Places of Refuge - A Canopy of God’s Glory Fire

The Lord designated cities of refuge under the Old Covenant for His people to escape death and to be protected (Numbers 35, Joshua 21). The Hebrew word for refuge is derived from the Hebrew letter that means “hiding behind a covering.” We will examine what this means in relation to the covering of God’s glory, as this will be the main focus of this teaching. We will also discuss the gathering of God’s people, and how the Lord will move on them in His glory. First we will look at what places of refuge are, and give a few specific examples in America. 

As it was in the days of Noah and Lot, so will it be at the end of this age (Luke 17:26-30). This scripture indicates that the last days of the current age will be like the days when fire and brimstone rained down from Heaven and destroyed Sodom and Gomorrah. The words and prophecy of Jesus will come to pass, whether we believe them or not. Lot, who was a believer, was spared from this destruction. So will the Lord spare and deliver His followers in the coming days. 

Jesus makes a specific point to state that our days will be like Lot’s time period. Judgment is coming upon the wicked, and God’s people are still on the earth living amongst a wicked system. The Lord is revealing to those who have ears to hear, that He will be a deliverer to His chosen people in this time period, as He was for Lot in his day. Believers who are not really following the Lord, and are asleep with the things of this world; will most likely be caught off guard with the things that will take place at the end of the age. Jesus will come suddenly for these unfaithful servants, and they will be swept away with the wicked (Luke 12, 1 Thessalonians 5). This does not mean that these believers will go to Hell, just that they will perish before their time; and not fulfill part of what the Lord has called them to. They will be judged before the throne of God for not knowing the Lord, being awake, using their time well, and stewarding properly what the Lord had given them. These are the unfaithful servants Jesus gives multiple parables about.

The Coming Fire 

We are called to discern the times and seasons. We are in the time of the end. God’s people will not be caught up or raptured until the last day of the age, which is after the great tribulation (John 6:40, 1 Thessalonians 4:15-17, Matthew 24:29-31). This means that we will go through the fire that is coming. Fire will fall upon the earth in various places and bring much destruction:

“Then the seven angels who had the seven trumpets prepared themselves to sound them [initiating the judgments]. The first [angel] sounded [his trumpet], and there was [a storm of] hail and fire, mixed with blood, and it was hurled to the earth; and a third of the earth was burned up, and a third of the trees were burned up, and all the green grass was burned up.” (Revelation 8:6-7 AMP)

“And this is how I saw the horses and their riders in my vision: the riders had breastplates [the color] of fire and of hyacinth (sapphire blue) and of brimstone (yellow); and the heads of the horses looked like the heads of lions; and from out of their mouths came fire and smoke and brimstone (burning sulfur). A third of mankind was killed by these three plagues—by the fire and the smoke and the brimstone that came from the mouths of the horses.” (Revelation 9:17-18 AMP)

A.A. Allen had a vision in 1954 about the United States being attacked with missiles. William Branham had a vision in 1933 and saw America in smoldering ruins. The scriptures will come to pass, and the Lord has used prophets to give us warning and insight. Will we take heed, and prepare for the things that are not yet seen? Noah found favor with God and received a good testimony, because he moved by faith and prepared an ark for the saving of his household; when he was warned by God of disaster coming (Hebrews 11:7). Have we not been warned by the book of Revelation about what is coming? Will we move by faith as Noah did to prepare for what is going to happen? 

Preparing Inwardly

Our primary way of preparing should be inwardly. Jesus said that the Kingdom of Heaven is within. We must develop the secret place of prayer and wait on the Lord in silence. This will open the door for communion with Jesus, and we will enter into His manifest presence. This is how we get “in the Spirit.” Inwardly, we can go before the throne of God, since the Lord sits enthroned in our hearts. Once this place of communion is established, we will behold the glory of the Lord as in a mirror; and be transfigured into His very image (2 Corinthians 3:18). We will go from one degree of transfigured glory to another degree of glory as we behold Him over time. It is a process.

Development of the inward life is the most important thing we can do in this life. Being with the Lord in His presence creates a level of intimacy that cannot be put into words. Simply being with the Lord is how we come to know Him, just as we only truly know other people from actually spending quality time with them (in their near presence). It’s the Lord’s desire for all of His children to learn to wait on Him, and develop a lifestyle of being with Him and physically feeling His presence. We were created for communion with Him, and much of the church is currently missing out on its primary Heavenly call of knowing the Lord in a deep inward way. 

Places of Refuge

Once inward preparation has become our main focus, the Lord will begin speaking to us about outward preparation. The Lord moved Lot to a place of refuge when He rained down judgment fire on Sodom and Gomorrah. The Lord will do the same thing for us who believe His word, and are seeking His face with all of our hearts’. Lot was apart of God’s remnant on the earth during that time period. The Lord has always preserved His remnant, and He will do so with us. The angels sent by the Lord to destroy the twin cities, and rescue Lot; revealed to Lot a place of refuge:

“When they had brought them outside, one [of the angels] said, “Escape for your life! Do not look behind you, or stop anywhere in the entire valley; escape to the mountains [of Moab], or you will be consumed and swept away.”” (Genesis 19:17 AMP). 

Lot, in his own will, wanted to go to a small town named Zoar; thus he debated with the will of God. The Lord allowed Lot to have his request, but soon afterwards Lot moved to the place of refuge that the Lord had initially spoken to him about (Genesis 19:18-30). The Lord knows what is best for us. We must each hear what the Spirit is saying to us individually. Lot thought he knew what was best for him, but he was wrong. Where we want to move or go to, might not be where the Lord wants us to be. 

My wife and I lived in a place of refuge for over 11 years in Northwestern Montana. The prophetic people in the area had prophesied that the entire region was a place of refuge in America. Believers from different parts of the country were moving and gathering there, which brought further confirmation to the prophetic words. Even traveling prophets stated that the area was a place of refuge. I knew and discerned in my spirit that the entire region was a place of refuge. The Lord will give you multiple witnesses about an area of safety. 

In 2019 my wife and I moved from a place of refuge to South Alabama (not a place of refuge). Why would the Lord do this? Because the Lord has us on a journey of trusting Him. He told me recently that He moved us out of a place of refuge, so He could move us to a place of refuge that is right for us. You may be in a place of refuge, but is it the right one for you? 

My wife and I were not properly received in Northwestern Montana. Our ministry was not welcomed. The Lord told me He needed to move us to Alabama, so we would be positioned properly for our next step in the journey. From Alabama, we would be positioned to see and hear the location that the Lord wanted to take us to. We would also be in position for a door to be opened for us in that new place of refuge. We could not know that new location from Montana, so the Lord needed to bring us into a season of transition first. Therefore, like Abraham, we have been on a journey of obeying God, not knowing where we are going. 

However, recently the Lord has been speaking to me about the entire region around Chattanooga, Tennessee, in regards to being a place of refuge. I asked the Lord in prayer if this region was a place of refuge, and He responded in a fiery presence that dropped me to my knees. The Lord will speak to me this way at times in order to bring confirmation. Eastern Washington, Idaho, Montana, Eastern Oregon, and parts of Arkansas are believed to be safe zones by believers. There are other locations as well. He will speak to you in His own ways about a location that you are to go to (if He desires you to move).

Spiritually, Northwestern Montana was a place where my wife and I were trained in the wilderness like John the Baptist. It was a season of preparation. But it was not where we were called to conduct the ministry that the Lord has entrusted us with. That area may have been a place of refuge, but we did not fit in there. You must not go to the place of refuge you want to like Lot did, because you may not fit in spiritually. Sure, you might be safe physically, but you would never go on to fullness spiritually. The spiritual is of more importance than the physical. Some areas of refuge might not go on to fullness with the Lord spiritually, because the church is not seeking Him and His presence with everything in them. Maybe false doctrine is preventing the church in an area from experiencing God’s perfect will. All the more reason to be perfectly positioned by the hand of God where He wants you. 

The Lord’s focus is for us to go all the way with Him spiritually. He will protect us physically so that we have time to come to the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ (Ephesians 4). Christ coming to fullness in us, as our self-life is crucified; is God’s enteral purpose that must be accomplished in our time on the earth in this age. Therefore we must be in the right place spiritually for this to occur, and in a place of refuge so we can live long enough for this process to take place. The crucifixion of our own will and desires simply takes time. It is wisdom to prolong our days in a place of refuge, so the Lord will have more time to transform us into His image. Our eternal position in Heaven depends on Jesus conforming us into His image. Those that allow Jesus to do this will be great in the Kingdom of Heaven, and those who do not allow this process will be least in the Kingdom. 

The Building of Christ’s Church

Jesus will build His church in places of refuge that will stand in the midst of great storms. He is gathering His true followers to locations across the country who desire to follow Him fully. True disciples will be granted knowledge and understanding about places of refuge where the Lord has chosen to build His overcoming church. These will be locations that the bride is made ready. These places of refuge will be for the preservation of the Lord’s remnant. 

Every believer is a living stone (1 Peter 2:4-5). Christ must increase in each stone so that each stone will be fixed and stable. Once each stone is solid and healthy, Christ will take that stone and connect it to other stones. As He builds the healthy and solid stones together, a spiritual house is built. This chosen people, then becomes a royal priesthood who offers up spiritual sacrifices that are pleasing to the Lord. 

Christ will build these believers together in such a way that they become true spiritual family. Healthy and whole relationships will be established in the Lord. These groups will focus on the Lord first and foremost. Secondarily they will have spiritual fellowship with each, which will be fulfilling. There will be no loneliness in these spiritual families. There will be godly spiritual parents, and healthy spiritual children. True spiritual friendships will be established by the Spirit of God. Believers will do life together while pursuing the Lord. This will bring much hope to people who have been struggling to find a spiritual home or be accepted in the church. Many believers have felt like they simply don’t belong, or have felt something preventing them from fitting in. This is because man has been attempting to build the church, and where this is occurring; true spiritual family cannot be established. When the Lord builds His church, we will see and feel the difference. He is the wise Master Builder, and will empower His true church by His grace. A healthy spiritual family can only be established by the grace of God. This is much needed, and it is coming!

The Lord will build different spiritual houses in different places throughout America. He will build them in places of refuge, so that they will be “kept from the hour of trial that is coming upon the face of the earth,” just as Lot, Joesph, and Noah were. Because different houses are being built, we must obey the Lord and go to the proper place of refuge. Only the same kind of living stones can be built together. For example, it is extremely difficult for Christians with differing belief systems and theologies to be built together. Obviously we shouldn’t have different belief systems, but in reality we do. In order for a spiritual house to come to fullness, there must not be divisions. A house divided against itself will not stand. Jesus needs similar living stones in a certain location, so that He can build a spiritual house that is in harmony. Stones that are of the same building material will fit together perfectly. Stones that differ in material, shape, and size; will not fit together properly in the building of the Lord’s spiritual house. Our own destiny and the destiny’s of others, depend on us being in the proper location for the Lord to build us together with other believers. 

The Glory of the Lord

“having been built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, with Christ Jesus Himself as the [chief] Cornerstone, in whom the whole structure is joined together, and it continues [to increase] growing into a holy temple in the Lord [a sanctuary dedicated, set apart, and sacred to the presence of the Lord]. In Him [and in fellowship with one another] you also are being built together into a dwelling place of God in the Spirit.”(Ephesians 2:20-22 AMP)

If we allow Christ to do the work in us as individuals through communion and walking with Him inwardly; we will be transformed into solid living stones (good building materials). Then we are to hear the Lord speak about the place of refuge He has chosen for us to live in according to His plan and purpose. When we obey the Lord and join His overcoming church in the region He has called us to; He will oversee the church and build it according to His eternal design. Then He will have a dwelling place of His presence. The Holy Spirit will descend on that group of believers, and Heaven will manifest on earth. 

When this takes place, the corporate presence and anointing will be incredibly strong. Light will break forth, healing will arise, righteousness will prevail, and the glory of the Lord will surround the church (Isaiah 58:8). The former desolations of many generations will be repaired, and the city of God on earth will be restored. The church in this area will be a habitation of the Lord. The presence of God will be so heavy and thick in public meetings that the ministers and people will barely be able to stand (2 Chronicles 5:14). It is the Lord’s great desire to fill His house (His people) with His glorious presence, to such a degree that they are overwhelmed by His love, goodness, and affection. In this place of supreme intimacy, God is known and understood by His people. He is seeking a people who are willing to come together in order for God Himself to rest upon. He is looking for a people who desire Him more than earthly things, or even spiritual gifts or callings. He is desiring to bring a people together who yearn for and seek His face, and to be in His presence continually (1 Chronicles 16:11). 

The Lord can do anything He wants to among His church in these last days. Under the Old Covenant, the Lord appeared in pillar of cloud and pillar of fire among His people (Exodus 13:21-22). If they could experience the fiery glorious presence of God under an interior covenant, isn’t it possible for us to experience the Father’s glory under a superior covenant? Jesus exampled this when He took Peter, James, and John up to the mountain. Jesus became transfigured in the glory of God as a thick cloud of the Father’s glory manifested (Mark 9:2-8). Jesus was our example of how we should walk before God as a man. Jesus was demonstrating the Godhead’s will for us to experience and encounter the Father. Enoch walked with God to such an extent, that God simply took Him up to Heaven. We have God inside of us, so we have the incredible opportunity to step into a deep relationship with the Lord now. 

Hebrews 6:5 makes it clear that we are able to taste of powers of the age to come. In the age to come, Christ’s glory and presence will be flowing from Him and filling the entire earth. Therefore we can step into His glorious presence now, both individually and corporately. Ephesians 2:20-22 makes if evident that it’s the Lord’s will to come and release His thick presence over His church. He will cover His church and hide her in His presence, thus protecting her from negative judgments being released throughout the last days (Psalm 91). 

While Hebrews 12:22-24, indicates that we have come inwardly to Heaven and the city of God; the Lord can still choose to manifest His thick glory and fire upon His people outwardly (since He does as He pleases). I believe that if we truly want the Lord bad enough, He will come among us in great fire and glory. I believe He can and will release a greater measure of His presence in and among His people, that has not yet been released. It comes down to how much we want Him. If we can live without having His glory, then we will live without it. If we cannot live without His fiery presence, then we will have what our hearts have longed for. 

The fire that the Lord is desiring to release among His people, is a burning so great that it controls you. It is an inward fire of the Holy Spirit that Jeremiah and Elijah experienced. This fire made Elijah extremely zealous for the Lord (1 Kings 19:10). This is the same zeal that Jesus operated in when He drove the money changers out of the temple with a whip, and furiously rebuked the merchandisers. The burning fire shut up in Jesus’ bones was consuming Him for His Father’s house (John 2:17). The fire that the Lord will release in these last days will give His church the drive and hunger to seek the Lord and His presence above all else. We desperately need this purifying fire, as it will cleanse His people so that they are walking in holiness (Malachi 3:2-3). This baptism of fire will come to the remnant church. It will purify the bride.

The prophet Joel prophesies that the Lord will pour out His Spirit on all flesh. He also prophesies that there will be signs on the earth of fire and columns of smoke (Joel 2:30). While I understand that this is primarily describing physical signs on the earth; the same Hebrew word used for “smoke” was used when the Lord revealed His glory to Israel:

“Mount Sinai was wrapped in smoke because the LORD descended upon it in fire; it’s smoke ascended like the smoke of a furnace, and the whole mountain quaked violently.” (Exodus 19:18 AMP)

I believe that Joel 2:30 could have a double meaning, as some scriptures do. Some have a natural meaning, and then a deeper spiritual meaning for those who have eyes to see. The Lord is going to do things amongst His people in these end times, that we never thought was possible. But the scriptures give us insight in to who God is, and how He might choose to move again. The fire and smoke of Joel 2:30 could be a direct spiritual reference to Exodus 19:18. I believe the Lord wants to come upon His people in a thick smoke and burning fire. He is looking for a people who desire to encounter Him like this. He is looking for a people who will only be satisfied by Him. Will we be the people who choose inward transformation, and to be positioned in a place of refuge? Will we allow the Lord to build us together with other living stones, so that the Holy Spirit can come and rest upon us in His glory and presence? 

Let us go on with the Lord and grab ahold of what Israel experienced, and taste of what is coming in the next age. That which Jesus experienced on the mount of transfiguration can be ours:

“then the LORD will create over the entire site of Mount Zion and over her assemblies, a cloud by day, smoke, and the brightness of a flaming fire by night; for over all the glory and brilliance will be a canopy [a defense, a covering of His divine love and protection]. And there will be a pavilion for shade from the heat by day, and a refuge and a shelter from the storm and the rain.” (Isaiah 4:5-6 AMP)

-Ty Unruh (2020)