So You Want to Know the Future? By Pamela Walck
I believe that the Bible is God’s Word, which has been proved over and over as valid and correct. 2 Timothy 3:16 (NIV) states, “All Scripture is Godbreathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting, and training in righteousness so that the servant of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work.” Midnight, about two weeks before my October 31st birthday, and I felt tired! “Whew,” out of my basement I had dragged to the curb years of accumulated Halloween articles—devils, witches, anything that looked of the occult. Driving home from the mall several hours earlier, I tuned into a local Christian radio station. The announcer discussed Halloween and the occult and how, as Christians, we should not get involved in any aspect of it. I pulled my car over on Millersport Highway and turned into a church parking lot to listen more intently. Wow, I thought, does the Bible really address topics such as fortune-telling? I had no idea. The radio preacher discussed the witch of Endor and Saul. Many verses cited in the Old and New Testament told about turning away from consulting mediums, sorcerers, astrology, or anything related to these.
“Do not turn to mediums or seek out spiritists, for you will be defiled by them. I am the LORD your God,” (Leviticus 19:31 NIV) Other verses such as Isaiah 47:13-15, Acts 16:16-19, and Acts 19:18-20 also command us to stay away from the occult.
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I needed to choose to follow God or my own desires—that of keeping and displaying decorations that didn’t reflect Him. I felt convicted about my past behavior. In high school, I had written a monthly horoscope column, just made up of course. Later, I got involved in tarot card readings, the Ouija board, and regular trips to Lily Dale (a town in New York known for mediums). When I finally got home from my drive that night, I started ripping the basement apart. Since my birthday is on Halloween, I dressed up every year for parties and at work visiting the patient’s rooms. Not a year had gone by when I didn’t come up with some outlandish costume. Outfits such as Little Boo Beep and the energizer bunny, which were innocent enough costumes. But I also had vampires and she-devils. While in the basement, I came across other occult materials, collected over the years. All the time I was involved with these things, I wanted to know the future or what to do with some aspect of my life. I realized that night while listening to the radio program, that I had not trusted God with my future and had shown a lack of faith. He has the answers for everything and gives me wisdom if I only listen to Him. Not through mediums and other crazy ways, but His Word, the Bible, godly counsel, and prayer. As I meditate on Scripture today, I find answers to many of my problems or questions in life.
