I Need to Say Something in Love
Family, I want to talk to you about something today that I have been carrying in my spirit with a real sense of urgency. And because I love you — not in a polite, surface-level way, but in a I will tell you the truth even when it costs something kind of way — I need to sound an alarm.
Not a fear alarm. Not a shame alarm.
A love alarm.
Because what I am about to describe is not something I am seeing on the fringes or in obvious dark corners. It is something that has woven itself into everyday culture, into wellness spaces, into social media feeds, into the conversations of people who genuinely love God and are genuinely trying to navigate a complicated, often overwhelming world.
And it is dressed so well that many people don't recognize it for what it is.
Let me describe it to you.
It shows up as spiritual tools. As insight. As higher knowledge. As ancestral wisdom. As energy alignment. As protection practices. As just exploring. As just curious. As I'm not taking it seriously, it's just fun.
It looks like tarot cards pulled at a girls' night. A birth chart consulted before making a major decision. Horoscopes read every morning — jokingly, sort of, but also kind of seriously. Crystals arranged with intention and spoken over. A psychic visited because what's the harm? A medium consulted to feel close to someone who passed. Ancestral veneration practiced as a spiritual framework for identity and guidance.
The packaging is beautiful. The language sounds enlightened. The community around it feels warm and affirming. And in a world where people are desperately hungry for clarity, direction, and connection to something transcendent — this content is being consumed in enormous quantities.
And I need to tell you what is actually happening when you walk through those doors.
What You Gain and What You Lose
Here is the thing about spiritual counterfeits: they are called counterfeits precisely because they are not nothing. A counterfeit is not a blank piece of paper — it is something designed to look like the real thing, functional enough to seem legitimate, close enough to fool someone who isn't looking carefully.
Counterfeits offer something. That is why they work.
In the pursuit of information through divination, you may get information. But you will lose clarity.
You might get insight. But you will lose peace.
You might get a word. But you will lose discernment.
You might feel empowered temporarily. But you will lose the very thing you were looking for in the first place — genuine spiritual confidence, genuine direction, genuine connection to God.
And here is what makes this so spiritually dangerous: it is rarely dramatic. It is almost never a sudden, obvious shift. It is gradual. Subtle. One open door at a time. And by the time you notice something feels off — by the time the anxiety won't lift, the confusion keeps deepening, the spiritual static in your mind won't clear — you may not immediately connect it to the doors you opened six months ago.
This is not me being alarmist. This is me being a pastor who has sat with people who started with curiosity and ended up in genuine spiritual bondage, genuinely confused about what is true, genuinely unable to hear the Holy Spirit the way they once could.
And innocent though you may be in your intentions — and many people are genuinely innocent in their intentions — if you open doors to tarot cards, familiar spirits, soothsaying, ancestral veneration as a spiritual practice, divination in any form — you are inviting influence. Influence that you do not want, that you do not need, and that you were never designed to carry.
What the Bible Actually Says About This
I want to be very clear that this is not a matter of cultural preference or pastoral opinion. This is a matter of Scripture. And the Bible is not subtle about it.
God Himself, speaking directly to His people in Deuteronomy 18:10–12, prohibits divination, sorcery, interpreting omens, witchcraft, casting spells, and the consulting of mediums and spiritists. He calls these things detestable. He calls them the very practices of the nations He was removing from the land — practices He was protecting His people from.
Why? Not because He is a controlling God who wants to limit your experience. But because He is a protective Father who knows what these things do to the people He loves.
"Dear friends, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits to see whether they are from God."
— 1 John 4:1
This verse is often quoted as general discernment advice, and it is. But its foundation is the recognition that there are other spirits — spirits that will present themselves as helpful, as wise, as spiritual, as guides — and they are not from God.
"See to it that no one takes you captive through hollow and deceptive philosophy, which depends on human tradition and the elemental spiritual forces of this world rather than on Christ."
— Colossians 2:8
Takes you captive.
That is the language Paul used. Not inconveniences you. Not slightly misleads you. Takes you captive. Because that is what these practices are designed to do — they come dressed as freedom and produce bondage. They come promising empowerment and deliver enslavement. They come offering clarity and create confusion.
This is not new. The enemy has been running this scheme since the garden. Did God really say? Here — let me offer you a different source of wisdom. A different kind of knowing. The original temptation was always about bypassing God as the source of truth and finding an alternative.
Nothing has changed.
Let's Talk About the Crystals Conversation
I want to address something that I know creates real confusion, because I hear this question often and I want to be both clear and fair.
Crystals themselves are not the problem.
A crystal is a mineral — a piece of the earth, formed over time from the earth that God created. The earth is the Lord's. Rocks and minerals don't carry inherent evil. If someone has a piece of rose quartz on their shelf because it's beautiful, that is not the same conversation.
But that is also not the conversation most people are having.
The conversation most people are having is about crystals as spiritual technology. Crystals charged with intention. Crystals prayed over. Crystals consulted for guidance, protection, emotional healing, or spiritual alignment. Crystals placed with specific meaning to attract specific outcomes.
When you pray to a crystal — when you speak to it, depend on it, attribute spiritual authority to it, treat it as a conduit of power — you have moved from appreciating something God made to practicing idolatry.
And idolatry does not require a dramatic ceremony. It doesn't require conscious rejection of God. It simply requires putting your trust, your dependence, your spiritual attention into something other than God. That's it. That's the definition.
Wellness culture has been extraordinarily skilled at repackaging ancient spiritual practices in language that sounds modern, scientific, and self-care adjacent. Energy work. Frequency alignment. Intentional living. Grounding practices. And some of those words describe genuinely neutral things — rest, nature, breathing, being present. But some of them are the old thing in new clothing.
Idolatry wearing a wellness outfit is still idolatry.
And the challenge for believers who want to be culturally fluent and spiritually healthy is learning to tell the difference — not by blanket rejection of everything, but by asking the consistent question: What is the source of the power here? What am I actually trusting?
The Real Heart of It
Let me get to the core of this, because I think this is where the most important conversation lives.
The appeal of these spiritual alternatives is not arbitrary. It is not just curiosity for curiosity's sake. It is a response to a genuine need — the need for clarity, for direction, for answers in a complicated world, for connection to something larger than yourself, for the sense that someone or something knows what's ahead and can help you navigate it.
That need is real. And God knew you would have it.
But here is what spiritual counterfeits are actually saying underneath all the beautiful language: Holy Spirit, You are not enough. I need another source.
And I want to sit with that for a moment, because I think many believers don't consciously think that — but functionally, that is what is being expressed when someone who professes faith in Jesus turns to tarot for direction, or consults a psychic before a decision, or looks to their astrological chart to understand themselves, or practices ancestral veneration as their primary spiritual framework.
It is saying, with your choices if not with your words: I'm not sure God will answer me. I'm not sure the Holy Spirit is reliable enough, fast enough, specific enough. I need a backup.
And the Father — who sent His Son and gave His Spirit and made every provision for your guidance and clarity and protection — receives that as what it is: the declaration that He is not enough.
"If any of you lacks wisdom, you should ask God, who gives generously to all without finding fault, and it will be given to you."
— James 1:5
Generously. Without finding fault. To all.
Not to the spiritually advanced. Not to the people who have their act together. To anyone who asks. God does not ration wisdom. He does not make you earn it. He gives it generously.
"When He, the Spirit of truth, comes, He will guide you into all the truth."
— John 16:13
All truth.
Not some truth. Not truth when He feels like it. Not truth if you phrase the request correctly. All truth. The Spirit of God, living inside you, is your guide. He knows the end from the beginning. He knows what is ahead on the road you are walking. He knows every piece of information that any psychic has ever claimed to offer — and He offers it through a relationship of love rather than through a transaction with a spirit that does not have your best interests at heart.
So why are we looking elsewhere?
What This Costs You
I want to name something clearly: this is not about rules. God is not a cosmic rule-keeper who prohibits these practices because He is suspicious of your spiritual curiosity. He prohibits them because He knows what they cost.
They cost you clarity.
The spiritual static that comes from opening doors to competing spiritual sources is real. Many people who have been engaging with divination and familiar spirits describe a growing confusion — a sense that they can no longer hear God clearly, that prayer feels distant, that Scripture feels flat. This is not coincidence.
They cost you peace.
You were designed to rest in the sovereignty of a God who holds your future. When you start consulting other sources for direction, you take on the anxiety of needing to constantly manage and read and interpret — because those sources don't actually provide peace. They provide information that generates more questions, more fear, more dependency.
They cost you discernment.
This one may be the most serious long-term consequence. A person who has been regularly opening spiritual doors to sources other than God begins to struggle with discernment — the ability to tell what is truly from God versus what is from somewhere else. The lines that should be clear become blurry. The voice that should be most recognizable becomes one of several competing voices.
They cost your household.
Spiritual influence does not stay contained to the individual. What you bring into your home — through your practices, your spiritual engagements, your open doors — affects the spiritual atmosphere of the environment your family lives in.
The enemy is not playing a short game. He is not interested in one bad night or one misguided card pull. He is interested in doors. In access. In gradual, incremental influence. And he will happily use beautiful language, legitimate-sounding spiritual vocabulary, and the company of other sincere, well-meaning people to get that access.
The question is never just could I be wrong about this?
The question is: What probability are you willing to risk — your peace, your mind, your discernment, your household, your destiny?
That is the actual question on the table.
Renounce It. Completely.
I want to speak to the person who knows, as they are reading this, that they have opened some of these doors. Not necessarily maliciously. Probably with genuine spiritual hunger. Maybe in a season of pain when God felt silent and something else felt accessible. Maybe because the community around it was warm and the language was affirming and nobody told you there was a real cost.
You are not condemned. You are not beyond reach. You are not spiritually ruined.
But I want to invite you to be honest — with God and with yourself — about what needs to close.
Not managed. Not reduced. Closed.
The language the Bible uses is renounce — to formally, deliberately, out-loud declare that you are cutting off connection and access. Not just setting down the tarot cards but saying: I renounce this. I close this door. I belong to Jesus, and I will not have another source.
Not just deleting the astrology app but saying: I renounce dependence on this. I will not consult signs and charts for direction that belongs to the Holy Spirit to give.
Not just feeling uncomfortable about the ancestral veneration framework but being clear: I will honor those who came before me through love and legacy and memory — but I will not seek spiritual guidance from or through the dead. That door is closed.
Renunciation is not dramatic for drama's sake. It is important because it is specific. It names what was opened. It speaks out loud the closing of a door that was opened out loud or through action. And it invites the Holy Spirit to fill and restore what was vacated.
God is not reluctant to restore. He is not holding the restoration at arm's length until you prove you've suffered enough for the mistake. His arms are already open. The restoration is already prepared.
You just have to walk back through the right door.
What You Actually Have Access To
I want to close this section with something I need you to fully receive.
You have access — right now, through the Holy Spirit living in you — to everything these spiritual counterfeits claim to offer, and infinitely more.
You want direction? "Your word is a lamp for my feet, a light on my path." (Psalm 119:105) You have a God who will make your path clear.
You want to know what's ahead? "The Spirit of truth will guide you into all truth." (John 16:13) You have a Spirit who knows the end from the beginning and will share what you need to know when you need to know it.
You want protection? "No weapon formed against you shall prosper." (Isaiah 54:17) You have a God who is your shield, your strong tower, the one who goes before you and watches your back.
You want to understand yourself — your identity, your purpose, your design? "I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made." (Psalm 139:14) You are known by the God who made you, who knew you before you were born, who has written every day of your life in His book.
You want to connect with wisdom that transcends human limitation? "If any of you lacks wisdom, ask God, who gives generously." (James 1:5) The wisdom of the Creator of the universe is available to you. Freely. Generously. Right now.
You do not need a backup source. You do not need a spiritual supplement. You do not need to look sideways when you have direct access to the God who spoke the universe into existence.
What would your life look like if you put the same faith, the same intention, the same daily attention into the Word of God that you put into your horoscope? What would change if you consulted the Holy Spirit with the same seriousness you've been bringing to birth charts and tarot spreads?
I genuinely believe the answer would be: everything.
A Prayer of Renunciation and Restoration
Father, in the name of Jesus, I come to You with honesty and without pretense.
I repent for every open door — knowingly or unknowingly — to counterfeit spiritual sources. I repent for the times I turned to other sources when I should have turned to You. For the moments when Your silence felt too long and something else felt more immediately accessible. For the seasons when I was spiritually hungry and did not know that what I was reaching for was not food.
I renounce tarot cards and divination in every form. I renounce soothsaying and the consulting of psychics and mediums. I renounce ancestral veneration as a spiritual practice and the seeking of guidance from any source other than the living God. I renounce the use of crystals, objects, or practices as spiritual power or authority. I renounce every familiar spirit I may have given access to, whether through direct engagement or through the influence of others.
I belong to Jesus alone. I was purchased by His blood. My spiritual authority comes from Him and Him only. My guidance comes from the Holy Spirit. My wisdom comes from the Word of God.
Holy Spirit, I invite You to fill every space that has been vacated. Cleanse my mind. Restore my clarity. Sharpen my discernment. Help me hear Your voice above every competing voice, and give me the confidence to trust what I hear.
I shut every door that I have opened — intentionally or accidentally — to spiritual influence that is not from You. And I open wide the door to Your presence, Your truth, and Your leadership in my life.
Father, I trust that You are enough. Not a supplement. Not a backup. Enough. Complete. More than sufficient for every question, every fear, every decision, every need I will ever bring to You.
Restore what has been lost. Rebuild what has been confused. And lead me forward in truth.
In Jesus' name, Amen.
This Is Our Declaration
Say this out loud. Let it be a stake in the ground for where you stand.
We will be a Holy Spirit-led people.
Not led by signs in the stars. Not led by cards or charts or the voices of familiar spirits. Not led by what feels spiritually interesting or culturally affirming. Led by the Spirit of the living God — the Spirit Jesus promised, the Spirit who has been given to lead us into all truth.
We will be a Word-rooted people.
Not rooted in spiritual trends. Not rooted in ancient practices repackaged for modern consumption. Not rooted in what makes us feel powerful or enlightened or connected. Rooted in the Word of God — which is living, active, sharper than any two-edged sword, and which will not return void.
We will be a yielding-to-Jesus-only people.
Not yielding to every interesting spiritual voice. Not yielding to curiosity that takes us through doors God has clearly said to leave closed. Yielding to Jesus — His Lordship, His truth, His Spirit, His voice — and trusting that He is sufficient for everything He calls us to face.
This is where we stand.
Not in fear. Not in condemnation of ourselves or anyone else. But in the settled, peaceful, unshakeable confidence of people who know who they belong to.
You belong to Jesus.
Let everything else go.
And let the Holy Spirit be — as He was always meant to be — your one and only guide.
— Pastor Nicole Washington
If this message found you in a moment of honest conviction, that is not condemnation — that is the Holy Spirit doing exactly what He promised to do. Share this with someone you love who needs to hear it, and remember: the door back to clarity is always open.