Children's Bread

Divine Health: 5 Spiritual Barriers and Breakthroughs

Written By

BBI

Published On

March 4, 2026

"Are your prayers being hindered? Learn the 5 spiritual barriers to divine healing and how to overcome based on Mark 11."

Breaking Barriers International (BBI) convened a global audience for its monthly teaching session on February 28 2026. The guest speaker, Pastor Dr. Nellie Shani, delivered a profound and paradigm-shifting discourse entitled "Walking in Divine Health."

For many believers, the concept of divine healing is shrouded in mystery, often viewed as a "lottery" where God chooses to heal some and leave others in suffering. Dr. Shani’s teaching dismantled this uncertainty, positing that healing is not a future event we are waiting for, but a past-tense reality we must learn to manifest. Through a meticulous examination foundational scriptures, she identified why the manifestation of healing is often delayed or blocked entirely.

Below are the five primary hindrances to divine healing as presented during the BBI teaching.

1. Believing Sickness is a Teacher

One of the most destructive hurdles in the path of a believer seeking restoration is the belief that God is the author of their affliction. This doctrine suggests that God "permits" or "sends" sickness to build character, teach patience, or discipline a wayward child.

Dr. Shani addressed this head-on by referencing Matthew 7:11: “If you, then, though you are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father in heaven give good gifts to those who ask him!”

The teaching argued that if an earthly parent were to intentionally infect their child with a virus to "teach them a lesson," they would be arrested for child abuse. Why then, Dr. Shani asked, do we attribute such character to a holy and loving God?

The only "benefit" of sickness is the opportunity it provides for a testimony once the total manifestation of healing occurs. Sickness itself has no inherent virtue. When a believer accepts sickness as a "will of God," they lose the spiritual will to resist it. You cannot fight an enemy you believe is an emissary of God. To walk in divine health, one must first be convinced that sickness is an intrusion of the enemy that God desires to see eradicated.

2. Trying to "Please" God to Earn Healing

A second major hindrance is the legalistic approach to miracles. Many people approach the "throne of grace" as if it were a "bench of judgment," listing their good deeds, church attendance, and tithes as reasons why God should heal them.

Dr. Shani emphasized that God cannot "decide" to heal you today because He already made that decision 2,000 years ago at Calvary. Using the analogy of childbirth, she explained: "I gave birth to my son. It is too late for me to decide that he should not be born." In the same vein, our healing was "born" when Jesus died on the cross. Titus 3:5 reminds us that it is not by works of righteousness that we are saved (or healed), but according to His mercy.

When we try to please God to earn healing, we are essentially saying that the sacrifice of Jesus was insufficient. This creates a barrier because our focus shifts from Christ’s perfection to our own imperfections. If we feel we haven't been "good enough" that week, we subconsciously block ourselves from receiving the grace that is already available. Healing is a gift to be received, not a wage to be earned.

3. Asking God to Do What He Has Already Done

Perhaps the most controversial point of the teaching was the distinction between "asking" for healing and "receiving" it by faith. Dr. Shani noted that many believers hinder their own manifestation by praying the "wrong prayer."

The Instruction in Mark 11:22-24 Jesus did not tell the disciples to ask God to kill the fig tree; He spoke to the tree itself. Dr. Shani highlighted these specific steps for a "right prayer":

Speak to the Mountain: Address the sickness, the pain, or the tumor directly. Tell it where to go (the sea).
Anchor on the Word: Use specific verses like 1 Peter 2:24 (“By His stripes, you were healed”) as your legal foundation.
The "Believe You Have Received" Principle: Mark 11:24 commands us to believe we have received the answer the moment we pray—not when the symptoms disappear.

Begging God to heal is often a mask for unbelief. It implies that God is currently holding back healing and needs to be persuaded. Dr. Shani’s message was clear: Your belief influences what you say. If you truly believe you have received it, you stop asking and start saying, "Thank you, Lord, for my healing." This shift from "please" to "thank you" is where faith comes into action.

4. The Power of the Tongue: Words as a Catalyst for Death or Life

The Fourth hindrance is the lack of alignment between a person's faith and their daily conversation. Dr. Shani stated that the words of our mouth serve as the "justifier or condemner" of our physical state.

Many people inadvertently "claim" their sickness by using possessive language: "my arthritis," "my migraine," or "my poor heart." By doing so, they are identifying with the sickness rather than their identity in Christ.

Dr. Shani noted, "We can tell whether a person is going to overcome a sickness or not, just by listening to how they are speaking." Faith-filled words create a spiritual atmosphere where healing can manifest. Conversely, words of doubt, fear, and "gloomy anticipations" act as a shield that prevents the power of God from penetrating the physical body. To walk in divine health, your "confession" must match God’s "profession" about your health.

5. The Legal Breach: Harboring Sin and Open Doors

The final and most sobering hindrance discussed was the role of unconfessed sin and "open doors" to the enemy. Dr. Shani referenced James 5:15, which links the prayer of faith with the forgiveness of sins.

Citing Ecclesiastes 10:8—“He who breaks through a wall will be bitten by a snake”—the teaching explained that sin acts as a breach in our original spiritual wall of protection. While God is always willing to heal, sin can give the enemy a "legal right" to afflict the body.

Dr. Shani drew particular attention to 1 Corinthians 6:18: “Flee from sexual immorality... he who sins sexually, sins against their own body.” This type of sin can manifest as physical symptoms or chronic ailments because it directly impacts the "temple of the Holy Spirit."

However, the remedy is not despair but repentance. By acknowledging the sin, turning from it, and closing the "door," the believer removes the legal ground the enemy was using to hinder their healing.

Walking in the Manifestation

The BBI teaching concluded with a powerful reminder that faith is an active force. It is not always easy to say "Thank you" when you are in pain or looking at a physical swelling, but that is precisely when faith is required.

Divine health is a lifestyle of constant alignment—aligning our thoughts with the Word, our tongues with our faith, and our lives with God’s holiness. As Pastor Dr. Nellie Shani aptly put it, we are not the sick trying to get healed; we are the healed resisting the symptoms of sickness.

Reject Sickness as an Enemy: Key Takeaways

Hindrance	Biblical Antidote	Core Action
Sickness as a Teacher	Matthew 7:11	Reject sickness as an enemy.
Trying to Please God	Titus 3:5	Rest in the finished work of Christ.
Asking Instead of Receiving	Mark 11:24	Speak to the mountain; say "Thank you."
Negative Words	Proverbs 18:21	Align your speech with 1 Peter 2:24.
Harboring Sin	James 5:15	Repent and close "open doors."

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Common Questions

Being born again secures your salvation—your sins are forgiven, and you belong to Christ. You don’t need deliverance to be saved.

However, even as a believer, you can still struggle with patterns, strongholds, or spiritual oppression from the past. Deliverance isn’t about salvation; it’s about applying Jesus’ freedom to those areas. If you experience ongoing struggles, prayer, renunciation, and pastoral support can help you walk fully in the liberty Christ has already won for you.
Breaking a generational curse, in a religious sense, is seen as a spiritual journey of repentance, faith, and deliberate action. It begins with acknowledging sin—both one’s own and, in some beliefs, the lingering effects of ancestors’ wrongdoing—and turning away from it through heartfelt repentance and prayer. This recognition is often accompanied by a conscious renunciation of the curse, verbally declaring that one no longer accepts the negative patterns or misfortunes that may have been passed down through the family line.

Faith plays a central role in this process. Believers rely on the power of God to intervene, heal, and restore, trusting that divine authority can break spiritual strongholds that have persisted for generations. Prayer, sometimes accompanied by fasting, Scripture reading, or intercession from spiritual leaders, is used to call on God’s guidance and protection.
When we receive salvation, our spirit is redeemed immediately. Our sins are forgiven, we are justified, and the Holy Spirit comes to dwell in us (Ephesians 1:7; Romans 5:1; Ephesians 1:13–14). Salvation restores our relationship with God and secures eternal life.

However, the curses or effects of sin in the world—sickness, generational patterns, fear, poverty, or emotional wounds—are not always broken automatically. The reason is that while our spirit is saved, our body, mind, and circumstances still exist in a fallen world under the consequences of sin (Romans 8:20–22).
If you struggle with something but generally overcome it, it is not necessarily a spirit. The Bible shows that even faithful believers wrestle with sin and weakness—Paul himself admitted in Romans 7:15–20 that he struggled to do what was right even as he desired to obey God. A true “spirit” or demonic stronghold is usually characterized by persistent, overpowering opposition that cannot be resisted through prayer, Scripture, and obedience.

If you are able to resist, repent, and grow despite the struggle, it is more likely an area God is using to refine your character and strengthen your faith. Struggles can reveal patterns in our lives that need God’s grace, teaching us dependence on Him, humility, and perseverance. Victory is not about perfection; it is about continuing to walk in obedience, relying on God’s Word, and trusting His Spirit to lead you forward.
Yes, according to Scripture, the human spirit can be influenced, but it’s important to be precise about what that means. The Bible teaches that we are spirit, soul, and body (1 Thessalonians 5:23). The “spirit man” is the part of us that connects with God, discerns spiritual truths, and communes with Him (John 4:24; Romans 8:16).

A demonic spirit cannot possess the spirit of a born-again believer because the Holy Spirit indwells them (1 Corinthians 6:19; 1 John 4:4). The Spirit of God protects and fills the spirit man, so it cannot be taken over. However, the spirit man can be influenced or oppressed by external spiritual forces if there is neglect, unrepented sin, or agreement with lies, which can affect our thoughts, emotions, and will.

Satan and his spirits can tempt, deceive, and oppress, but they cannot inhabit the spirit of someone truly born again. That’s why Scripture emphasizes guarding your heart and mind, staying in God’s Word, and walking in obedience—this keeps your spirit man aligned with God and resistant to attack (Ephesians 6:10–18; James 4:7).
consequences of sin, wrongdoing, or negative behavior can extend beyond an individual and affect their descendants. In this context, a generational curse is not merely about inherited traits or family patterns in a psychological sense, but rather a spiritual or moral consequence passed down through family lines.

For example, the Bible mentions in several passages, such as Exodus 20:5 and Numbers 14:18, that the sins of the parents can affect their children “to the third and fourth generation.” This is often interpreted to mean that unrepented sin or disobedience to God can create spiritual or circumstantial burdens like poverty, addiction, illness, or relational strife that may continue to manifest in subsequent generations.

Religious teachings often emphasize that generational curses are not inevitable. Through repentance, prayer, faith, and obedience to God, it is believed that individuals can break these curses and restore spiritual blessings to themselves and their descendants. In Christian practice, this might involve confession, seeking deliverance through prayer, or living a life aligned with God’s commandments to end the cycle of negative spiritual influence.
Feeling anger is not automatically a “spirit.” Anger is a natural emotion that God Himself expresses in certain circumstances (Exodus 32:10; Psalm 7:11). What matters is how you handle it. If you feel angry but do not act in sin, controlling your words, thoughts, and actions, this is not a demonic spirit—it is a natural human response being managed in obedience to God.

A spirit of anger in Scripture refers to a persistent, controlling, or destructive force that dominates a person’s behavior (Ephesians 4:26–27 warns against letting anger give the devil a foothold). If your anger arises but you remain calm, forgive, and do not allow it to control you, it is simply an emotion, not a spirit.
When faced with temptation, there are times to run and times to resist, and Scripture gives clear guidance.

You run from sin when it is dangerous, seductive, or beyond your natural ability to resist. Paul says in 1 Corinthians 6:18, “Flee fornication.” You remove yourself from the source of temptation—whether it’s a place, a person, or an opportunity—because staying there puts your soul at risk. Running is not cowardice; it is obedience and wisdom.

You resist when you are confronted with pressure or attack that you can face through God’s power. James 4:7 says, “Resist the devil, and he will flee from you.” Resisting means standing firm in faith, speaking Scripture, and relying on the Holy Spirit. This is active confrontation, not passive endurance.

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— Deuteronomy 31:6

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