Back in February 2023, I asked Bethel’s Sunday Night audience to do a prophetic act, prompting, “Do any of you feel like you’ve been battling the enemy head-on and it’s wearing you out?”

A lot of people stood up.

I ended up leading the crowd in a prayer, which I’d like to go over now.

You see, spiritual warfare is done best when we battle from a position of authority.

When we fight the enemy on his own turf, we climb into the boxing ring and get blasted by returning fire. Why? Because we were never meant to face the enemy head-on. 

Our authority is given to us by Jesus, Who is seated with the Father in the heavenly realms (see Ephesians 1:20).

Stuck in the boxing ring

It’s tempting to get into ‘warfare’ mode when we see life’s storms raging around us. After all, we have to ‘shift the atmospheres,’ right?! Problems arise when we battle out of our own strength.

For instance, when I discern the influence of a demonic spirit, I don’t personally go to war with it. I simply identify its presence and refuse to allow its influence, declaring, “I see you [lust, hatred, jealousy, etc.]. I’m not partnering with you and I send you back.”

Once I walk through this process, I ask the Lord to reveal what He wants to put in its place.

Do you see how relaxing that is? I’m not speaking in tongues, rebuking demons, or closing spiritual doors. I’m just declaring, “I’m not partnering with you,” then releasing God’s opposite.

Stepping out of God’s covering

Many years ago, I hosted a Shifting Atmospheres Conference at Bethel. One of the attendees complained that she’d been under constant harassment for about six months.

When I asked her when the attacks had started, she confessed that they began after she’d interceded against a regional spirit in her area.

After hearing her story, I asked her, “Did God tell you to pray against this spirit?”

She said, “No.”

Voilà! No wonder she was under attack! She’d stepped out of her covering and tangled with a spirit that had regional authority.

Now, this doesn’t mean that the regional spirit had more authority than God. It simply meant that this woman had stepped out of her assignment and engaged with something she hadn’t been called to confront.

Conclusion

Overall, it’s important to be at peace. Spiritual warfare doesn’t have to be scary or complicated. As sons and daughters of the King, we get to rest in God’s authority and stay connected to His presence. He has a strategy to advance His Kingdom and rebuke darkness, and we must follow it.

Let’s pray:

“Father, forgive us for battling in our own strength. Return us to our heavenly position, where we are seated with You and can see from Your eternal perspective. Forgive us for stepping out of our authority and getting into the boxing ring with the enemy. Keep us in Your peace as we contend for breakthrough and advance Your Kingdom. Displace any and all attacks against me and my family. I ask this all in Jesus’ Name, amen.”

In my sermons, I talk a lot about shifting atmospheres, but rarely do I discuss atmospheres themselves. What are they?

Spiritual atmospheres are the invisible, heavenly forces that influence the physical world. They can be godly or ungodly, and affect the mood, actions, and even spiritual climate over a person or region. 

The Bible gives us insight into spiritual atmospheres in Ephesians 6:12, when Paul writes: “Our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the… spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms.” 

Paul reminds us that the physical realm is just one part of the story. There are unseen forces at play. To succeed in spiritual warfare, we need to discern what’s going on around us, and resist any demonic attacks.

Godly and Ungodly Atmospheres

Scripture tells us, “Where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom.” Not all atmospheres are evil. Godly atmospheres exist too, and these spaces are where the Lord’s truth resides.

But how can you tell if you’re encountering an atmosphere in the first place?

Have you ever walked into someone’s home and felt peace, or stepped into a church and felt God’s presence? Moments like these indicate a godly atmosphere has shifted your mood. These atmospheres invite the Lord to surround and refresh us in tangible ways.

On the flip side, ungodly atmospheres are inhabited by the demonic. These are areas filled with negative broadcasts being sent out over the airwaves. You can imagine these atmospheres as radio stations, spreading satanic messages all over the world. It’s important to recognize these demonic signals so we can reject their influence.

Sensitivity to the Spiritual Atmosphere 

Sometimes we discern the presence of an atmosphere, but don’t even realize it. How accurately we discern depends on our level of sensitivity to the spiritual atmosphere. But truth is, most Christians don’t even practice discernment. They just “pick up” whatever’s going on around them and receive it as their own. 

For example, if a young man, struggling with impure thoughts, walks into a sexually-charged atmosphere, he’s going to be bombarded with sexual images. If he’s untrained in how to discern spiritual atmospheres, he’ll think these broadcasts are his own and act on them.

Discerning Spiritual Atmospheres

Whenever I travel, I take inventory of how I feel before and after I get off each plane. I do this because I want to practice discerning spiritual atmospheres. I want to partner with local churches and renounce the enemy’s influence in that area.

But what do you do if you don’t have a gift of discernment?

The Bible tells us in 1 Corinthians 12:10 that God gives us different gifts, but that doesn’t mean we shouldn’t practice them. Paul writes: some can perform miracles, others can prophesy, and some have the gift of discerning whether a message comes from the Spirit of God or another spirit. 

But here’s the key: no matter what gifts you possess, discernment is a must-have weapon! Hebrews 5:14 tells us that mature believers are trained to distinguish good from evil. If we can’t discern right or wrong, we’ll be easily swayed by the demonic.

Shifting Atmospheres is the process of discerning and displacing the spiritual forces around you. It’s a powerful concept that allows you to use discernment to “read” what’s going on in the spiritual realm. I cover this extensively in my shifting atmospheres book. 

Now, when I say atmosphere, I’m not talking about the weather: rain, heat, or snow. I’m referring to the spiritual climate that influences people, cities, and even nations. 

This idea of atmospheres popped into my brain after studying the book of Ephesians. The apostle Paul gives incredible insight into how the demonic operates. He writes:

“For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this age, against spiritual hosts of wickedness in the heavenly places” (Ephesians 6:12 NKJV).

Paul tells us our battle is not with other people. It’s against spiritual forces: principalities, powers, rulers, and hosts of wickedness. Think about it like this…

Changing the channel

… demonic principalities are like radio stations, broadcasting negative messages all over the world. Each entity has its own assignment and territory. But here’s the good news—we have the power through Jesus to shift these atmospheres!

Here’s a true story: years ago, I led a Shifting Atmospheres conference on the east coast. There was a climate of suicide over the region.

Throughout the town, teenagers were killing themselves as part of suicide pacts. It even crept into the church and harmed some Christian families. 

Once my team and I got to the region, we partnered with a local church and asked God to shift the atmosphere from death to life. When we checked back in with the church months later, we discovered that the suicides had stopped! Praise God.

How to Shift Atmospheres

The best way to excel at shifting atmospheres is to hone your gift of discernment. Scripture tells us that “solid food is for the mature,” so practice, and you’ll become a pro.

You can level up your skill of discernment by partnering with others who have a stronger gifting than you. These accountability partners can be your spouse, but I personally recommend asking a friend. You don’t want to bring too many heavy, spiritual topics into your marriage. 

In my case, I practiced with my friends, Teresa Liebscher and Debbie Roberts. On mornings when we’d meet, I’d mention my thoughts, and they’d confirm or deny what I was sensing. Sometimes I was on the mark. Other times, I was completely off. It was great training.

It’s okay to practice

It’s easy to feel pressure when trying to hear the Lord, but don’t give yourself unnecessary stress. Follow the Holy Spirit’s prompting to your best ability, and don’t beat yourself up when you’re wrong.

Last month, I was asked to talk about what was going on in the atmosphere. It really was a crazy time.

I remember one morning being on a Zoom call with my bookkeeper, getting texts from my sister about our dad — who was in the hospital — and then getting calls from my assistant, who needed help with payroll.

My bookkeeper needed to access our systems, but the verification codes were going to Stephen! I had five things going on at once, and I felt myself descending into a frantic mode. 

When I got off the phone, I was almost in tears.

That night, Stephen asked, “Are you okay? You seem shaken.” Right then, I realized I’d been partnering with a spirit of frenzy. It had been in the atmosphere, and I’d fallen for it hook, line, and sinker.

Symptoms of frenzy

From what I’ve discerned, here are the signs I recognize about frenzy:

1) You’ll know you’re experiencing frenzy by how it affects your body and mind.

2) Your brain shuts down.

3) What normally seems easy to accomplish feels impossible.

4) It creates a fight or flight scenario in your mind.

5) Your body might even physically shake.

At the core of these attacks is stress. You feel like throwing in the towel and giving up. 

If you recognize any of these symptoms, declare, “I see you, frenzy. I do not partner with you. I send you back in Jesus’ Name.”

Next, speak to your body. Say, “Body, mind, and spirit, I release peace to you. You don’t have to take on this atmosphere. You don’t have to take on the chaos that’s going on.” 

Yes, you might have a lot happening in your life, but that doesn’t mean you have to come under its influence. Think about Jesus, Who slept during the storm. That’s a power we have access to.

I speak peace to your soul, spirit, and mind and body. I declare peace into the storms surrounding you. I Thank You, Lord, that You’re not in a hurry. I ask that everything You have for us will arrive in Your perfect timing. Thank You that we don’t have to bow to the tyranny of the urgent. I pray this all, in Jesus’ Name, amen.

In the spiritual realm, boundaries are often blurred. We may not always discern what belongs to us and what doesn’t. Or, we may recognize what’s not ours, yet struggle to cancel its influence.

Imagine it like tuning into a radio station. There are broadcasts everywhere. God speaks consistently, affirming His goodness and our capability. On the opposite end, you have the enemy–whispering doubt and discouragement.

Understanding the enemy’s broadcasts isn’t about tuning into its frequency and agreeing with it. Our strategy is about recognizing Satan’s tactics, so we can counteract them by releasing God’s truth into every situation.

Sometimes the enemy broadcasts a lie or message over an entire region. How do you protect yourself from it?

During the inaugural Shifting Atmospheres conference in Delaware, my team and I targeted the prevalent issue of suicide impacting the region. The gravity of the situation was palpable—children as young as 11 or 12 were taking their own lives, as part of suicide pacts.

Even inside the church, families were being destroyed. The school in this area refused to let church members come in for prayer, so the ministry team remained outside and prayed for breakthrough. But the feelings of despair didn’t lift.

When my team and I arrived, we taught on Shifting Atmospheres and ended with a powerful declaration of life over the region. We prayed 2 Chronicles 7:14 and repented on behalf of anyone who had spoken death over the region. Even church members repented for playing any part in this spirit which was perpetuating violence.

Once we did the prayer, the transformation was astounding. Suicide, once rampant in the area, ceased entirely. My own son played a song breaking the stronghold of suicide and the church experienced a tangible shift in the region’s spiritual climate.

We monitored the statistics after our visit and confirmed the miracle. Suicide completely vanished from the city, and was replaced by hope.

But how do I know if it’s me?

It’s hard to know if an issue you’re struggling with is your own sin or an attack from the enemy. But the best way to learn is to identify what I call your normal. 

Your normal is your typical thought process you have each day. Understanding how you act and think on a regular basis can help you identify random, out-of-left-field moments when the enemy tries to infect you with his lies. 

You can also identify a demonic attack by working with the Holy Spirit to cleanse your heart. The more clean you are on the inside, the easier it is to reflect Jesus’ ways and resist the enemy. 

Today, when I recognize thoughts that don’t align with my normal, I know they’re not coming from myself. I discern that there’s a demonic broadcast, and I refuse to partner with it.

Here’s an example: years ago, while boarding a plane, I noticed a Jewish passenger, wearing a yarmulke. I instantly thought: Who does he think he is, wearing that hat? 

I immediately identified that this wasn’t from me, because I don’t carry a bias toward Jewish people. I had picked up a spiritual broadcast of antisemitism on the plane. So I called it out and sent it back. 

Whenever I feel sinful issues like anger, perversion, or hopelessness stirring within, I assess: Is this from my soul, spirit, or an external attack? 

Each morning, I gauge my emotions: am I joyful, peaceful, excited? Whatever my normal is, that’s my baseline. I check myself at the door when I leave home and when I return, asking myself, Am I still rooted in God’s truth?