The Journey - Brandon Bays

Brandon Bays calls her book "The Journey," her therapeutic method - The Journey, and her web site is: www.thejourney.com.

My introduction to 'the Journey' came July 2004 with a meaningful session provided by David Liberto following Brandon Bays protocol.

In September, Helen Liberto sent me Brandon Bays book, The Journey, and both Adele and I enjoyed reading the fascinating encouraging account of one woman overcoming a large tumour by finding the emotional root of it and deflating its' power. Within six weeks medical tests indicated that her organs were in perfect shape.

My interest and knowledge about 'The Journey' has been growing. I contacted and had a session with a local to Toronto, Journey practitioner. I attended a Journey intensive weekend held in Toronto in November.

I am now finding myself able to integrate some of Brandon Bays' methods into Listening Prayer Therapy sessions. This has been rewarding for some of my clients who have benefited from this new method of inner healing.

Of course my use of 'The Journey' is set within a Biblical theological context. In practice, this means that sessions are initiated with some spoken prayer asking for God's presence and guidance.

There are two important reasons that I make use of 'The Journey:' 1. It gives my client more options. For example, a client may be able to experience feelings well and may not have as much success with direct "listening to God" or the use of imagination in therapy, and 2. The Journey is unique in how effective it is in transforming personality styles or character pattern that needs transforming. To learn about different personality styles check out www.enneagraminstitute.com. It is worth it to take the self test.

'The Journey' involves allowing oneself to fully experience one's feelings. For some clients this is great. However, one of my clients absolutely refused to experience his feelings. "Different strokes for different folks!" - an expression that means people respond to different things.

I would help a client identify a pattern that needed transforming. That may get expressed in a form of a general confession and request for change type of prayer, out loud by the client. This is followed by a proclamation in prayer, out loud, that Jesus is Lord, Saviour, Healer and Deliverer and, therefore, in charge of this process. Check out my articles on www.healmylife.com.

Brandon Bays always sets up an imaginary campfire to talk things out. Good idea. I do it if it is clearly needed but not always.

Brandon Bays lets a person chose a mentor to be with them at the campfire. We usually assume form the start that Jesus is the mentor unless the person prefers another person of the Trinity because of a problem with Jesus.

At the campfire Brandon assumes that healing comes because you expressed your feelings (got it all out) and because you forgive. In contrast, I believe healing comes because wrong beliefs are corrected and we have got God's TRUTH and perspective. Once that occurs our attitude usually will become that of forgiveness from our (healed) heart. I do not push for a decision (will choosing) for forgiveness without clear evidence of heart healing first.

In order to discover the truth - and destroy the wrong beliefs lodged in our memories - we need to hear the truth whether it comes from our mentor, from understanding from the other at the campfire or from gaining empathy for their perspective. In Listening Prayer Therapy I may have the person ask Jesus at the campfire to correct a particular belief by putting a clear question to Him.

In the Emotional Journey, Brandon Bays, or the Journey therapist, allows you to fully experience your feelings as they emerge. You are to be present to your feelings without denying, suppressing, judging or analyzing them. As we release our grip, let go of our control, and experience our feelings they are able to come and go fairly quickly.

Soon we come to our stuck point: we feel blank, "I don't know," fear of dying, panic about who we will be if we allow this feeling or state to be present. This is the 'death gate' - the valley of the dying to the old identity - the birth canal to the new identity. If we are present to this without blocking ourselves to the experience then the new can emerge. We then begin to experience the center of our being where the Holy Spirit lives.

We begin to emerge into life, light, love, peace, freedom, wholeness, beauty - what Brandon calls SOURCE. Only here do we experience God. Only here do we experience our true selves. Only here does the New Creature, our new identity start to take form. Once we get to this point the transformation of our life has begun - the old has passed away and the new has come.

Brandon uses this experience of Source - God's truth and presence - to speak to and cleanse each of the other feelings that we experienced in our journey to Source. Then she has a campfire with relevant people in our life. Then she projects our new identity forward and has us imagine what it would be like a day, a week and a month from now.

What emerges is a new identity.

What I have described is the most powerful process for identity transformation that I have seen. I recommend you try it and learn to use it with others.

Shalom, George <><