized 50 years ago.

If you would like to acquire all the benefits of your Baptism, I encourage you to do this prayer with me.

The Prayer
Heavenly Father, I now understand that being baptized is much more than just making an outward sign of an inward commitment, and I want to acquire all the benefits that Jesus purchased for me on the cross.

1. I ask forgiveness for my sins and the sins of my ancestors. (Be specific, and don't be in a hurry.) I repent for doing these things, and as an act of my will, I change my mind and choose to live according to your will and commandments. I ask you for your help to do this.
2. I believe that Jesus Christ died on the cross, rose from the dead on the third day, and is sitting with his Heavenly Father today.
3. I received his gift of forgiveness that was paid by the atonement he made for my sins on the cross.
4. I declare that Jesus Christ is my Savior and Lord.
5. I choose to follow him in the waters of Baptism and identify with His cross by the act of Baptism, and by doing so, I choose to bury my old man and everything that is associated with him. These include all my sins, all my ancestors' sins, and all curses that were related to those sins.
6. I rebuke every spiritual force that's associated with my sins and my ancestors' sins.
7. In Jesus' name, I command these spiritual forces to go to the baptismal tank and never bother me again because you have no rights on me.

Congratulations, you have now dealt with any spiritual forces related to your old man, and you have the authority to tell any temptation that would try to drag you back into those sins to leave you because you have repented, are baptized in Christ, and they have no rights on you.

You will now find it easier to walk in the newness of life. Jesus is committed to helping you be transformed. This process is called sanctification. You have put off the old man, and your mind will be renewed.

Eph 4:22 that you put off, concerning your former conduct, the old man which grows corrupt according to the deceitful lusts, 23 and be renewed in the spirit of your mind, 24 and that you put on the new man which was created according to God, in true righteousness and holiness.

It does take your whole life to become what you are in Christ, but choosing to be baptized is the best way to start the journey.
I bless you all. I hope this has been helpful. Please write to me if you experience a change in your life as a result of this prayer. I would love to know about it.

This blog is originally published here:https://thesecretplace.ca/blogs/f/why-should-i-be-baptized

10 Ways to Get in Spirit by Charity Kayembe
(original blog with hyperlinks is here https://www.cwgministries.org/blogs/10-ways-get-spirit-charity-kayembe)

We want to get out of our heads and into our hearts because God does not live in our heads. Ephesians 3:17 tells us that Jesus lives in our hearts and John 7:37-39 tells us that rivers of living water—the Holy Spirit—flow from deep within. As believers, we know that our spirit is joined with Holy Spirit deep down in our innermost being (1 Cor. 6:17).

Therefore, we want to live from our hearts and our spirits, from down deep, from our union with God there. When we are in this sacred place, scientifically speaking, we are in the alpha brainwave state. As you are wide awake, reading these words, and engaging your mind, you are in the faster analytical beta brainwave state. However, just as you fall asleep at night, and just as you wake up in the morning, you are in the alpha brainwave state.

This slower frequency state is more meditative and reflective. When we are not quite sure if we are awake or asleep, the veil between the physical world and spiritual world is very thin and we are in the alpha brainwave state. We are also in the alpha and theta brainwave frequencies when we dream.

While science calls this alpha brainwaves, Scripture calls it being “in spirit.” Jesus told us to “worship in spirit” (Jn. 4:24). John said, “I was in spirit on the Lord’s day” and met with God (Rev. 1:10ff). Again, he said, “I was in spirit” and proceeded to see Father’s throne and all manner of heavenly vision (Rev. 4:2ff). He was not in his head. He was in his heart. He wasn’t in beta. He was in alpha, and that is when his spiritual senses were opened wide to see and hear the mysteries of the Kingdom.

We see then how dreams are an effective communicative medium with Heaven. When we receive dreams, our analytical mind is out of the way, and we are able to receive a pure flow of revelation straight from Father’s heart to ours.

Indeed, Scripture reveals that when we are asleep, our heart is awake to commune with our Beloved (Song of Sol. 5:2). Dreams are God’s contingency plan to ensure He always has a way to connect with us. Father knows that the best time to get our undistracted attention is during sleep – when we are “in spirit” – that is, in those slower brainwaves.

The Shift – Slowing Our Brainwaves
But what about when we are awake? Obviously, we want to receive heavenly revelation all day long, too. Are there any other ways we can position ourselves to receive more readily from the supernatural realm? Absolutely! Just like the reflection on a cellphone or computer screen—different angles and amounts of light illuminate what is being shown. When there are high levels of light in the room, we need to increase the brightness of the display in order to see more than just reflections on the screen.

In a similar way, we can increase the brightness of the visionary screen inside our hearts. We do this by moving into the alpha brainwave state. Science has demonstrated there are practical and proven ways we can slow down our brainwaves. Founder of Impact Ministries, Dr. James Richards shares several in his book, Moving

Your Invisible Boundaries:
"It is interesting that so many of the physical forms of worship tend to slow down our brainwaves. Music is very instrumental in effecting our brainwaves. Chanting, which is done in many of the Psalms and is actually used in the Hebrew language to describe worship, slows the brainwaves. Rolling our eyes up, as if looking to heaven, rocking, singing songs with repeated rhythmic patterns, bowing, dancing and pretty much all of the physical expressions of praise and worship, slow the brainwaves.

"When this happens we think that God, who lives way off in heaven has suddenly been appeased to such a degree that He graces us with His presence. But the truth is just the opposite; God, who lives in us and is always expressing Himself to us, is finally realized by the shift in our awareness. We begin to experience what He has been expressing all along!"

This is similar to how the discipline of fasting helps us tune in to hear from God. It is not that He is speaking more clearly when we fast; it’s simply that we have positioned ourselves to hear Him better. So it is with these various ways to worship and meditate: They don’t change God; they change us!

We instinctively do many of these things to naturally quiet down an upset baby. We rock them gently, sway back and forth, and sing songs to them. We know these are effective ways to settle down a child, and now we recognize that they are also effective ways to quiet ourselves down, to settle us into our hearts and spirits.

Biblical Examples
We see this exemplified in Scripture with the prophet Elisha. When he wanted to receive a revelation from God he also used the tool of music: “‘But now bring me a minstrel.’ And it came about, when the minstrel played, that the hand of the LORD came upon him” and he received a prophetic word to declare (2 Kings 3:15ff).

While it may go without saying, closing our eyes is obviously another simple and effective way to shift our awareness from the external to the internal. This also moves us down into that alpha state of spiritual sensitivity, so that we are less distracted by the outer world and more focused on the Kingdom within.

In Joshua 1:8, God told Israel’s new up-and-coming leader how to be successful. The secret? Biblical meditation. Meditation moves us to the alpha/spirit level, giving us a greater sensitivity and awareness of the sacred supernatural. Soft soaking music and visionary prayer are excellent tools for this. My dad and I unpack the extraordinary gift of meditation in our book on Kingdom emotions, and you are welcome to experience the New Creation Celebration Meditations available free on his ministry website.

Another extremely efficient way I have found to quiet myself down is through Emotional Freedom Techniques (EFT). EFT, or “tapping” as it is often called, has been scientifically documented to consistently slow down our brainwaves, bringing us into a place of calm and rest. It moves us from beta to alpha quickly and effortlessly, thus moving us from our heads to our hearts.

As a predominantly left-brain teacher, I naturally live in my head, therefore, I must manually shift gears and intentionally slow down into my heart. Hundreds of studies show the near-miraculous benefits of tapping, and I personally use it as a tool to move me into my heart zone.

Again, because Jesus lives in my heart, I endeavor to live from my heart and the springs of His River of Life that flow from there (see Prov. 4:23). Praying in tongues also moves us into the alpha state making us more aware of the spiritual realm and our connection to it. Supernatural leaders such as Sid Roth and Mahesh Chavda testify that their commitment to praying in the Spirit an hour a day unleashed tremendous power and anointing through their ministries.
Indeed, I have found that singing in the Spirit is one of the quickest ways for me to become aware of God’s peace and presence. When we sing and pray in tongues, our spirit is praying (1 Cor. 14:14-15). Our spirit is one with Holy Spirit (1 Cor. 6:17). So we are connecting with Holy Spirit and allowing Him to pray with and through us (Rom. 8:26-27).

Lastly, the simple exercise of breathing deliberately and deeply will quickly quiet us into our hearts. The word for "spirit" and "breath" are the same in the original languages the Bible was written in. That means when it says John was "in spirit on the Lord's day," it could have just as accurately been translated, John was "in breath on the Lord's day." Indeed, scientific research has shown that slow, deep breathing shifts our brainwaves, calming us down into an alpha brainwave state.

Spiritual Top 10
In summary, when we want to become more keenly aware of the spiritual realm that is all around us and perceive more clearly the supernatural world that permeates and infuses this natural world, we can simply slow down our brainwaves. There are steps we can take to proactively posture ourselves to easily move from beta to alpha, thus effectively moving from our head to our heart. These include:
1. Closing our eyes
2. Looking up / rolling eyes upward as if looking toward heaven
3. Rocking or swaying back and forth
4. Bowing and dancing
5. Speaking in tongues
6. Singing in tongues
7. Breathing deeply
8. Practicing emotional freedom technique (tapping)
9. Listening to soaking instrumental music
10. Meditating, which includes using our godly imagination
It is encouraging to realize supernatural encounter doesn’t need to be an entirely sovereign experience where we have to wait around for a blinding light to knock us to the ground.
It is exciting to understand that in Him we live and move and have our being and that Holy Spirit’s life and love can be felt any time and all the time, whenever we want.
It is empowering to know that there are many simple things we can do to get “in spirit” and continually experience the peace, power and presence of Heaven that is as near as our next breath.

Going Deeper Activation
Have you used all ten ways listed above to quiet yourself down into your heart? Which ones have you found to be most effective? Are there any that God is highlighting for you to try right now?
Connect to the flow of His River within and purpose to practice His presence by relaxing into your spirit, remembering your oneness, and resting in your union with Him.

Encountering God in the High Places of Heaven by Patty Sadallah

Spirit Life Workshops recently delivered the SOAR HIGHER Spirit Life Workshop in Panama City Beach, Florida and I (Mark Virkler) asked Dr. Patty Sadallah to share the anointed finale encounter she led us in. Both Patti and I had powerful heavenly experiences as we participated in this visionary journaling experience. In the guided exercise below, Patty Sadallah had us go for a walk with Jesus up through the clouds into heaven where there were several doors/rooms He could take us into to reveal things to us. As "flow" took over, this became wonderful heavenly room experiences that profoundly impacted our lives with faith, hope, and love. I trust you will experience the same!
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Workshop participants worked through four stages during the four-day event including 1: Learning about their Christ Identities so they can know “I am who God says I am”. 2. Stretching past their comfort zone challenges them to say “Yes” to the large and wonderful call on their lives. 3. Understanding how to pass the tests of character and spiritual warfare trials to persevere toward the plans God has for them. And understanding how to worship and battle from the uniqueness of who God called them to be. And finally, 4. Learning how to see things from God’s heavenly perspective and live out of the flow of the Holy Spirit from the high places where their spirits dwell.

There are some anchoring Scriptures to help you understand why it is important to seek God in the high places.

Come Up Higher
Revelations 4:1,2 - After these things I looked, and behold, a door standing open in heaven. And the first voice which I heard was like a trumpet speaking with me, saying, “Come up here, and I will show you things which must take place after this.Immediately I was in the Spirit; and behold … And then John received the rest of the 21 chapters of the book of Revelation.

Notice that John looked and when he did, he saw. John looked 17 times and saw 47 times in the 21 chapters of the book of Revelation. Looking with the eyes of your heart is one of the spiritual senses that everyone has, and the purpose is for us to receive from the Lord what He has for us to understand.

John also heard a voice speaking to him. He was using the ears of his heart to listen. The voice was the LORD and he said, “Come up here”. This may sound like an invitation, or a suggestion, but when a verb begins a sentence in the Bible, it is a command. God wants EVERY believer to come up to His perspective.

The Lord comes down to meet you where you are
I love the Lord because he hears my voice and my prayer for mercy. Because he bends down to listen, I will pray as long as I have breath (Ps. 116:1,2)!

The Lord bends down and listens to you when you pray. But He wants you to come up to His perspective because there is more for you there. It is the journey to spiritual maturity to want to move from God coming down to meet you where you need Him, to you wanting to come up to meet Him where He needs you to be.

The Spiritually High Places
My Father’s house has many rooms; if that were not so, would I have told you that I am going there to prepare a place for you? And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come back and take you to be with me that you also may be where I am. (Jn. 14:2,3 NIV)
The word for room is moné and it means a place to abide, to dwell, to stay, to be.

There are many places that Jesus could take you. He can take you to one of these places today, and then He can take you to any of these other places whenever you desire and He has something to show you there.

Some of the places in heaven that Jesus could take you today… He will take you to one, but you can ask Him to take you to any and all of them! He knows which room you need today!

About 100 verses about heavenly places: https://www.openbible.info/topics/seated_in_heavenly_places
• Your special place - This is your spiritual home base where God meets with you about all the areas in your life that you need His help and guidance. The more time you spend with Him in this place, the more you will love and trust Him and realize who He really is.
• Healing places - for physical, emotional, mental and spiritual needs.
• Truth places - to help you understand who God is and who you truly are:This is for unlearning limiting lies that may be holding you back so you can allow God to transform you into your Christ Identity.
• Treasure places - to help you understand how to pull down the resources of heaven for Kingdom purposes, not for selfish purposes. See the link for 14 verses about the treasures of heaven: https://bible.knowing-jesus.com/topics/Treasure-In-Heaven
• Library places - where the book of your life and God’s plan is for you. (See Jeremiah 29:11 and Psalm 139:16.)
• Destiny places - where God can show you how to navigate this life plan and give you glimpses of the future He has for you. Here are about 25 verses about God’s plans for you: https://scripturesavvy.com/bible-verses-about-gods-plan-for-you/
• Creative strategy places - for God to birth new ideas and longstanding solutions to problems related to your destiny mountain.And to receive wisdom and angelic assistance for problem solving and destiny assignments. See podcast episode about ways that angels help us and how to cooperate with the ministry of angels: https://pattyej.podbean.com/e/how-to-partner-with-angels-for-gods-purposes/
• Connections places - where God can show you who is your tribe and how to connect with them for your destined purpose.
• Other places - He can take you exactly where you need to go!
Remember that you can ask Jesus to take you to any of these rooms because your spirit is now seated in heavenly places. So go back and visit them all!
The guided walk into heaven with Jesus
• Click here (https://bit.ly/4d2TP8a) for Dr. Patty’s guided encounter where you will meet God in the high heavenly place of His choosing.
• At minute 17:20 you are with Jesus in the Throne Room. Hit "pause" on the audio recording and journal for the next 5-15 minutes the full encounter as Jesus explains to you what is in this particular room He has led you to.
Spirit Life Workshops will be producing a SOAR HIGHER Spirit Life Workshop downloadable product if you would like the teaching content and handouts of the entire 7 session, 4-day event. If you want to be notified when that is released, and you are not already on our mailing list, please go to https://spiritlifeworkshops.com and sign up for our mailing list for this and information about all future workshop offerings.

Introduction to Kids in Renewal – Free Downloadable Curriculum by Bill and Sue Dupley

From 1994 to 2000, Susan and I conducted Kids in Renewal meetings at Catch the Fire Toronto. These meetings were designed to facilitate the impartation of the Father's blessing to children.They were taught the values and experiences below:
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1. How to come into the presence of God.
2. How to hear the voice of God.
3. How to prophesy.
4. How to know their heavenly Father's heart.
5. How to be the light of the world.
As a result of these renewal meetings, we wrote a Sunday school program called Kids In Renewal that contains five messages that cover these five topics.

The Kids in Renewal program was published by Strang Communications and sold all over North America. Kids in Renewal is now out of print; however, we'd like to make this available to anyone who would like to use it as a program at their Sunday school.

Kids in Renewal can be used as a:
• Short Sunday school special series.
• The lessons can also be used for outreaches in a community.
• It is also excellent for a Vacation Bible School.

You can download the entire course from the Resources page of our website:
Kids in Renewal Resources Page https://thesecretplace.ca/resources
The course is broken up into three zip file downloads.
• Kids in Renewal Teacher's Manual & Powerpoints
• Kids in Renewal Lessons Audio Tracks
• Kids in Renewal Music
If you are reading this blog in an email, click here to watch the video on YouTube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9vIAVhsu-Tc'>https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9vIAVhsu-Tc

The complete transcript of the interview can be downloaded here.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9vIAVhsu-Tc'>https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9vIAVhsu-Tc

About the Authors: William (Bill) & Susan Dupley

Bill and Sue Dupley have been ministering for over 35 years, preaching and leading worship on five continents. Together, they minister Renewal and teach adults and children how to hear the voice of God and how to prophesy. Bill and Sue believe that the supernatural should be natural for all believers and that every believer can impact their world for the Kingdom of God as they hear God's will and follow His leading.

Bill and Sue are certified facilitators for Communion with God Ministries and are affiliated with Singing Waters Ministries and Catch The Fire. They have authored four books and have conducted seminars at many Catch the Fire churches globally. A list of their current workshops can be found here on their website. You can contact them at: the.secret.place@cogeco.ca

The Resurrection is what makes Christianity different from all religions!

Religions offer a theology about a God out there, whom we can have NO ongoing contact with. Christianity says we have Jesus, Who has risen from the dead, and we live in daily, dynamic relationship with Him personally.
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When He arose, He took all authority from satan and is now seated, together with us in heavenly places where we rule and reign together! We respond to such mercy and grace by receiving Jesus as our Lord and Savior.

Does any other religion offer that? NO!
Only Christianity offers us the opportunity to abide in Jesus continually!

Easter Sunday is a special day where we celebrate His gifts to us. One wonderful gift is that He has granted us the revelation to see and experience this wonderful truth, and to discover that a living encounter with Jesus is so easy that even children can do it. We can do it also if we become childlike. Who could have imagined life and eternal life could be this easy?

So we are now invited to walk in His Light, to see and believe. So let’s do that.

Envision truth, Him at your side. Ask for His input. Tune to flow, and sense the flow from His River which is bubbling up from within.
Life becomes simple. I tune to flow, believing the Holy Spirit can be experienced as a flowing River, and I simply live out of this flow.
Wow! Does any religion offer that?

Does any religion offer complete cleansing of all my sins by simply asking, receiving, and believing, and then the opportunity to walk in the Light by putting on Christ's cloak of righteousness in simple childlike faith? No. Only Christian spirituality offers this!

Lord, THANK YOU THAT YOU HAVE OPENED THE WAY BEFORE US. THANK YOU THAT YOU HAVE OPENED OUR EYES AND THAT YOU ALLOW US TO HEAR, TO SEE AND TO RECEIVE FROM YOU. We worship YOU THE TRUE AND LIVING GOD, our Lord, and our Savior.

Jesus, we come this Sunday to celebrate the greatest gift ever given, YOUR LIFE, flowing within us!

Action
• Worship along with The Tabernacle Choir as they sing the “Hallelujah Chorus” from Messiah. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BBZ7AfZR9xs
• Lord, what would You speak to me about the greatness of Your gift of salvation?