Midweek Faith Lift
October 7, 2026
“The Holy Scream: Wailing and
The Awakening of the Twelve Powers!”
Su Podraza-Nagle, LUT
Good morning, everyone and special blessings to those online, with us today. We’re so glad you chose to be with us this morning!
Today is Pet Blessing Sunday and Susan read a wonderful reading honoring all pets, and those in animal shelters, rehab centers and all or our wonderful fur-babies who have walked over the rainbow bridge.
Today’s talk is going to be energetic and participatory. We are going to release and move some energy. It may be a little different than what the typical lessons sound like. And it will be fun!
I first got the nudge from Spirit during Ministerial Summer residency at Unity Village. I would like to say, I wrestled with this one. Guess who won? Let’s get into it, shall we?
Friends, there are times when a whisper is not enough.
There are times when a polite prayer will not carry what is buried in the soul.
There are times when the heart has been holding too much, broken too many times, the mind has been carrying too much, the body has remembered too much, and something inside you needs to CRY OUT!
When we look for passages in that book of books that reflect the pent-up energies, we find:
In Hebrews, it tells us that Jesus offered prayers “with strong crying and tears” (Hebrews 5:7).
The psalmist declares:
“I cry aloud to the LORD, and he answers me from his holy hill.”
—Psalm 3:4, SBL
And Psalm 34:17 says:
“When the righteous cry for help, the LORD hears and rescues them from all their troubles.” SBL
Do you hear that? Strong crying and tears! Crying aloud!
Not always whisper, not sitting quietly. We cry! We wail!
We don't always sit quietly.
Sometimes the deepest and loudest prayer that can come out of a human being is:
“GOD! HELP ME!”
And Divine Principle is not offended by the sound.
The Bible knows about the holy scream.
When Jesus encountered what Scripture calls an “unclean spirit,” the spirit cried out. In Mark 1:26 it says:
“And the unclean spirit convulsing him and crying with a loud voice, came out of him.”
Luke 4:35 says:
“But Jesus rebuked him, saying, “Be quiet and come out of him!” Then the demon, throwing the man down before them, came out of him without doing him any harm.
And when Jesus called Lazarus from the tomb, He didn’t whisper.
John 11:43 says:
He cried with a loud voice, “Lazarus, come out!”
A loud voice!
We students of truth know the power and energy behind the spoken word.
And somebody needs to hear this today:
You are able to stand at the entrance of the tomb of an old belief and say: Come out demon and unclean spirit! Loudly! With feeling and energy!
But what is a demon or unclean spirit?
In Unity, it metaphysically means negative error thoughts, beliefs, or mental conditions such as selfishness, fear, ignorance, misplaced belief, or malice that block and distort a person's awareness of their divine oneness.
Charles Fillmore taught that evil is not a separate power competing with God but is connected with ignorance of our true spiritual identity.
So when we say:
“Cast out!” We are not talking about attacking another person. We are not declaring war on somebody. We are not saying that a person with emotional or physical suffering is possessed.
We are saying:
We no longer give divine authority to fear. We will no longer enthrone shame. We will no longer worship limitations. We will no longer let an old belief masquerade as Truth.
The question, then, becomes, what demon am I fighting?
The deeper Unity question becomes: What divine power am I failing to express?
Which of our 12 Powers which we sang about today are we not expressing?
Understanding? Release? Love? Wisdom?
A divine faculty being held back by our error thoughts or beliefs.
Today we're going to take the Twelve Powers and gather them into four great body regions.
And we're going to invite our body to become the sanctuary. We're going to let the voice become the prayer. And we're going to let the scream become an energetic announcement.
Just as in prayer, with affirmations and denials, we need to release the fear, shame, old beliefs before we can affirm what is our Truth.
As a warmup, loudly proclaim with me; I release and let go! I cast out!!!!
We will start at the top of our bodies with Faith at the center-brain area, Imagination between the eyes, Understanding in the front brain, Will in the center of the brain, and Zeal toward the back of the head at the medulla/base of the brain.
Some of us have been living under a mental fog. So put your hand gently over your head. Take a breath. And when you're ready, don't scream from your throat alone. Scream from your consciousness! If your not comfortable with a scream, pretend you’re a tiger and roar! Let it out! Clear your head!
We have our first Holy Scream. Clearing out the fog.
Let’s affirm these 5 Powers to focus our consciousness.
Faith: We are grounded, steady, and see the divine good in all situations. Imagination: Our mind is open to divine vision. Understanding: We know the truth of our spiritual nature, and our path is clear. Will: We willingly choose the path of love, integrity, and spiritual growth." Zeal: Divine energy flows through us, inspiring us to purposeful action."
Now move downward. Bring your awareness to the throat and heart.
Power, the root-of-tongue and voice center. Love, the area behind the heart.
What a combination! Because your Power must meet your Love. Power without love can become domination. Love without power can become passivity. But when Power and Love meet, the voice becomes healing.
Unity describes Power as self-mastery and the ability to direct thought, word, and action; Love is the power that unifies and harmonizes.
So put your hand on your heart. Then put your other hand near your throat.
And remember:
Your voice does not belong to fear, shame, silence, or old error thoughts.
And now, scream or roar that error energy out!!
Fear, shame, silence! You’re Outa here!!! Louder!
Feel the Divine faculty of Power move through you. Feel
Love, warm, the in between spaces.
Affirm: I am an expression of divine love. My words have the power to heal, bless, and create good. My voice is an instrument of Spirit.
Now we move into the center of the body. Here we gather Wisdom, Order, and Release.
Wisdom at the pit of the stomach, Order behind the navel, and Release, also called elimination, renunciation, or denial, in the abdominal region.
This is powerful territory. Because Wisdom asks, what is true? Order asks, what belongs where? Release asks, what are you still carrying?
Some of us have been carrying things that could have been released years ago.
Old conversations. Old arguments. Old identities. Old guilt. Old fear. Old versions of yourself. Think about that for a moment.
We don't have to carry everything we’ve survived. We don't have to make a shrine out of our suffering. We don't have to keep rehearsing the wound to prove that it happened. There comes a time when you stand over those old demons and say:
I release you! I cast you out! So, place your hand over your abdomen.
Breathe in and as you breathe out, Release, scream ROAR!!
I release you! I cast you out! Louder!!! Still want those old stories? No? Scream them out!
We sit with the liberation we feel as the gut unclenches, the abdomen relaxes and we affirm:
Divine wisdom guides my choices. My life is established in divine order. I freely release all thoughts, habits, and beliefs that no longer serve my highest good.
Lastly, we descend into the lower body. Here we gather the Powers of Strength and Life.
Strength is associated with the loins/small of the back. Power Life is associated with the generative/reproductive region.
This is where we may need to hear: You are alive and present to the Christ presence within!
You may have cried. You may have fallen. You may have been disappointed. You may have had seasons when you didn't know whether you could continue. But something in you kept breathing. Something in you kept moving. Something in you kept reaching toward morning. That's Life.
Unity describes Life as the divine capacity to energize and animate, and these powers are expressions of spiritual potential working through the whole being.
The Power of Strength is the inner spiritual faculty of steadfastness, stability, courage, and the capacity for endurance.
So put your awareness in your back.
Breathe into that small area of your back and release the scream of lack! Roar out disappointment! Again, those unclean spirits, those negative thoughts are being cast out! SCREAM!
Let’s affirm together:
Divine strength fills my body, mind, and spirit. I am resilient, balanced, and steadfast. The life of God vitalizes every cell of my being. I am radiant, healthy, energized, and eternally whole. There is life in me!
Beloveds, as you go about your days this week, I invite you to call out and bring into being, into the divine energy surrounding you, invite in your courage, your joy, your faith, and all the 12 Powers into your circle of energy.
Scream and cast out those unclean spirits, the negative error thoughts, beliefs, or mental conditions such as selfishness, fear, ignorance, misplaced beliefs, or malice that block and distort your awareness of your divine oneness.
Remember: We aren't screaming at God. We are screaming into consciousness. We are awakening what is already here, and releasing what no longer serves us.
And so it is.
Amen