Time Out for God

Devotional Ministry

By Danna Appleby

www.timeoutforgod.com

Forbidden Sagas

I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that you present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable to God, which is your reasonable service.  And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, that you may prove what is that good and acceptable and perfect will of God. 

(Romans 12:1-2)

Is there anyone other than me alarmed at the increasing number of horror movies and books being released?  People are fascinated with horror.  What’s difficult to grasp is that they’re geared to attract the attention of our young and innocent, but even adults are jumping on the bandwagon. 

The vampire romance sagas are causing quite a stir and have gained popularity over the last few years.  It’s no wonder when the writers of these sagas are presenting their vampire characters as alive, alluring, handsome, loving and caring; however, they’re anything but! The sagas are causing readers to become familiar with mind-reading, automatic writing, levitation, vampirism, witchcraft, demon possession and many other evils.  This material is not what I would like to see my children or grandchildren reading.  Mothers, fathers and grandparents beware! 

These series are what I refer to as “Forbidden Sagas.”  I refer to them as forbidden because they’re dangerous territory for God’s children to tread.  You might say it’s like going into the enemy’s camp. Why would anyone want to go to a place shrouded in utter darkness?  Why would anyone willingly go into a pit of vipers?  A timely Scripture that comes to mind is: 

Do not touch, do not taste, do not handle.  (Col. 2:21)

Why am I speaking out about this?  If you and I were looking over a cliff and I saw a rock under your feet about to give way, don’t you think I would run to rescue you?  This situation is much the same way.  I want to warn everyone because many are being deceived into thinking these books are fine reading material.  Some defend them as harmless, but we must remember that Satan masquerades as an angel of light and has been doing so since the beginning of time.  We must be very careful what we read or allow our children to read.  (2 Cor. 11:14)

As I began my study on this issue, the first Scripture that came to me was:

My people are destroyed from lack of knowledge. (Hosea 4:6)

No doubt, God is saying we can be destroyed if we do not gain the knowledge we need.  We must be aware of the dangers lurking and be open-minded about hearing the truth.  We can get ourselves into some forbidden zones and before we know it we’ll have a difficult time escaping Satan’s grip.  When Satan dangles his nice designed packages in front of us, it’s an allurement, but once we take the bait it’s difficult to break free.  To prove that point, I know several who have become completely obsessed with reading these forbidden sagas and have read them many times. 

These forbidden sagas have been instigated by Satan. One writer said she dreamed about a vampire and a high school girl who were falling in love. Once she started writing her books, she was driven to write her series even going without sleep.  She would even drag herself to the computer because she was compelled to write the “conversations” going on in her head. One might question “who” put the conversations in her mind, but I believe it is completely obvious. The problem is many are falling for this type of reading material and deeming it acceptable and safe.

The same writer said once her series was finished, she had another dream and the vampire she saw in her first dream appeared to her again.  The vampire told her she had written the series incorrectly, and he did not drink the blood of animals as she described in her books, but drank the blood of humans.  She also described the vampire as “terrifying.” 

I read an online interview of another writer of one of these forbidden sagas, and she said that, before she began her books, she was very much into mental telepathy.  Every book she wrote was about death and vampires. 

My question to the Christian is what does life have to do with death?  What does light have to do with darkness?  We must question ourselves and steer clear of anything that Satan has his hand in. 

Wherefore come out from among them, and be ye separate, saith the Lord, and touch not the unclean thing; and I will receive you.  And will be a Father unto you, and ye shall be my sons and daughters, saith the Lord Almighty.  (2 Cor. 6-17-18)

God’s Spirit is surely grieved when He sees His children reading these forbidden sagas.  Could it be an abomination in His eyes? Webster’s Dictionary describes an abomination as “a great hatred and disgust.” In other words, anything that leaves a bad taste in God’s mouth or a stench in His nostrils is most definitely an abomination. 

What would bring about such distaste to God?  Delving into themes such as horror, murder, the occult, mind-reading, witchcraft, vampirism, and other forbidden subjects, is obviously not going to please God. These forbidden sagas do nothing to lift our spirits.  They do nothing to encourage us in our walk with Christ.  They will only take us on a downward spiral.  

These forbidden sagas can cause a stronghold of the devil to develop in our lives by opening the door of our minds to him.  We’re to have the mind of Christ.  The born again Believer needs to be seeking valuable resources to help him or her become strong and mature in their faith, not reading anything that promotes the evil deeds of darkness. We must guard our hearts and minds with the helmet of salvation, which is the Word of God.  It is evident we don’t have room in our minds for God and the devil at the same time, so give Christ all the room.  Keep Him as the Center of your being.  (1 Cor. 2:16; 2 Cor. 10:4; Eph. 6:17)  

Our minds should be filled with thoughts of the Lord and His goodness.  Christ has done so much for us on the cross that there’s no room for anything but Him.  Fill up your mind with thoughts of His precious goodness and mercy.  Think on good things.  The world around us is filled with enough hatred and evil.  We have enough to contend with on a daily basis without adding to it. 

Finally, brethren, whatever things are true, whatever things are noble, whatever things are just, whatever things are pure, whatever things are lovely, whatever things are of good report, if there is any virtue and if there is anything praiseworthy – meditate on these things. 

(Philippians 4:8 NKJV)

Our brains are sensitive mechanisms and should be nourished with good wholesome information so we will gain knowledge.  We need to be renewing our minds daily on the Word of God, not on vampire romance sagas which only promote the unrighteous deeds of darkness.  It’s a waste of valuable time.  Our Lord is coming soon, and we must be about our Father’s business.  (Luke 2:49; 2 Cor. 4:16)

Our minds should be vast reservoirs of godly information. Let yours be a treasure chest filled with the knowledge you’re seeking from the Lord.  This godly information will be invaluable to you if anyone asks about your faith, how you came to Christ, and your hope in God.  If we’re filling our minds with the unrighteousness of the world, how can we possibly know how to answer anyone seeking salvation or needing encouragement?  (1 Peter 3:15)

Additionally, we must come to the point in our Christian lives where we investigate our homes for what is detestable to God.  In the Old Testament, the Lord told the people to burn their idols.  We must do that too if we find ourselves with detestable items which might include books of the occult, Ouija boards, idols, or anything questionable.  Let the Lord lead you.  God spoke to Moses in Deuteronomy 7:25-26 and said:

You shall burn the carved images of their gods with fire; you shall not covet the silver or gold that is on them, nor take it for yourselves, lest you be snared by it; for it is an abomination to the Lord your God.

Nor shall you bring an abomination into your house, lest you be doomed to destruction like it.  You shall utterly detest it and utterly abhor it, for it is an accursed thing.

These are some heavy words to think about! We’re not to bring anything into our homes which is an abomination to the Lord our God.  We’re to abstain from every form of evil.  (1 Thess. 5:22)

When our children were small, my husband and I led a small youth group at the church we attended.  We studied the music all of us had been listening to and much of it was not Christian.  After we went through the lessons, we decided to tell the youth to bring the music they wanted to burn.  At the decided time, all of the music went into a pile and was burned before the Lord.  It felt good to rid ourselves of the music we knew was not pleasing to the Lord. 

Another time, I bought a book from a Christian book store thinking it was good reading material.  Through a godly person I loved and trusted, I found out that the book was not of God.  I didn’t waste any time tearing the book into shreds.  My friend later told me the book should have been burned. Burning with fire is the way to truly rid ourselves of the abomination.  Also, it does no good to give away the item, but it must be burned since it is an abomination to God. Why give away something that is an abomination to someone you care about? 

Some years ago, I was in a store and saw some videos of a soap opera I watched as a teenager that had to do with vampires.  I brought the videos home and, after watching several episodes, heavy conviction settled over me.  It became apparent I wasn’t pleasing God.  I hastily put them together and returned them to the store.  The videos weren’t mine to burn, so they had to go back to where they came from.  Over the years, I have remembered the lesson the Lord taught me and refrained from checking out any videos of that nature again.

When I go into certain stores, I see replicas of idols which have been worshiped for centuries.  People are purchasing these idols and displaying them in their homes and offices without realizing what they represent.  Idols were an abomination to God at the time they were worshiped, and it’s no different today.  If Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today and forever, He will be grieved if heathen gods are in our possession.  (Heb. 13:8) 

Let us do our best to please our Lord in every way. 

Prayer:  Father, thank you for your great love for us and that you want nothing but the best for our lives. You want to protect us. You want to shield us from everything that will hinder our minds and spirits and keep us from walking with you.  We have learned these lessons and want to apply them.  We want to please you.  Help us to be mindful of what we’re doing and bringing into our lives and homes.  Lord, keep us holy before you.  Prompt us.  Show us.  Convict us.  Forgive us.  We want your will, not ours.  We lay down our own will for yours.  We want to know you more.  Oh God, you are our God.  We will do our best to please and honor you.  Our lives are in your hands.  In Jesus’ name.  Amen.