We're exploring the Interior Castle, Sixth Mansions Chapter 3, in part 1 of this two-part podcast on locutions. Locutions means "to speak". God speaks to us in many ways. How do we know what is being spoken to us by God, or soul making up fantasies, or the devil? Saint Teresa instructs us on these supernatural experiences from her classic manuscript on prayer.
Timeline: 00:00:00 Opener 00:01:47 Welcome 00:04:26 Intro Sixth Mansions Chapter 3 00:05:50 Locution vs. Prophecy 00:07:04 1. Locutions. 00:15:40 2. Sometimes caused by melancholia. 00:19:05 3. Caution needed at first. 00:23:11 4. Locutions frequently occur during prayer. 00:27:44 5. Resist those containing false doctrine. 00:36:35 6. First sign of genuine locutions. 00:37:05 7. Effect of the words: ‘Be not troubled.’ 00:42:49 8. ‘It is I, be not afraid.’ 00:44:54 9. ‘Be at Peace.’ 00:45:20 10. Second sign. 00:48:43 11. Third sign. 00:53:41 12. The devil suggests doubts about true locutions. 00:56:41 13. Confidence of the soul rewarded. 00:58:41 14. Its joy at seeing God’s words verified. 00:59:54 15. Its zeal for God’s honor. 01:01:23 Conclusion
In our epic 100th episode of Tales of Glory, Shift happens! We welcome Meagan and Abby from the podcast The Shift. Yes, you read that right; we have guests! We dive into conversations on "Practicing His Presence" and what our personal interior prayer life walks with Jesus look like—lots of spiritual wisdom from our guests in learning to hear from God. We share stories from early spiritual development. We'll glean great spiritual direction from two outstanding ministers passionate about pulling souls from dark places.
Words That Work - mentioned in the podcast for street ministry.
Till Next Time
I hope you enjoyed our guests! It was an amazing time and I am grateful for Abby and Meagan being on the podcast. Have questions? Ask in the comments below or over on our Facebook page - A Field Guide to Spiritual Warfare.
In Tales of Glory Episode 72, we dive back into mystical theology with Saint Teresa of Avila's Interior Castle - Sixth Mansion chapter 3. Saint Teresa explains to us the three ways our soul hears internally. How do we learn to hear from God and know it's God's voice speaking to us? What do we do when we get bad spiritual direction from leaders who don't understand the supernatural? We cover this and more in this episode of Tales of Glory.
14. And certainly the affliction to be borne is great, and caution is
necessary, particularly in the case of women,—for our weakness is great,—and
much evil may be the result of telling them very distinctly that the devil is
busy with them; yea, rather, the matter should be very carefully considered,
and they should be removed out of reach of the dangers that may arise. They
should be advised to keep things secret; and it is necessary, also, that their
secret should be kept. I am speaking of this as one to whom it has been a sore
trouble; for some of those with whom I spoke of my prayer did not keep my
secret, but, making inquiries one of another, for a good purpose, did me much
harm; for they made things known which might well have remained secret, because
not intended for every one and it seemed as if I had made them public myself.
13. Locutions that come from Satan not only do not leave any
good effects behind, but do leave evil effects. This has happened to me; but
not more than two or three times. Our Lord warned me at once that they came
from Satan. Over and above the great aridity which remains in the soul after
these evil locutions, there is also a certain disquiet, such as I have had on
many other occasions, when, by our Lord's permission, I fell into great
temptations and travail of soul in diverse ways; and though I am in trouble
often enough, as I shall show hereafter,366 yet this disquiet is such that I know
not whence it comes; only the soul seems to resist, is troubled and distressed,
without knowing why; for the words of Satan are good, and not evil. I am
thinking whether this may not be so because one spirit is conscious of the
presence of another.
18. Nevertheless, Satan has many devices; and so there is
nothing more certain than that it is safer to be afraid, and always on our
guard, under a learned director, from whom nothing is concealed. If we do this,
no harm can befall us, though much has befallen me through the excessive fears
which possessed some people. For instance, it happened so once to me, when many
persons in whom I had great confidence, and with good reason, had assembled
together,—five or six in number, I think,—and all very great servants of God.
It is true, my relations were with one of them only; but by his orders made my
state known to the others. They had many conferences together about my
necessities; for they had great affection for me, and were afraid I was under a
delusion. I, too, was very much afraid whenever I was not occupied in prayer;
but when I prayed, and our Lord bestowedHis graces upon me, I was instantly reassured. My confessor told me they
were all of opinion that I was deceived by Satan; that I must communicate less
frequently, and contrive to distract myself in such a way as to be
less alone.
6. Whenever our Lord commanded me to do one thing in prayer,
and if my confessor forbade it, our Lord Himself told me to obey my confessor.
His Majesty afterwards would change the mind of that confessor, so that he
would have me do what he had forbidden before. When we were deprived of many
books written in Spanish, and forbidden to read them,—I felt it deeply, for
some of these books were a great comfort to me, and I could not read them in
Latin,—our Lord said to me, "Be not troubled; I will give thee a living
book." I could not understand why this was said to me, for at that time I
had never had a vision.[8]383
But, a very few days afterwards, I understood it well enough; for I had so much
to think of, and such reasons for self-recollection in what I saw before me and
our Lord dealt so lovingly with me, in teaching me in so many ways, that I had
little or no need whatever of books. His Majesty has been to me a veritable
Book, in which I saw all truth. Blessed be such a Book, which leaves behind an
impression of what is read therein, and in such a way that it cannot
be forgotten!
17. On other occasions, if our Lord spoke to me but one word, saying only,
"Be not distressed, have no fear,"—as I said before,456—I
was made whole at once; or, if I saw a vision, I was as if I had never been
amiss. I rejoiced in God, and made my complaint to Him, because He permitted me
to undergo such afflictions; yet the recompense was great; for almost always,
afterwards, His mercies descended upon me in great abundance. The soul seemed
to come forth as gold out of the crucible, most refined, and made glorious to
behold, our Lord dwelling within it. These trials afterwards are light, though
they once seemed to be unendurable; and the soul longs to undergo them again,
if that be more pleasing to our Lord. And though trials and persecutions
increase, yet, if we bear them without offending our Lord, rejoicing in
suffering for His sake, it will be all the greater gain: I, however, do not
bear them as they ought to be borne, but rather in a most imperfect way. At
other times, my trials came upon me—they come still—in another form; and then
it seems to me as if the very possibility of thinking a good thought, 267 or desiring the accomplishment of it, were utterly taken
from me: both soul and body are altogether useless and a heavy burden. However,
when I am in this state, I do not suffer from the other temptations and
disquietudes, but only from a certain loathing of I know not what, and my soul
finds pleasure in nothing.
244Life,
ch. xxv. 22; xxxiii. 10. Rel. vii. 22. St. John of the Cross, Ascent of Mount
Carmel, bk. ii. ch. xxxi. 1.
Life, ch. xxv. 22
22. O my Lord, how true a friend art Thou! how powerful! Thou showest Thy
power when Thou wilt; and Thou dost will it always, if only we will it also.
Let the whole creation praise Thee, O Thou Lord of the world! Oh, that a voice
might go forth over all the earth, proclaiming Thy faithfulness to those who
love Thee! All things fail; but Thou, Lord of all, never failest! They who love
Thee, oh, how little they have to suffer! oh, how gently, how tenderly, how
sweetly Thou, O my Lord, dealest with them! Oh, that no one had ever been
occupied with any other love than Thine! It seems as if Thou didst subject
those who love Thee to a severe trial: but it is in order that they may learn,
in the depths of that trial, the depths of Thy love. O my God, oh, that I had
understanding and learning, and a new language, in order to magnify Thy works,
according to the knowledge of them which my soul possesses! Everything fails
me, O my Lord; but if Thou wilt not abandon me, I will never fail Thee. Let all
the learned rise up against me,—let the wholecreation persecute me,—let the evil spirits torment me,—but do Thou, O
Lord, fail me not; for I know by experience now the blessedness of that
deliverance which Thou dost effect for those who trust only in Thee. In this
distress,—for then I had never had a single vision,—these Thy words alone were
enough to remove it, and give me perfect peace: "Be not afraid, my
daughter: it is I; and I will not abandon thee. Fear not."
Life, xxxiii. 10.
10. One day, when in great distress, because I thought my confessor did not
trust me, our Lord said to me, Be not troubled; this suffering will soon be
over. I was very much delighted, thinking I should die shortly; and I was very
happy whenever I recalled those words to remembrance. Afterwards I saw clearly
that they referred to the coming of the rector of whom I am speaking, for never
again had I any reason to be distressed. The rector that came never interfered
with the father-minister who was my confessor. On the contrary, he told him to
console me,—that there was nothing to be afraid of,—and not to direct me along
a road so narrow, but to leave the operations of the Spirit of God alone; for
now and then it seemed as if these great impetuosities of the spirit took away
the very breath of the soul.
7. One day, when I was very earnestly commending the matter
to God, our Lord told me that I must by no means give up my purpose of founding
the monastery in poverty; it was His will, and the will of His Father: He would
help me. I was in a trance; and the effects were such, that I could have no
doubt it came from God. On another occasion, He said to me that endowments bred
confusion, with other things in praise of poverty; and assured me that
whosoever served Him would never be in want of the necessary means of living:
and this want, as I have said,517
I never feared myself. Our Lord changed the dispositions also of the
licentiate,—I am speaking of the Dominican friar,518—who,
as I said, wrote to me that I should not found the monastery without an
endowment. Now, I was in the greatest joy at hearing this; and having these
opinions in my favour, it seemed to me nothing less than the possession of all
the wealth of the world, when I had resolved to live in poverty for the love
of God.
23. It seems to me that, in the state I was in then, many hours would have
been necessary to calm me, and that no one could have done it. Yet I found
myself, through these words alone, tranquil and strong, courageous and
confident, at rest and enlightened; in a moment, my soul seemed changed, and I
felt I could maintain against all the world that my prayer was the work of God.
Oh, how good is God! how good is our Lord, and how powerful! He gives not
counsel only, but relief as well. His words are deeds. O my God! as He
strengthens our faith, love grows. So it is, in truth; for I used frequently to
recollect how our Lord, when the tempest arose, commanded the winds to be still
over the sea.371
So I said to myself: Who is He, that all my faculties should thus obey Him? Who
is He, that gives light in such darkness in a moment; who softens a heart that
seemed to be made of stone; who gives the waters of sweet tears, where for a
long time great dryness seems to have prevailed; who inspires these desires;
who bestows this courage? What have I been thinking of? what am I afraid of?
what is it? I desire to serve this my Lord; I aim at nothing else but His
pleasure; I seek no joy, no rest, no other good than that of doing His will. I
was so confident that I had no other desire, that I could safely
assert it.
24. Seeing, then, that our Lord is so powerful,—as I see and know He is,—and
that the evil spirits are His slaves, of which there can be no doubt, because
it is of faith,—and I a servant of this our Lord and King,—what harm can Satan
do unto me? Why have I not strength enough to fight against all hell? I took up
the cross in my hand,—I was changed in a moment into another person, and it
seemed as if God had really given me courage enough not to be afraid of
encountering all the evil spirits. It seemed to me that I could, with the
cross, easily defeat them altogether. So I cried out, Come on, all of you; I am
the servant of our Lord: I should like to see what you can do against me.
25. And certainly they seemed to be afraid of me, for I was left in peace: I
feared them so little, that the terrors, which until now oppressed me, quitted
me altogether; and though I saw them occasionally,—I shall speak of this by and
by,372—I
was never again afraid of them—on the contrary, they seemed to be afraid of me.373
I found myself endowed with a certain authority over them, given me by the Lord
of all, so that I cared no more for them than for flies. They seem to be such
cowards; for their strength fails them at the sight of any one who despises
them. These enemies have not the courage to assail any but those whom they see
ready to give in to them, or when God permits them to do so, for the greater
good of His servants, whom they may try and torment.
3. I should like to explain the delusions which may happen
here, though he who has had much experience will run little or no risk, I
think; but the experience must be great. I should like to explain also how
those locutions which come from the Good Spirit differ from those which come
from an evil spirit; and, further, how they may be but an apprehension of the
understanding,—for that is possible,—or even words which the mind addressed to
itself. I do not know if it be so but even this very day I thought it possible.
I know by experience in many ways, when these locutions come from God. I have
been told things two or three years beforehand, which have all come to pass;
and in none of them have I been hitherto deceived. There are also other things
in which the Spirit of God may be clearly traced, as I shall relate by
and by.
10. There is no reason, therefore, why I should dwell longer
on this matter. It is a wonder to me that any experienced person, unless he
deliberately chooses to do so, can fall into delusions. It has often happened
to me, when I had doubts, to distrust what I had heard, and to think that it
was all imagination,—but this I did afterwards: for at the moment that is
impossible,—and at a later time to see the whole fulfilled; for our Lord makes
the words dwell in the memory so that they cannot be forgotten. Now, that which
comes forth from our understanding is, as it were, the first movement of
thought, which passes away and is forgotten; but the divine locution is a work
done; and though some of it may be forgotten, and time have lapsed, yet is not
so wholly forgotten that the memory loses all traces of what was once
spoken,—unless, indeed, after very long time, or unless the locution were words
of grace or of instruction. But as to prophetic words, they are never 210 forgotten, in my opinion; at least, I have never forgotten
any,—and yet my memory is weak.
10. There is no reason, therefore, why I should dwell longer
on this matter. It is a wonder to me that any experienced person, unless he
deliberately chooses to do so, can fall into delusions. It has often happened
to me, when I had doubts, to distrust what I had heard, and to think that it
was all imagination,—but this I did afterwards: for at the moment that is
impossible,—and at a later time to see the whole fulfilled; for our Lord makes
the words dwell in the memory so that they cannot be forgotten. Now, that which
comes forth from our understanding is, as it were, the first movement of
thought, which passes away and is forgotten; but the divine locution is a work
done; and though some of it may be forgotten, and time have lapsed, yet is not
so wholly forgotten that the memory loses all traces of what was once
spoken,—unless, indeed, after very long time, or unless the locution were words
of grace or of instruction. But as to prophetic words, they are never 210 forgotten, in my opinion; at least, I have never forgotten
any,—and yet my memory is weak.
Till Next Time
Any questions feel free to ask in the comments below. There is also the Facebook page, A Field Guide to Spiritual Warfare. Come check us out there and leave comments or ask questions. If you like the podcast, let a friend know. Next episode, we will complete the Sixth Mansion Chapter 3 (part 2).
Welcome to Tales of Glory Episode 65, where we do some Q&A from the M16 Ministries Outreach training material. I have received your questions asking what it means to fast and go deeper with Jesus. We will examine examples from Ruth 4, Daniel 1, Daniel 9, Daniel 10, Luke 4, and Mark 9. When and how should I fast for intimacy with Jesus or spiritual warfare? What is the difference? What should I expect when I fast? I will cover these fascinating topics. I will also answer a question from a listener about my stories on the "Holy Spirit Underground."
Thank you for tuning in. If you have any questions, please leave them in the comments below. If you would like to bless us and help us produce content, feel free to use the donation but on the right-hand side of your browser. Till next time!
Tales of Glory Episode 63 - Report to Night Strike Outreach Bootcamp! Today we discuss the basic training of praying for healing on the streets. Do you know the spiritual authority you walk in? Where in the Bible does it say I can command sickness to leave? Learn how to pray on the streets and command sickness to leave! Find out how the Holy Spirit will teach you to walk in your authority over infirmities.
Jesus wants you to be a healer!
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-Apple Podcasts link coming soon. Waiting for upload synch
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Show Notes
You can now get a copy of the workbook and follow along on Tales of Glory.
Available now as a digital download from ETSY! $1.99
Thank you for tuning into the show! If you have any questions feel free
to ask in the comments. You can also ask on Facebook on the A Field
Guide to Spiritual Warfare page. God Bless Rev. Mike
Tales of Glory Episode 61 - Report to Night Strike Outreach Bootcamp! Today we discuss the basic training of prophetic outreach etiquette. Sometimes ministry may require that we operate covertly. Learn how to "read the room" spiritually. What is a culturally effective way to minister on the streets? How will people receive you? What do you do when someone puts up a wall and doesn't want to receive it anymore? Learn what a religious cow is and why you need to BBQ it. We're taking it back to the streets!
Listen to the Podcast on Anchor.fm
Watch the Podcast on Spotify
Listen to the Podcast on Apple Podcasts
Watch the Podcast on Youtube
Watch the Podcast on Rumble
Show Notes
You can now get a copy of the workbook and follow along on Tales of Glory.
Available now as a digital download from ETSY! $1.99
Here is the book some people were asking about, Guide to Meditation for Children. It's out of print. It's a great book for teaching Christian contemplative prayer. I see these show up on occassion over at Thriftbooks.com.
Till Next Time
Thank you for tuning into the show! If you have any questions feel free to ask in the comments. You can also ask on Facebook on the A Field Guide to Spiritual Warfare page. God Bless Rev. Mike
Tales of Glory Episode 59 - Report to Night Strike Outreach Bootcamp! Today we discuss the basic training of hearing God. The critical component of ministering on the streets or doing outreach events requires the ability to hear from God. Did you know that God speaks to us? Did you know that you can have a conversation with God? First, we'll look at scripture and what is Biblical in hearing from God. Then we'll examine how Jesus speaks to you. How Jesus speaks to me and how He speaks to you can be completely different. Learn the beginning steps in hearing God during your prayer. Then take it to the streets!
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Watch the Podcast on Spotify
Listen o the Podcast on Apple Podcasts
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Show Notes
The thumbnail for episode 59 was made from a photo that was taken at a New Age expo - many, many, many years ago. Yes, it was long ago, perhaps 2009.
I shared the testimony about how God had me draw a Pegasus and what resulted from this drawing.
You can now get a copy of the workbook and follow along on Tales of Glory.
Available now as a digital download from ETSY! $1.99
Thank for stopping by. Any questions on this subject matter feel free to leave a comment or go the A Field Guie to Spiritual Warfare Facebook page and leave comments and questions.
Welcome to Tales of Glory Episode 54. It's a Q&A Fireside chat edition where we answer a listener's question on what is an imaginary vision. First, I cover the basics of visions in the Bible and then work up to Saint Teresa of Avila's discussions in mystical theology. Some exciting material is covered in this episode. So pull up your chair by the fire, grab your favorite beverage, and let's chat by the fire - Holy Spirit's fire!
Thank you for stopping by! If you have any questions, ask - it may end up as a podcast episode. I still have work to do on Exodus 6, Saint Teresa Interior Castle Sixth Mansions Ch1 Part 2, and some Fireside Chat topics to cover. As the Holy Spirit leads, we'll see what surfaces for episode 55. I hope you enjoy the material and it enriches your spiritual walk.
Welcome to episode 31! In this podcast, we dive back into my book, A Field Guide to Advanced Spiritual Warfare - Chapter 07. Our topic is hearing God and prophetic ministry in spiritual warfare and supernatural ministry. An exciting subject matter for me, I reflect on my history of learning to hear God and developing my prophetic ministry. I have been to some crazy places and had interesting supernatural experiences that I glean from in presenting this topic. We'll discuss how you can learn to hear from God. ! will also discuss beginning prophetic ministry to advanced topics of ministry etiquette. And we answer some interesting questions along the way. Pull up your easy chair by the fire. Get yourself a beverage, kick back and enjoy some quality time with the Holy Spirit.
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Show Notes
Already correcting myself, I fumbled the scripture of the lying spirits in the podcast as 2 Samuel. At time = 49:05 minutes.
Whoops.
1 Kings 22:19-22 (ESV)
19 And Micaiah said, “Therefore hear the word of the Lord: I saw the Lord sitting on his throne, and all the host of heaven standing beside him on his right hand and on his left;
20 and the Lord said, ‘Who will entice Ahab, that he may go up and fall at Ramoth-gilead?’ And one said one thing, and another said another.
21 Then a spirit came forward and stood before the Lord, saying, ‘I will entice him.’
22 And the Lord said to him, ‘By what means?’ And he said, ‘I will go out, and will be a lying spirit in the mouth of all his prophets.’ And he said, ‘You are to entice him, and you shall succeed; go out and do so.’
I
frequently discuss why we shouldn’t go outside our domain of authority
and talk to angels, or try to put ourselves in the throne room of
heaven. Do you know why? The modern church's view of angelology and
demonology is wrong. It is not what Elijah, Ezekiel, and the saints
believed. Where did the Apostle Paul get his language and context from
Ephesians 6:12? It is not a choir of angels. They’re not even angels. An
angel is specifically a messenger sent by God for a task. These bad
guys in Ephesians 6:12 are divine spiritual beings - not messengers.
Did you know that demons are not fallen angels? Get the book! Highly
recommended for the Tales of Glory audience!
Get a copy of THE book you need in your training library for spiritual warfare!
A Field Guide to Spiritual Warfare - the power to PULL the IMPOSSIBLE from the HEAVENLY REALM
was written by Michael Norton while he was a street minister on San
Francisco's Night Strike Homeless ministry under Bob Johnson. Michael
documents what he experienced and how the Holy Spirit trained him to
move in the Holy Spirit's empowerment during spiritual encounters. This
book is a must-read for anyone serious about entering into spiritual
warfare ministry. This book has been used as training material for
spiritual warfare for Teen Challenge and Cleansing Streams.
Back cover information on A Field Guide to Spiritual Warfare.
A Field Guide to Advanced Spiritual Warfare - Deliverance, Exorcism, and the Healing Effects of Ritual Abuse was
written by Michael in 2017, seven years after his first manuscript, A
Field Guide to Spiritual Warfare. This book delves deeper into the
question of the difference between deliverance and exorcism. Michael
reveals information on identifying and working with Satanic Ritual Abuse
and his work with numerous survivors. Another powerful book to pick up
for spiritual warfare training and counselors wanting to know about
handling these darker cases of fracturing and demonic possession.
YouTube Playlists to the M16 Ministries Training Series on Spiritual Warfare
Thank you for tuning in! Our next podcast, when we dive back into A
Field Guide for Advanced Spiritual Warfare, we'll dive into chapter 8!
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We're exploring the Interior Castle, Sixth Mansions Chapter 3, in part 1 of this two-part podcast on locutions. Locutions means "to speak". God speaks to us in many ways. How do we know what is being spoken to us by God, or soul making up fantasies, or the devil? Saint Teresa instructs us on these supernatural experiences from her classic manuscript on prayer.
