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An Overview of Sozo Tools

The Father Ladder and Four Doors. 

Sozo has grown so much in the past 20 years. Teresa Liebscher and I started it in 1998, and it has exploded into many countries across the globe. 

I’m so grateful God has used this ministry. The more people who heal their relationship with God, the more souls will be saved! 

Today I’ll cover 2 of our most popular tools: The Father Ladder and Four Doors. 

The Father Ladder

Originally taught in one of Bethel’s prayer servant training classes, the Father Ladder introduces clients to the needs each person has. It also shows how each member of the Godhead (the Father, Son, or Holy Spirit) meets these needs. The Father Ladder tool is best represented with this chart:

While earthly fathers provide our physical needs (protection, provision, and identity), siblings and friends fulfill the soul’s needs (communication and companionship). Mothers meet our spiritual needs of comfort and teaching.

When any of these needs aren’t met, we start to believe lies from the enemy. A child, for instance, who wasn’t protected at home will feel like they have to fend for themselves. This becomes a lie that they are unworthy. This lie can only be removed once the person forgives their father and renounces the lie that God will treat them the same way.  

Here’s an example of how to run through the Father Ladder: 

Sozo Minister: “How would you describe your relationship with Father God?”

Client: “It’s okay. I mean, I love Him. But I don’t feel a strong connection to Him.”

Sozo Minister: “Close your eyes. Can you see or sense Father God?”

Client: “I see Him faintly, but His back is turned to me.”

Sozo Minister: “Repeat after me: ‘I choose to forgive my earthly father for being distant. I renounce the lie that You, Father God, don’t want a deep relationship with me. And I receive the truth that You love and cherish me. I pray this Jesus’ Name. Amen.'”

[A few seconds pass.] 

Sozo Minister: “Can you see or feel Father God now?”

Client: “Yes, I see Him. He’s looking right at me!”

In this example, the client’s perception of God was colored by their relationship with their earthly father. Once the person forgave their dad, they could connect with Father God at a deeper level. 

The Four Doors

Another tool we use often is the Four Doors. This tool works best for when we want to identify areas of demonic oppression. The Four Doors tool was originally taught by a deliverance minister from Argentina named Pablo Botari (in the form of The Ten Steps). 

Teresa and I condensed this tool to focus on 4 key areas of sin: fear, hatred, sexual sin, and involvement in the occult. Since areas of sin serve as access points to the enemy, closing these doors is important for helping people find freedom. 

Just like the Father Ladder, the Four Doors tool is best visualized with a chart. Here it is below:  

This list is not extensive. Yoga is one of the more recent additions to the occult door because it has infiltrated so many realms of American society.  

Here’s an example of how to run through the 4 Doors: 

Sozo Minister: “Do you feel like there are any doors of sin open in your life?”

Client: “Yes, I’ve struggled with pornography for the past two years. I feel powerless to stop it.”

Sozo Minister: “Repeat after me: ‘Forgive me, Jesus, for opening a door to this sexual sin. I ask you to break pornography from my life. Please shut this door and seal it with Your mighty blood. I ask this in Jesus’ Name. Amen.”

And that’s it!

While there are many Sozo tools (Presenting Jesus, the Wall, Divine Editing), these are the ones we use the most. Overall, Sozo is a very gentle inner healing/deliverance ministry. Following the Holy Spirit’s lead is the primary goal of the Sozo Minister, so the length and structure of each session looks different. 

If you’re interested in hearing more about the Sozo ministry, or if you would like to schedule your own Sozo session, please visit us at the Bethel Transformation Center’s website: https://www.betheltransformationcenter.com/

You can also take our online training courses and learn the Sozo tools for yourself at https://courses.desilvaministries.com/

Overcoming Fear

“Either make the tree good and its fruit good,
or make the tree bad and its fruit bad, 
for the tree is known my its fruit” (Matthew 12:33 ESV).

I came across this social media post from Tom Crandall. I think it perfectly captures how we can identify lies and the roots of our issues.

Tom’s post, focused on overcoming fear, is so simple yet breaks down the enemy’s attacks into actionable steps. Let’s go through each one now. (Note that these principles work for more than just fear. You can switch out fear for perversion, hatred, witchcraft, or many other issues.)

1. Recognize that fear is a demonic spirit. 

Fear is not your friend. And fear is not from God. The Apostle Paul reminds us, “for God gave us a spirit not of fear but of power and love and self-control” (2 Timothy 1:7 ESV). Fear is not even an option for true believers in Christ (except the fear of the Lord). 

The first step to dealing with fear (anxiety, stress, or worry) is realizing that it comes from the enemy. No one wants to partner with evil, so call out fear as the demonic attack that it is and send it back.

Sample declaration: “I see you fear, and I do not partner with you. I send you back in Jesus’s Name.”

2. Understand that behind every fear is a lie

Fear is a complex issue. (So are issues like rage, depression, or perversion.) These often have underlying mindsets keeping them in place. When you feel fear, ask God, “Is there a lie I’m believing?” 

The goal is to become an expert at digging out the roots of each issue. Like the tree Jesus referred to in Matthew, we must search our beliefs. See if any mindsets are creating bad fruit (sin, unhealthy actions or habits) and renounce their hold. If there is bad fruit in your life, ask God to show you what lie is causing you to act in this way. 

Sample prayer: “Jesus, is there a lie I’m believing that’s causing me to partner with fear?”

3. Invite the Holy Spirit to disarm fear with truth

This is the most important step. Satan is the father of lies. Jesus is the source of all truth. When God reveals a lie to you, it’s your job to exchange it for heaven’s truth. 

In Sozo, we believe that spaces vacated by ungodly beliefs need to be filled by godly virtues. Otherwise the enemy will come back and exploit this newly exposed area (see Luke 11:24-26 ESV).

We encourage clients to meditate on Bible verses that speak to their area of healing. For someone newly freed from fear, they should read scriptures about courage and declare this virtue over their life.  

And that’s it!

Tom’s post shares such a powerful weapon we can use in times of warfare. It seems so simple, but it can bring radical breakthrough. If you want to go deeper in removing fear, check out my book, Overcoming Fear.

Here’s a quick prayer you can release over yourself this week: 

“Jesus, thank You that You are my deliverer. Please expose any unhealthy beliefs I am partnering with. Help me to discover any root issues so I can remove them and embrace God’s truth. I ask this all in Jesus’s Name, amen.

Trusting God

But Jesus looked at them and said, “With man this is impossible,
but with God all things are possible” (Matthew 19:26 ESV).

These past few months have been difficult. Not only did a close family friend of my son and his wife pass away, but one of my spiritual mentors, Beni Johnson, graduated to heaven. Many of us worldwide were believing for her healing. The morning after she passed, I found myself traveling to teach on the importance of prayer. It was a hard but powerful trip.  

Losses like these can shake our faith. When our needs – physical, financial, or otherwise – don’t get resolved, doubt creeps in. We start to wonder if God even hears us at all, thinking, How do we trust God when our deepest disappointments get realized?

A wise man once said,”Those who love the most hurt the most.” We have the opportunity to love God with all of our hearts. While it might seem safe to close off and guard our hearts from disappointment, cynicism is not healthy. Jesus said: 

“Truly, I say to you, whoever says to this mountain, ‘Be taken up
and thrown into the sea,’ and does not doubt in his heart,
but believes that what he says will come to pass,
it will be done for him” (Mark 11:23 ESV).
 

Believers are called to intercede for the impossible. Jesus is the King of the impossible. When faced with hardships, disease, or temptation to sin, we are reminded that “I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me” Philippians 4:13 (NKJV).

We must pray for the miraculous and believe in the Lord’s goodness no matter what. This is called faith. Pastor Bill said after Beni’s passing, “God is always good. I don’t have a right to accuse Him otherwise.”  

If you’re struggling with the pain of loss in this season, here are some promises from God to bring you comfort:  

1.  God works all things for good. 

Even if you lose something dear: a friend, a dream, or a family member, God promises to turn all things for good. This means that even the most painful situations can be turned around for your benefit. It’s a huge promise, and a beautiful one at that. Even in your darkest moments, God is crafting a plan of redemption:

And we know that for those who love God all things work together for good,
for those who are called according to his purpose (Romans 8:28 ESV).

2.  God has a plan for your life.

Jeremiah saw more destruction than any other prophet during his life. Even in the midst of suffering, God promised that He had a plan for Israel, and it was good. Like Jeremiah, we can take comfort in the fact that God has a destiny for our lives: 

For I know the plans I have for you, declares the LORD, plans for welfare
and not for evil, to give you a future and a hope (Jeremiah 29:11 ESV).

3. God promises to comfort you.

The Bible promises us that we will be comforted, especially in our hardest moments. Grieving is a natural part of human life. Allow yourself to process your pain. Jesus will comfort you: 

“Blessed are those who mourn, for they shall be comforted” (Matthew 5:4 ESV).

4. God is present in your situation.

The Names of God are a wonderful tool to rely on in seasons of discouragement. Ask God which part of His nature He wants to reveal to you — the Healer, the Provider, or the Protector — then lean into that aspect. There are so many Names in Scripture, and I cover some in my book, Warring with Wisdom. Check it out if you want to learn more about this powerful tool. 

And that’s it!

These are just a few promises we can rely on when we’re feeling discouraged. It can feel difficult to stay the course and not give in to doubt, but the Lord says, “For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways” (Isaiah 55:8 ESV).  We must not let disappointment steal our ability to stand firm knowing that God is in control.

If you need help processing any loss, Ray Leight has a wonderful book called Finding a New Normal. It has really helped me through this season of suffering.

Here’s a quick prayer you can release over yourself this week: 

“Jesus, thank You that You are our comforter. I release any pain from my life and ask You to step in and give me words of hope and encouragement. I ask this all in Jesus’s Name, amen.” 

Raising up Micaiahs

“As the Lord lives, what the Lord says to me,
that I will speak” (1 Kings 22:14 ESV).

I recently read the story of Micaiah’s prophecy against Ahab. For those who aren’t familiar, the passage centers around the wicked king of Israel, Ahab, and his decision to war against Syria.

For some backstory, King Ahab asked Jehoshaphat of Judah to assist him in battle. Jehoshaphat said, “Inquire first for the word of the LORD” (verse 5).

Ahab assembled around 400 prophets and commanded them to reveal what the Lord was saying. The prophets declared, “Go forth, for the Lord will give it [the battle] into your hands” (6). 

King Ahab was satisfied, but Jehoshaphat wasn’t. He asked Ahab, “Is there not another prophet of the Lord of whom we may inquire”(7)?

Ahab admitted, “There is yet one man by whom we ay inquire of the Lord… but I hate him, for he never prophesies good concerning me, but evil” (8).

Long story short, Micaiah was brought forth and spoke the Lord’s truth, declaring, “I saw all Israel scattered on the mountains, as sheep that have no shepherd. And the Lord said, ‘These have no master; let each return to his home in peace’” (17).

In an interesting twist, it turns out God had given Israel’s prophets the wrong word so they would entice Ahab into battle (19-23). Micaiah was the only one who spoke truth.

It was a risky decision. After Micaiah was finished, King Ahab threw him in prison and ordered the guards to “give him nothing but bread and water until I return safely” (27).

It turns out Ahab was killed just as Micaiah prophesied. Interestingly, we don’t know what happened to Micaiah. Did God deliver him from prison? Or did he remain in captivity?

This story both inspires and humbles me. So many Christians, rather than speaking out, avoid hardship. They parrot whatever society tells them and start to resemble the world. This is a dangerous place to be since the world rarely follows what the Lord is truly saying.

In 2021, some of you may recall the Lord told me it would be a year of the power of peace. When I looked up peace in Matthew 5:9, I found “Blessed are the peacemakers.” My immediate thought was peace keepers: those who do not cause conflict. 

Upon researching the original definitions of the word, I found “peacemakers” comes from the cognate that means “to bravely declare God’s terms which makes someone whole” (cognate 1518 eirenopoios). So in this case, being a peacemaker is not staying silent but speaking the truth from the Lord, which brings wholeness.

The Call To Holiness

“Be holy… for I the LORD am holy” (see Lev. 20:26)…

I re-read through one of my favorite mystery novels last week, and I felt the Lord say, “Dawna, I need you to put this book down.” A little confused, I asked, “Why?” He said, “I’m calling you into a new season of holiness. These books won’t get you there.”

I was shocked. For about twenty years, I had been reading mystery novels as an innocent hobby. I made sure to avoid graphic material, so the stories I read were quite tame.

But God challenged me to up my standards in this season. As I set the book aside, He said, “I want you to go through your personal library and throw out the books I tell you.”

Although some of these stories were personal favorites, I nevertheless followed His command. By the end, I had disposed a handful of books.

Why the Call to Holiness is so Important

2022 already so far has been a challenging year for prayer. After a 2-year pandemic and now a sudden war, the temptation might be to view this season as the devil’s playtime. But the Lord wants us to come up to His level so we can see the enemy is beneath His feet.

I want to encourage you in this season to embrace God’s call to holiness. As we separate ourselves from sin (even what seems innocent), we’ll be able to stay tucked up under the Lord’s wings and rebuke darkness.

Ask the Lord what you can do this week to strengthen your relationship with Him. Remove any podcasts, streaming channels, or news stations that might be pulling you away from a stronger connection with God.

Even the most innocent escapes can become dangerous if we allow them to take up space in our hearts. (You’ll know if something has become destructive if you’re unwilling to give it up.) If God reveals an issue to you, tear it out by the root.

This blog post was inspired by an excerpt in Dawna’s live Q & A from the Warring with Wisdom e-course. If you want to join the Q & A on April 21, enroll in the online class and join via the zoom link (link is posted in the e-course).

Are you feeling exhausted, distracted, or hopeless?

These may be signs of spiritual warfare negatively affecting your life.

Are you ready for a new strategy in spiritual warfare?

Many Christians today fail to pay attention to the spiritual realm. Their blinders keep them ignorant to attacks, leaving them feeling exhausted, distracted, or hopeless.

But we don’t need to let the spiritual realm affect us. We can rise above the enemy’s attacks and stand in the truth that we are protected.

In Scripture, Satan is referred to as a “roaring lion seeking who he may devour.” Note how he is called “a lion” and not “the lion”. The enemy can only mimic God’s power, so his authority is nonexistent.

But Satan is still out there trying to devour us. The more we educate ourselves on spiritual warfare, the better we will be at protecting our bodies, souls, and spirits.

Are you ready to war with wisdom?

Part of being successful in spiritual warfare is knowing which types of battles we are facing. The enemy can either attack our bodies (through sickness), our spirits (through demonic assaults), or our souls (through destructive thoughts). Depending on which assaults we are experiencing, there may be different strategies we can use to emerge victorious.

For instance, if the enemy attacks our bodies, our best response is to rest. God engineered our bodies to recuperate, so incorporating rest into our lives is a great way to let our bodies heal.

In contrast, when facing a spiritual attack (like demonic visitations or nightmares), partnering with God and His angels in the Third Heaven is key. Prayer, intercession, and worship are powerful weapons of warfare. If you find yourself harassed, invite God’s presence and shift the atmosphere.

Lastly, if we feel Satan is attacking our minds, the best response is to resist his voice. Joyce Meyers calls this “the Battlefield of the Mind.” As we reject Satan’s lies, we can embrace God’s truth.

These are just overviews of each area we can be attacked in. Honing our gifts of discernment will enable us to defend ourselves accordingly.

If you’re interested in learning more about the spiritual realm, or how to protect your body, soul, and spirit, check out my new online training, the Warring with Wisdom e-course.

Sneak Peek: Warring with Wisdom E-course

What are you looking forward to in 2022?

Stewarding hope while waiting.

2020 was a difficult year for many, and 2021 has become a slow, chaotic climb to normalcy.

However, I am believing that in 2022 we may begin to see the fulfillment of many prayers we have been crying out for in the past 2 years.

In early November, I heard the Lord say, “I am releasing higher ranking angels.” (These are the hosts who have been standing day and night in His presence).  

I have also seen what looks to be “secret service” angels converging around myself and others.

Patricia King mentioned these angels in a November Facetime broadcast and claimed that these were heavenly hosts sent to protect God’s followers from error.

To prepare for this next year, I believe we need to ask God for discernment. There are so many lies and polarizing ideas swirling through the atmosphere right now.

It’s important we ignore these antagonistic voices and lean into God’s Word, so we can see through the world’s (and enemy’s) smokescreens.

I keep hearing a phrase from a worship song echoing throughout my prayer time: “He is up to something. Right here. Right now!”

I feel an excitement rising in the air as I look forward to what God is planning to do in 2022.

As you move forward into this next season, equip yourself with God’s wisdom, break any alliance you may have with the enemy’s schemes and lies, and partner with heaven’s hope as the Lord releases His higher ranking angels.

Have a Merry Christmas and a Happy, Joy-filled New Year. 

You were Made for Adventure

Guest blog by Stephen K. De Silva

Life is not a clean, smooth road that’s easy on our brakes or suspension.

No, life is messy, filled with jerks and spikes, deep problems and amazing breakthroughs.

As we build our plans, the human tendency is to prepare for what we expect and exclude those events we don’t anticipate. This creates the perception of a linear existence—a straight line from point A to point B. Routine. Normalcy.

Routine is an easy rut to fall into because we like life a certain way, and we get used to events arriving in an organized manner.

The problem is we will have a difficult time finding purpose in our life if we make all our plans based solely on what we know.

We were designed to live an adventurous life. When all we have is routine, our hearts get sucked dry. We become desperate and susceptible to influences that aren’t healthy.

But adventure fills us with light.

When we have room for both—the known and the unknown—our heart thrives.

Here are some questions to consider this week if your life is feeling stagnant. Talk with God about each these questions and write down any answers He reveals to you:

1.   What am I doing to increase my peace and hope in this season?

2.   What am I doing to make life fun?

3. How can I incorporate an adventure this week?

4.   Am I resting all three parts of my being: body, soul, and spirit?

5.   What is one simple thing I can do to change my finances for the better this week?

We are tasked with bringing God’s kingdom to earth—to rearrange the world because we’re light. Light, by nature, is a powerful force that is more than capable of defeating darkness.

When I teach about becoming a Prosperous Soul, that’s what I’m trying to do—to teach people how to walk in the power of the light, which is their inheritance in Christ.  

I pray your soul truly prospers this week as you perceive ideas for adventure and decide to take them.

If you’re interested in hearing more of Stephen’s teachings, check out his Prosperous Soul Master Course.

Bodywork

Restoring the physical body through inner healing.

One of my favorite subjects to talk about is Bodywork, the concept of praying for physical healing during a Sozo session.

Since Jesus healed throughout His ministry, we inner healing ministers can also look for ways to introduce the Holy Spirit’s power in our meetings.

Bodywork is essentially a forgiveness tool that works to remove pain or bitterness stored up in the body.

Scripture reveals that holding onto bitterness and unforgiveness leaves us in bondage (see Matthew 18:23-35). When we use bodywork, we undergo a healing process that brings freedom and restoration to the body, soul, and spirit.

When to use Bodywork

Bodywork tends to fit best toward the end of a Sozo session. Because some people feel discouraged after struggling with chronic pain or disease, I usually address these issues near the end after God has already imparted some other breakthrough.

The Steps for Bodywork

The first step to applying bodywork into your session is to 1) identify the need. A typical question I have my clients ask is, “Holy Spirit, is my body mad at me?”

Sometimes the client hears “no” or is uncomfortable asking this question. If so, they can say, “Holy Spirit, am I mad at my body?”

The next step in applying bodywork is to 2) clarify the need. This allows the Sozoee to gain more information about the pain or sickness in a person’s body. Typically, I have my clients ask questions like, “Holy Spirit, why is my body mad at me?” or “Holy Spirit, why am I mad at my body?”

Once God reveals to the Sozoee why their body is mad at them, or why they are mad at their body, they can move on to the final phase: 3) forgiveness.

To complete this step, simply have the client pray, “Holy Spirit, I ask my body to forgive me for not giving it adequate rest . I ask my body to release me from any anger it has towards me in Jesus’s Name.” (If the Holy Spirit leads you in another way to pray, of course follow His lead. This is just a sample prayer.)

If Holy Spirit revealed to the client that they were mad at their own body, you can have them say, “I forgive my body for failing me. I release any bitterness I have towards my self. Holy Spirit, please release me from this feeling of self-hate.” 

Once the client is finished releasing forgiveness, have them test out their bodies or try something they couldn’t do before.

Sometimes healing is instantaneous. Other times it takes days or even weeks. Sometimes a person will hear an encouraging response or feel a shift in their mood and say, “My body forgives me and wants me to promise to start taking care of it.” 

And that’s it. We have found bodywork can sometimes be used with Divine Editing when the body’s normal is to be always sick or in pain. Bodywork can also be used in generational prayers if the client’s family has been plagued by the same ailments over and over again.

If you’re interested in learning more about bodywork or any other Sozo tools, check out our Advanced Sozo Training (Part 1) with Dawna De Silva and Yvonne Martinez.

Displacing Generational Spirits

Using the blood of Jesus to break free from demonic influences.

Generational spirits are one of many issues we work through in the inner healing/deliverance world.

But what are generational spirits?

Generational spirits are evil spirits or influences that have been handed down through several generations.

A grandparent, for instance, may have partnered with a spirit of fear. This spirit may have been passed down to their children or grandchildren through repetition, partnership with sin, or just unconscious acceptance of it.

Generational issues do not necessarily always mean demonic spirits. They can simply be ungodly mindsets, influences, or beliefs that have been handed down through the family line.

No matter which type of generational influences you are facing, the goal is to identify their presence, renounce partnership with them, and replace them with God’s truth.

Breaking Free from Generational Spirits

Although the name itself signifies these influences have been around for some time, generational spirits are not any more difficult to get rid of than any other inner healing issues.

These spirits are powerless against the blood of Jesus. Just like any other attack from the enemy, they can easily be removed through application of God’s Word, prayer, and repentance.

Identification and Renunciation

Breaking free from generational spirits follows a simple process.

The goal with these steps is to identify the sin or demonic activity and then walk this person through repentance and forgiveness so they can apply God’s truth to their life.

To work through this simple process, follow these 5 easy steps:

  1. Identify — First, discern the lie or evil spirit. Remember that a generational issue can be an ungodly mindset you learned from your parents or grandparents or an actual demonic spirit you have partnered with. Say, “Holy Spirit, are there any generational influences affecting me or demonic spirits my family has partnered with?” Write down what He says, and remember… this process should not be scary. All you are doing right now is getting information.

  2. Forgive others — Ask the Holy Spirit who you need to forgive. Ask Him who opened a door to this demonic influence, then verbally forgive any family members or friends He brings to mind. Perhaps your mother or father partnered with a lie that opened a door to alcoholism or substance abuse? Maybe a grandparent partnered with shame, and this feeling has been in your family line ever since. If you’re not sure who to forgive, ask the Lord for His insight. Realize that you don’t need to forgive every single family member who ever existed. Simply work through those God has shown you. Once you’re ready to forgive, say, “Holy Spirit, I choose to forgive [my father, grandmother, aunt] for opening a door to this generational sin or influence.”

  3. Forgive yourself — Next, ask the Lord to forgive you. Chances are you have made some agreements with this generational spirit, even if that means you unknowingly partnered with it. Once you’re ready to begin, say, “Holy Spirit, I ask You to forgive me for partnering with [fear, guilt, or shame]. I release any and all bitterness against myself to You in Jesus’s Name.”

  4. Renounce — In this step, you command the spirit to leave. This is where you sever ties with the enemy once and for all and declare, “I see you, [fear, shame, guilt], and I’m not going to partner with you. I send you back in Jesus’ Name.”

  5. Replace — This is the last and most important step. Scripture shows we shouldn’t leave a space empty that was once inhabited by the enemy (see Matthew 12:43-45). Get alone with God when you’re ready and ask Him, “Lord, what truth do you want to put in place of this demonic influence or lie?”

When you hear the Lord’s truth, thank Him for His wisdom and think about how you can apply this revelation to your life.

Science tells us that it takes about 60 days to create new pathways in our brains for “default” truths. So whatever the Lord reveals, be faithful and apply this wisdom to your life. Don’t just leave His truths to rust away in your prayer journal. Activate them. Remind yourself daily of His truth and speak it out over your life.

If you know more about the Sozo Ministry or wish to even schedule your own Sozo session, check out our Basic Sozo Training: