ARE TAROT CARDS THE KEY TO THE FUTURE? (The future lies in God's hands)
Peter longed to fulfil his desire for spiritual things. He was keen to belong and to impress his friends. Tarot cards was a practice that seemed to be the answer but a guy at work was able to show him that the power he was tapping into was dark, shadowy and dangerous. Peter found a way out and a real experience of the love of God …
Not knowing God
In 1974, when I was four years of age, my family moved to Gladstone which is a town of 25,000 situated in Central Queensland, Australia. I grew up in a non-practising Catholic home. The fact that there was a God was never an issue for me, as I knew that something must have created all I could see around me. I went to a Catholic primary and high school and was an altar boy. I had a vague knowledge of the scriptures but never had a relationship with God. The fact that there was a whole lot more for me in the spiritual realm was completely foreign to me.
Tarot cards, astral projection, ghosts and telekinesis
At the age of 18, I started reading tarot cards. Tarot cards involve the laying out and reading of various types of cards. I was already interested in the spiritual side of life such as ghosts and other things. A friend of my mum's introduced me to this. I was good at reading tarot cards and at times I accurately predicted marriages, relationship break-ups, travel plans and even deaths. It uses a power that, like drugs, always has you coming back for more. At the same time I became involved in astral projection, which is the practice of letting your spirit leave your body and travel over great distances with the ability to move through walls. I just stumbled over this ability one night when I suddenly felt like I was floating as I lay in bed. I am thankful this was something that I did not do regularly. I also was interested in ghosts and telekinesis. Telekinesis is the practice of thinking about moving an object (say closing a door) and the object moves.
A desire to impress and explore the spiritual world
I think I was attracted to the practices of tarot cards and astral projection because I wanted to impress my friends. That need to belong, to be accepted by my peers, was at times overwhelming. The other reason was my desire to interact with a world that lay behind the physical one that I could see.
Real power!
I was eager to see if there was real power behind tarot cards. So I laid out 56 cards and took note of the position and the meaning of the cards. Then I shuffled the cards and laid them out again. In doing this only two cards changed position and the changing of the cards did not affect the meaning! I was excited to find that the power behind the cards was very real!
Donna
I had a few girlfriends and some were fairly serious. I met a girl named Donna while I was completing my apprenticeship and at first we were just friends. She was going through some tough times with her boyfriend. Donna and her boyfriend split up and three months after this we started going out. Donna was interested in God but I thought of myself as a Catholic and I would not even walk into another church door as I felt other Christian churches were not for me.
Short of money
We moved around a bit and I worked in various jobs and positions. We were married three years after we first met. Eighteen months after we were married our first child came into the world. At that time we had been in a business but the other partner had left us with a considerable debt. We were paying off the debt and this left us with little money for food. The car we owned was breaking down as we had been forced to sell our good car. Work was scarce but I managed to pick up some casual work.
Talking about the God I never knew
At this new workplace, I met Paul1. Paul discussed things with me that would ultimately change my life. Paul talked to me about a God of whom I had no knowledge. He told me the spiritual forces I was delving into through the tarot cards were trapping me and were harmful and dangerous. God wanted me to have nothing to do with these practices.
"When you arrive in the land the Lord your God is giving you, be very careful not to imitate the detestable customs of the nations living there. For example, never sacrifice your son or daughter as a burnt offering. And do not let your people practice fortune-telling or sorcery, or allow them to interpret omens, or engage in witchcraft, or cast spells, or function as mediums or psychics, or call forth the spirits of the dead. Anyone who does these things is an object of horror and disgust to the Lord. It is because the other nations have done these things that the Lord your God will drive them out ahead of you. You must be blameless before the Lord your God" (Deuteronomy 18:9 - 13, NLT).
"Let your astrologers come forward, those stargazers who make predictions month by month … Surely they are like stubble; the fire will burn them up" (Isaiah 47:13, 14).
Looking back on it, I am thankful I did not get interested in Ouija boards or becoming a medium, as I believe I would have been snared by even darker powers. Paul seemed to be familiar with these dark forces but not only was he not afraid of them; he seemed to have authority over them. Paul told me to read the Gospel of John in the bible and find out for myself the God that loved me.
Coming to know God
I went home that night and Donna was surprised when I wanted to read the bible. As I read the bible, I realised that the things that Paul was talking about were true. There was a God who loved and cared for me. God, the father had sent Jesus to die in my place on the cross so I could be forgiven for all the things I had done wrong. This God could fulfil my deep inner spiritual needs. These needs had never been quenched nor would reading tarot cards or astral projection ever satisfy them. I needed to know the one who created me and have a relationship with the living God. So that night I made the decision that I wanted the God of the bible in my life.
Being baptised
So I was to be baptised in a large pool in the middle of the city, on a Saturday at 2:00 p.m. But on the Monday before it started raining. Paul said that we could postpone the baptism and perform it later if I wished. But I was certain of two things at that point. Firstly, I needed to be baptised. I knew this with all my heart. And secondly I was sure it was not going to be raining on Saturday! Tuesday came and it was still raining. The torrential winter rain was so heavy it sounded like the drops were coming through the roof. Paul looked at me and shook his head but I assured him the rain would stop. Wednesday, Thursday and Friday came and it was still raining! The weather forecast was for another week of rain and Paul said we would freeze in the water as it was winter and it was very cold! I told him that I didn't care if we had to break through the ice, I needed to be baptised and that was that! Besides, I knew it was not going to rain!
No rain as I predicted!
Saturday morning came and we were both at work in the rain. Paul was convinced I was 'nuts' as I keep telling him that it wouldn't be raining. We finished work at 12:00 p.m. and the rain continued to fall. Donna and I were running late and it was already 2:00 p.m. when we pulled into the car park, and as we did so it stopped raining! At 2:15 p.m., Paul and I entered the water and I was baptised in full sunshine. I emerged from the water a changed person. At 3:00 p.m. the clouds rolled back in and we had three more days of rain.
God was in control of my future
All these events with the rain showed me clearly that my future was now in the hands of the God who loved me and gave Himself for me. How much better this would be than being controlled by the shadowy, elusive and deceptive forces of my tarot cards.
Don't try and tell me God doesn't love us
Thinking back on these events it still amazes me how God used them to reinforce His love for me. God forgave my sins and I was cleansed from all the 'muck' that had been holding my life back. This all happened in an hour of sunshine, which interrupted a week and a half of rain. Don't try and tell me that God doesn't love us! Jesus has unbelievable power including power over the weather and He displayed His power to me.
"And Jesus answered, 'Why are you afraid? You have so little faith!' Then he stood up and rebuked the wind and waves, and suddenly all was calm. The disciples just sat there in awe. 'Who is this?' they asked themselves. 'Even the wind and waves obey him!'" (Matthew 8:26-27)
Renouncing and breaking free from the evil power
After I became a Christian, I was totally convinced of the dangers of tarot cards and the bondage that comes from their use. I needed to completely break free from their dark power and totally renounce my involvement with these cards and all other practises that had trapped me. One night at the back of our place, I was standing around a roaring fire with some friends as we talked about the need to free ourselves of the evil practises.
"Many of those who believed now came and openly confessed their evil deeds. A number who had practiced sorcery brought their scrolls and burned them" (Acts 19:18).
At that time I felt a conviction to get my tarot cards and burn them. We took the cards out to the fire and threw them on it a couple at a time. The first couple of cards I threw on to the fire happened to leave the 'devil' card on the top looking at us. I threw it into the fire but this card did not burn! (Now, I knew the fire was a very hot one as earlier in the evening I had used it to heat and melt half-inch steel.) The cards were plastic coated and they were not really all that fire resistant but the 'devil' card would not burn. I could sense the dark powers behind these cards. I poured methylated spirits and put more wood on the fire and eventually the 'devil' card did burn. Watching that card staring back at me as it refused to burn was one of the scariest things I had ever witnessed in my life. After the 'devil' card caught fire and burnt up, the rest of the cards burst into flames as soon as they hit the fire.
God was free to reign in my heart
By the end of the night, I felt a great relief that that part of my life was finished with and God was now allowed free reign in my heart. Do not be deceived -there are definitely evil spirits and demons out there.. But God has power beyond what we can understand and He loves us so much.
"But you belong to God, my dear children. You have already won your fight with these false prophets, because the Spirit who lives in you is greater than the spirit who lives in the world"
(1 John 4:4).
Let God rule your heart and let Him guide your future. Let Him deal with the things in your past. God knows what is best for you. Whether we acknowledge it or not, all of us have a desire to know spiritual things. The longings will only be fully satisfied when we come to know Jesus who loves us and died for us. When you discover His love, make sure you tell others.
"You are the salt of the earth. But what good is salt if it has lost its flavour? Can you make it useful again? It will be thrown out and trampled underfoot as worthless. You are the light of the world-like a city on a mountain, glowing in the night for all to see. Don't hide your light under a basket! Instead, put it on a stand and let it shine for all. In the same way, let your good deeds shine out for all to see, so that everyone will praise your heavenly Father" (Matthew 5:13-16)
God bless,
Peter
1 Not the person's real name
PRACTICES FORBIDDEN BY GOD
These fall into one of three categories:
DIVINATION: Seeking supernatural knowledge or guidance apart from what God has provided. Practices include astrology, tarot cards, horoscopes, interpreting omens etc.
MAGIC: The attempt to exercise control over people, environment and circumstance through supernatural means. Practices include sorcery (black magic), witchcraft ('white' or 'black'), casting spells, etc.
SPIRITISM: The attempt to gain secret knowledge or power through communication with the dead or the spirit world. Practices include consulting a medium, consulting the dead, ouija boards.
God loves you and as your Heavenly Father He only wants what is best for you. As a result of God's concern for you, God strictly forbids involvement in divination, magic, and spiritism. Involvement in these practices will damage you in one or more of the following areas:
1. Your physical well-being
2. Your emotional well-being
3. Your spiritual well-being
Involvement in these practices is rebellion against God because He clearly warns you not to practise them. If you are involved in divination, magic and / or spiritism, demonic spirits will gain control over you although you may think you have ''special powers'.
Practising divination, magic and spiritism is sin and separates you from God. If you never come to accept Jesus as your Lord and Saviour, God is just and hell will be your destination. If you have been involved in these things … repent … turn away from your sin and receive forgiveness and eternal life, through believing that Jesus died for your sin on the cross and rose from the dead. Give Jesus the complete control of your life. You only stand to gain power, grace, true freedom, forgiveness, mercy, peace, joy and eternal life.
