The Media, the Occult, and our Kids

In celebration of my son’s birthday my husband and I treated the family to dinner and a movie the other night. As we watched the previews I was shocked at the amount of the new occult like movies that are going to be marketed to young kids. One movie is about a young boy who can see and talk to the dead, and the other is about yet another boy who brings his beloved, deceased pet back to life.

Is it just me, or are we seeing a lot of this type of genre marketing to our kids and teens lately? I have to say it grieves my heart to see so much of our modern media promoting the works of darkness and labeling it “entertainment”. I like to tell them “just because something is done in cartoon form doesn’t somehow soften the fact that the film at its core is about necromancy” as we see by the first two examples.

But this is nothing new, our kids see this type of thing all the time; it doesn’t matter if they’re going to the book store, out to the movies with friends, or just channel surfing at home. Somewhere along the way they’re going to have to decide whether to go along with the crowd that tells them this stuff is cool or resist the temptation to read the latest vampire book, or watch a new show about witchcraft.

If you’ve walked past the Young Adult section at your local book store or Wal-Mart lately you’ve seen what I’m referring too. Gone are the Sweet Valley High, and Nancy Drew type of books I read as a teen. Now all we see are book shelves loaded with books about vampires, werewolves, witchcraft, deviation, and necromancy. In one form or another our teens are being exposed to pagan, and occult practices. And the sad thing is it’s not just the unbelievers eating this up, but many in the body of Christ are falling prey it as well.

Before I became a Christian, and then as a brand new believer I enjoyed reading the Twilight series. I also liked watching the same type of programs and movies that promoted the same themes, I did this even though I knew it really wasn’t something God would want me to watch or read. What was so perplexing to me was at the time I knew (and still know) of Christian women who love the Lord, but also enjoy this series. And I couldn’t understand how if this was so wrong why so many godly women were reading and watching the same thing I was.

As you may or may not know, this series has strong pull not only teens but on some their mothers and grandmothers as well. When I first discovered the series I also learned about websites dedicated to this specific group of women, they call themselves “Twilight Moms”. These sites exist so women can talk about how much they love the story, and about which of the male characters, Edward or Jacob they have a “crush on”.

 I’m sure you’re well aware that Satan has declared an all-out frontal assault not only on our children but on us as well. And he’s more than willing to use our forms of entertainment against us, by making sin and darkness look appealing. He lies to us telling us, “it’s just a story,….it’s mindless entertainment”, “its ok for you to be crushing on a character in a book or movie even though you’re spoken for”, “besides vampires, werewolves, and wizards aren’t real”.

Well here’s what I have to say in regards to those lies Satan might be telling you about this type of thing.

While it may be a “just a story”, we need be care what we’re putting into our minds, even if it’s just for entertainment. As my pastor used to say “be careful what goes in and out of your ear gate and eye gate”. Many Christian children have learned the song “O Be Careful, Little Ears” in Sunday school or Vacation Bible School. If you’re unfamiliar with the song, or have forgotten it, it starts out like this

       Oh, be careful little ears, what you hear

For the Father Up above,

Is looking down in love,

So be careful little ears

what you hear.

Oh, be careful little eyes, what you see,

For the Father up above,

is looking down in love,

So be careful little eyes

What you hear.

2 Corinthians 10:5 tells us –

“We are destroying speculations and every lofty thing raised up against the knowledge of God, and we are taking every thought captive to the obedience of Christ,”

Even the most faithful, most mature Christian amongst us faces temptation. The enemy has no problem using the things we read and watch against us. This is why we must hold all if to up to the obedience of Christ. We shouldn’t let those things into our minds and indulge them, or allow them to linger.

When it comes to the nice looking men on these movies and shows I see them too, I’m not dead. God has created a lot of beautiful people, but it needs to end there with that acknowledgement. We can’t be crushing on this characters, I don’t care how cute they are, or how much you think you “love” them.

 Jesus told us that even if we look on someone else with lust in our hearts we’ve already committed adultery. Men as well as women are guilty of this, we’re not immune ladies. In many ways for us the Twilight series is a clever form of pornography. These books are written in such a way that it pulls and tugs at the heartstrings of women, as it plays on their emotions. The books are written in first person, so it doesn’t take a lot of imagination for the reader to imagine herself in the role of Bella as she’s wooed by Edward the vampire and Jacob with werewolf.

Bad, bad stuff ladies, don’t go there!!

Oh, well vampires and werewolves don’t exist you say? In the Old Testament people believed in and worshiped false gods giving offerings to them, and then in the New Testament people worshiped the Greek and Roman gods, these gods also didn’t exist but that didn’t stop the people from worshiping them. Whether you’re a teen girl or her mom (who should know better) if you make these books and movies your life you’ve also made them your god, an idol. And we know what God has said about idolatry.

Did you know other women; grown women who  were so  in love with these series of books that they have created bible studies to go along with the books? Don’t tell me that’s not worship!  A simple Google search will tell you where to find a Twilight bible study, or a Harry Potter bible study. Lately it seems that if something’s popular in the secular world some knucklehead makes a bible study out of it. When I see those things I’m reminded of 2 Corinthians 6:14-

“Do not be bound together with unbelievers; for what partnership have righteousness and lawlessness, or what fellowship has light with darkness?”

Now some believers may ask, “Well don’t I have freedom and liberty in Christ to watch and read such things”? Well it’s true as followers of Christ we are freed from the Law and under grace thereby having freedom, yet if we have a new heart with new desires we won’t want to have anything to do with the things God says he hates. At least not without the Holy Spirit coming after us, tell us to repent and stay away for such things.

He hates things like deviation, witchcraft and sorcery, and has told us to stay away from it. He’s also told us we have salvation because of the blood Jesus Christ shed for us, and it’s through Him we receive eternal life. Knowing these things why would we want to read about a boy learning witchcraft or about a girl who looks to a vampire to give her eternal life through his blood.

I’ve probably stepped on some toes with this article; I know I’ve been convicted and have had to reconsider some of my viewing choices. I understand how appealing all this can be, it’s nice to be able to read a book and be taken someplace else for a while. But if that place has things that you can’t imagine in Heaven do you really want to go there? It’s hard to hold all thoughts captive when you’re dosing yourself daily or weekly with this type of thing. It separates us from God, and gets in the way of our relationship with Him.

In Christ, Melissa Grimes

melissa@lifeafer.org