6 Types of Glory Manifestations—How Many Have You Experienced?

One of the most valuable things we can learn from our fathers and mothers of the faith in Scripture is that they made the presence of the Lord their priority.

It was the glory that they longed for. Being with Him meant more to them than anything else. Moses was one of those men. God promised Moses that He would send one of His mighty angels before him as he took the land, but Moses wouldn’t have it. He did not just want an angel; he wanted the glory. He wanted the manifest presence of the Lord to go with him so much that he made a decision that he would not move unless the Lord went with him (see Exodus 33).

This decision not only impacted Moses but the entire nation of Israel. When the cloud moved, the entire nation would move. And when the cloud of glory settled, they would settle.

Then the cloud covered the tabernacle of meeting, and the glory of the Lord filled the tabernacle. And Moses was not able to enter the tabernacle of meeting, because the cloud rested above it, and the glory of the Lord filled the tabernacle. Whenever the cloud was taken up from above the tabernacle, the children of Israel would go onward in all their journeys. But if the cloud was not taken up, then they did not journey till the day that it was taken up (Exodus 40:34-37 NKJV).

Anytime Israel settled in one place, it was because the glory had settled in that place. The place where they settled became a place of blessing, favor, abundance, and miracles. It was in that place that all went well. And it all went well because of the glory.

Ruth Ward Heflin makes a great point about moving in glory: “When the cloud lifted, it would not have been unusual for them to want to stay in that place of blessing. But the blessing is not in a place; it’s in the cloud; it’s in God’s presence.”

In order for us to walk in the fullness of God’s design for us and take hold of our inheritance as children of God, we must be found in the midst of the glory. God is looking for those who will not be satisfied with anything else but to be found by Him. It’s in the realm of glory that we step into the fullness of our identity as image bearers of the Lord Jesus. To be honest, our lives as well as the lives of others depend on the glory.

Why the Glory?

Again, the glory is the manifest presence of Jesus being made known. It is the realm of God’s goodness and blessing. It is the realm of creative miracles and power where God invades the impossible.

When God manifests His glory, the realm of abundance, blessing, and acceleration is being made available. What would normally take years to accomplish in the natural world will only take a few months, weeks, or days in the glory. The glory is the realm of open heavens where angels ascend and descend. It is the realm of the outpouring of the Holy Spirit and revival. We need the glory now more than ever. And we cannot afford to move before it or behind it.

We must learn to move in the midst of the cloud (His glory) when it’s moving and stay put when it has settled. Humanity is waiting in eager anticipation for the unveiling of sons and daughters of God who not only carry the glory but know how to move with it. It was absolutely vital and necessary for Israel’s success to move with the glory, and it is the same for us today.

Knowing God’s Ways

In order for us to learn how to move with God’s glory, we must first become familiar with His ways. Moses asked God to show him two things when God started to use him mightily as the nation’s leader. He asked God, “Show me Your ways, that I may know You” and later asked, “Show me Your glory” (see Exodus 33:13,18).

There is a divine connection between knowing God’s ways, knowing God, and the revealing of His glory. As we become better acquainted with the ways that God does something, we begin to recognize when He is moving. I think R. A. Torrey’s words apply here again:

Before one can correctly understand the work of the Holy Spirit, he must first of all know the Spirit himself.

It is in the revealing of His ways that we come to know God more fully, thus giving us the ability to move along with Him.

Vehicles of Glory

As mentioned in my book, Anointed for Glory, God’s glory is manifested as Kabod, which is felt, and Shekinah, which is seen. Throughout the years, Miriam and I have experienced both God’s Kabod and His Shekinah. For the remainder of this chapter, I want to take time to not only show you some of the ways that God manifests His glory, but I also want to share testimonies with you that might help you learn to move with Him when receiving and releasing.

Glory Felt

Most often when God begins to manifest His glory, He will come with His weighty presence. This weighty presence will usually be tangibly discerned by your physical body as well as your mind, will, and emotions. These discernments would include, but are not limited to, vibrations, shaking, heat or cool sensations, falling down, tears, and holy laughter. These are signs that God is moving in our midst. When someone understands the ways in which the Holy Spirit can manifest, it will often open that individual’s heart to receive more easily, thus moving with Him.

Unfortunately, instead of embracing the possible ways in which God manifests, most people either discredit them due to a lack of understanding or in some cases reject them entirely because they seem weird. Listen, if we are ever going to move into new realms of glory, then we’ve got to understand that God cannot be put into our tiny little boxes.

I have heard so many people say, “I don’t want to look weird or embrace anything weird.” I’m sure we have all said or thought this at one time or another in our lives. Can I propose something to you? I would like to suggest to you that God is weird. Now wait, before you throw my book in the trash and write me off as a heretic, let me explain and break it down.

One of the definitions for the adjective weird, according to the Oxford English Dictionary, is “to suggest something supernatural.” God is supernatural. In other words, He transcends the laws of nature. All of humanity is longing for the supernatural because we are the offspring of a supernatural God! Most of what we would call weird is actually God’s supernatural ways being put on display. From Genesis to Revelation, God does some pretty weird or supernatural things that go beyond our finite minds. He’s God.

Think about it—a burning bush that is not consumed or a cloud by day and fire by night. Or what about heavenly manna on the ground? How about the Red Sea parting and consuming Israel’s enemies or walls falling down in Jericho because of a holy shout of praise? What about the virgin birth, Jesus turning water into wine, or the apostle Paul sending out pieces of clothing that heal the sick? All weird.

Now, I am not saying let’s just all be spooky Christians and embrace every little thing that comes our way. What I am saying is that if we are going to go higher in the things of God, then we must be willing to embrace those things that may go beyond our understanding or our level of personal experience. But some of you might be asking, “How do I know if the manifestation or encounter that I am experiencing is from God?”

A good way to know if a manifestation of God is authentic would be to look at the fruit or result of that manifestation. Is it consistent with the nature of God in Scripture? Does it bring people closer to Jesus and transfer the fruit that remains? Does it glorify God? If you can answer yes to any of these questions, then you can rest assured that the manifestation in operation is from God.

My dear friend Larry Sparks says, “I don’t tolerate the manifestations of the Holy Spirit; I celebrate them.” Again, if we are going to receive, minister, and move with the glory, then we have got to be okay with the ways in which God manifests. I never want to be one who rejects or scoffs at a manifestation just because I don’t understand it or it’s not happening to me.

Now I want to be clear concerning these supernatural manifestations. When God comes with His mighty supernatural power and manifests Himself among us, it is always to bless us. And that blessing always comes with a purpose. Everything He does has a purpose. It’s never for us to just experience and go on our way. Any experience with God that we have is always meant to transform us and bring us into new realms of glory as well as make us effective in the Kingdom.

I want to encourage you not to be discouraged if you have not encountered these different types of manifestations personally yet. I also want to embolden you to open yourself up to God and ask Him to give you all that He has for you no matter what mode of transportation He decides to use. More importantly, be strengthened today that you are learning about the different ways that the Holy Spirit manifests so you can partner with God, move with Him, and be a blessing to others.

Vibrations and Shaking

I personally have experienced vibrations and/or shaking many times in my own life as well as in those to whom I minister. Often this will feel like electrical currents or sensations that will start in the hands or feet. As one yields to what God is doing at this moment, it can be quite incredible as well as life changing. When this type of manifestation happens, it usually is indicative of the baptism of the Holy Spirit and fire coming upon you to prepare you for greater glory.

This type of manifestation has also been consistent for countless others throughout revival history. One such person was a healing evangelist by the name of John G. Lake. When describing an encounter he had with the baptism of God’s fire, he journaled this:

Then I became conscious of a change coming over me. Instead of the rain, currents of power were running through me from my head to my feet, seemingly into the floor. These shocks of power came intermittently, possibly ten seconds apart. They increased in voltage until, after a few minutes, my frame shook and vibrated under these mighty shocks of power. Then as I shook and trembled, the shocks of power followed each other with more apparent rapidity and intensity. My forehead became sealed. My brain in the front portion of my head became inactive, and I realized the spirit speaking of His seal in their foreheads. I could have fallen on the floor except for the depth of the chair in which I sat.

Again a change. The shocks of power lessened in intensity and now have taken hold of my lower jaw. It moved up and down and sidewise in a manner new to me. My tongue and throat began to move in a manner I could not control. Presently, I realized I was speaking in another tongue, a language I had never learned. O, the sense of power. The mighty moving of the Spirit in me. The consciousness was God who had come.

I am so thankful for people like Randy Clark, who has really taught a generation how to partner with God when He’s moving on others. One of the things that I’ve learned from him is to pay attention to what God is doing as I minister to others and bless it. For instance, in this case, when God comes causing someone to tremble, because I know that the fire of God is upon them I will agree with the Lord and bless them with His fire. If it is joy, then I would bless them with joy. If healing, then healing. If tears, then love. It is my “yes and amen” in partnership with the Lord.

When we come to know the ways in which God manifests and choose to partner accordingly, it seems to be a multiplying effect that becomes a blessing to others. Now, God doesn’t need us at all. He can bless anyone He wants to all by Himself at any time. However, God in His sovereignty chooses to partner with us to do His mighty exploits throughout the earth.

Heat and Cool Sensations

Most often, but not always, when someone feels heat or cool sensations, it is indicative of a healing anointing coming upon them. This can be felt both by someone needing a healing and by someone being used by God to dispense it. Many times during our healing and miracles services, people will testify that they feel heat coming upon them. When they experience this, we always encourage people by telling them that God’s healing oil is flowing, so just receive.

Tears of Love

In my opinion, tears are one of the most precious vehicles that God uses because they are accompanied by a baptism of God’s love. As mentioned in the first chapter, this was one of my first encounters with the Lord. When God baptizes us with His love, it will always be a deep work taking place within our hearts. The word baptize in the Greek is pronounced baptizo, which means to immerse or submerge repeatedly. It is God immersing us with His love over and over again. This has happened to me privately, corporately, as well as while I have ministered to others.

In 2021, Miriam and I were invited to join our dear friends Larry Sparks and Rebecca Greenwood in Kansas to minister alongside them at their Awakening the Well of Revival conference. The atmosphere was one of expectancy and excitement as we gathered to see what the Lord would do. As one of our friends, Jessi Green, began to minister, she invited Miriam and me up to help minister to the people. She felt that we were to take bottles of water and baptize people who were present in the meeting. As I began to minister to the people, I felt God’s weighty glory begin to fall upon me. Tears of love began to run down my face as I took capfuls of bottled water and poured it out upon the heads of those in attendance.

As I went about pouring water on their heads, I felt such a deep love for each one of them. It was the deep love of God. As I continued, I noticed every single person I prayed for came under God’s weighty love and began to weep uncontrollably. As God immersed all of them with His presence, some also fell under the power of His weightiness as they experienced God’s tears of love. What did I do? I just continued to bless what God was doing, and in the process it blessed me. It was as though Jesus was loving them through me.

I believe God has created our emotions not just for our benefit but also for His. Since we are joined together in one spirit with the Lord, we can feel His heart for humanity as well as His love for us. Tears of love is a way in which God reveals His glory.

Falling Down

This phenomenon occurs when the weightiness of God’s glory comes upon someone. Remember, one of the words for glory is the word Kabod, which means “weighty.” When God’s weighty glory comes upon us, it becomes hard to stand. Think about it—when the God of the universe touches our human bodies, there will be a response of some kind. I think it is absolutely incredible that as humans we can encounter God. But what’s even more incredible than that is that we live through those encounters to talk about it. I have been in services when the Lord’s weighty glory begins to fall in the room and you feel it! I don’t know about you, but I want God’s holy disruptions to fill the room with His glory! I believe a day is coming when God’s glory will invade us in such a way during our worship gatherings that no one will be able to stand because of the weight of glory in the room.

I personally have experienced this many times in my life—I could not stand because of the weight of glory upon me. I have also seen thousands of those whom I have prayed for experience this same kind of glory. There have even been times when I am ministering in the glory that I can hardly stand myself as I minister. When this happens to me, almost everyone I pray for comes under that same weight of glory, resulting in them falling under the power. Again, this is a vehicle that God uses to reveal His glory. God has been consistently revealing Himself this way throughout biblical history.

When King Solomon was dedicating the temple, the priests could not stand to minister because of the glory.

And it came to pass, when the priests came out of the holy place, that the cloud filled the house of the Lord, so that the priests could not continue ministering because of the cloud; for the glory of the Lord filled the house of the Lord (1 Kings 8:10-11 NKJV).

Here is a story of a 17-year-old boy who experienced God’s weighty glory in one of our Saturday Night Awakening services.

During one of Tommy and Miriam’s Saturday Night Awakening services, I experienced a fresh outpouring of the Lord’s joy. I walked in feeling sad and walked out feeling God’s joy. I recall it being to the point where I had to ask God to help me position my heart to even worship Him. During worship, I stood at the front and raised my hands, praising Him. I stood there crying while feeling electricity in my hands and a sense of peace like nothing could explain. Pastor Tommy invited the people who were experiencing holy manifestations—including electricity in the hands—to the front to receive the Holy Spirit. Because what I was experiencing was confirmed to me by God’s usage of Pastor Tommy, I knew I had to go to the front. As I continued to worship God, my hands were shaking as I prayed to receive His Holy Spirit. As Pastor Tommy prayed over me, I remember my legs gave out as I was slain by the Holy Spirit. I could not move my body but I had so much peace. I lay there blissfully, laughing in joy in God’s presence. What seemed like only minutes actually ended up being more than two hours until the service ended! Because of this encounter, whenever I think of an eternity worshiping God in heaven, this is what I think of.

Alex Howe Cedar Hill, Texas, October 17, 2022

Joy through Holy Laughter

Joy, I believe, will be one of the main vehicles that God will use in these last days to release His glory. I will unpack this manifestation more fully in a later chapter, but I do want to include it here in the context of glory that is felt. Again, God who created our emotions will often manifest His glory to us and through us within the seat of our emotions. Joy through holy laughter can be extremely beneficial not only to your soul but also your physical body. It’s actually quite intoxicating! In Acts 2 when the Holy Spirit was poured out on the 120 believers, there were observers who thought that those in attendance were all drunk (see Acts 2).

Joy through laughter is extremely powerful for shifting atmospheres over individuals as well as a corporate group of believers. The manifestation of joy can be found within the Bible as well as revival history. I personally have experienced this as well and have had the privilege of witnessing countless others experience this vehicle of glory, resulting in great eternal breakthroughs. Again, anytime I see God touching someone in this way, I just bless what He is doing.

Here is a testimony of one of our ministry leaders who has attended several of our services.

I remember one particular Saturday Night Awakening when Tommy and Miriam were ministering. As Tommy began to minister, I began to laugh, which quite frankly was hard to control. I laughed continually for at least an hour. Not only did I laugh, but I would also hang on to others to impart that laughter to them. That night, I witnessed God pour out joy on not only me but so many others. It was like God poured out a bucket of joy! I can still see myself and my friend Jamie lying on the hard floor, holding tight to each other, but experiencing such a joy that could not be contained. The joy that I received that night has stayed with me ever since. It has allowed me to see how the joy of the Lord is so very important and just how generous God is. I would also like to give testimony that I was healed from deep wounds of the past that night. I now know that I must give away what I have received and pass that healing on to others.

Sue Mainord, Cedar Hill, Texas