“Nothing that enters one from outside can defile that person; but the things that come out from within are what defile.” — Mark 7:15

I once dated a man who loved spiritual candy. He carried a rosary and spoke of keeping the devil out, but he didn’t trust God with his eternity. He believed in horoscopes and sought advice from psychics. He didn’t seek the LORD. Didn’t read the Bible. He devolved into a casual Catholic who put his faith in empty calories. Spiritual junk food. Artificial loyalty.

One afternoon this man mentioned something a psychic said, implying infidelity on my end. “That’s foolish!” I replied indignant. “I’ve never been unfaithful to anyone.” But that wasn’t entirely true. In my silence, I’d been unfaithful to God and He knew it. God knew this man couldn’t treasure me like I treasured Him. I couldn’t live in faith while he lived in sin.

We were frozen at a spiritual impasse.

God severed us soon after to spare further heartbreak, to show my partner where mistrust in the LORD leads. Even after he reaped the unhealthy harvests he couldn’t turn away. He became hungry for sinful, sugary snacks that lacked profound nutrition. They led him down a wide path of uncertainty, far away from me.

He pursued distractions and kept God as an afterthought.

It was apparent in his separation of blessings. His business suffered, his relationships suffered, and he found himself homeless— admonished to seek the LORD. Still, he couldn’t abandon his casual acquaintances. Couldn’t form right judgements with his clouded mind. Couldn’t comeback.

He lost all direction in depravity. He hardened to God, ignored the Holy Spirit, and struggled to regain diligence in faith. As a bystander, I should have spoken up sooner. Should have said there’s a definite way to keep from being led astray. Or told him how to stay in shape with instructions set forth in scripture.

Instead, I ignored warnings when they came before me while he numbed his hunger pangs with astrology, motivational speakers, and a manifestation mindset. Saccharine for the soul. I didn’t speak up for fear of hurting his feelings. As he got spiritually fat I played dumb, but deep down I knew.

Horoscopes are hogwash designed to be vague, open-ended blurbs applicable to whomever reads them. They’re misguided, toxic trash that should be avoided at all costs along with crystals, tarot cards, and other mystical practices. Astrology is an element of evil. It’s a poison, like arsenic in the body. A dangerous fatalism founded on pseudoscience that breeds negative, self-fulfilling prophecies. My partner learned this the hard way.

When I finally addressed it, he was too far gone for me to turn him back around myself.

Believing in anything other than God is a colossal waste of time and emotional energy.

Mistrust makes it so simple to slip into sin, like a mudslide after the rain. It’s much harder to cast aside the rubble and the dirt and crawl out of catastrophe. Suffering through sin seems easier. Perception isn’t always reality, though. Sometimes it’s the devil twisting thoughts inside a person’s head. Self-doubt is quick and familiar, but it’s not the end-all be all. Everyone is under construction. Everyone sins.

I pray that man will forsake what led him astray, humble himself, and seek God.

I pray that man, and others like him, regain the capacity to understand how spiritual fatness leads to fruitlessness; that all those artificial sweeteners will leave them with less time and motivation then before.

If you or someone you know can relate, know that it’s never too late to ask for interceding prayers— to turn back from temptation. Salvation is for the truly repentant. Pursue His face with a contrite heart and know His dominion is inviting and everlasting. That’s all it takes to start regaining righteousness.

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