Bob Neumann

Creating A Safe Place For Inner Healing Prayer Ministry
By: Bob Neumann

People’s tender hearts must feel safe around prayer ministers in order to them to be vulnerable, allowing the Holy Spirit to move. I am very careful to use a soft tone of voice. I try to connect with God’s heart and the person’s heart so they feel cared for and understood. I am not pushy. I don’t have to be loud or intense doing deliverance either. My authority is based on my position in Christ, not the volume of my voice.

It is important to respect people’s boundaries. We should ask people for permission before laying hands on them. I do not want to discuss sexual issues with someone of the opposite gender unless there is another person present of the same gender of the person receiving ministry.

There is often demonic activity connected to deep brokenness. The demons are not the root problem; the wound and accompanying lies are. If demons manifest, we have authority through Christ to bind and remove them. Demonic emotional strongholds are often rooted in unforgiveness and believing lies. If we cannot immediately stop the manifestation, take them to another room in order to maintain a safe environment for the rest to receive healing prayer.

A good question to ask during prayer is for the Holy Spirit to show who hurt the person and what specific things happened to them. God always gives the prayer recipient a memory he wants to deal with. The Holy Spirit leads in the healing process. As they forgive people for specific hurts, this breaks demonic strongholds of anger and bitterness. I will ask the Holy Spirit what lies they believed connected to this painful experience. The Holy Spirit will speak out the lies to the minister and the person receiving the ministry. We renounce the lies and the prayer minister should replace the lies with God’s truth as the Holy Spirit leads. It is often necessary to break word curses like: mistake, unwanted, rejected, nobody. I will ask God to bring to memory curses parents and others spoke over them. I lead them in forgiveness, we break ungodly soul ties and break the power of the curse. The power of life and death is in the tongue. (Prov 18:21)

We can lay hands on shoulders, foreheads, knees or feet. These are safe places to touch. It is good to show appropriate affection for the person receiving prayer if they are comfortable with it. Sometimes I will hug people (of my same gender) as I pray for them as I am led by the Spirit. I have seen this bear much fruit.

Expression of love releases healing and nurtures a broken heart. It is important to make people feel accepted. I like to speak blessing over the prayer recipient at the end of the ministry.