"Twilight" of loyalty?

I wish I could say I never do anything wrong and that my faith is therefore perfect and strong. I wish I could say God never has to discipline me.

I have to pray for more love, more power to obey and to minister, and more faith. And I wish I were a perfect example to emulate. I'm not.

But we're told to encourage each other, right? And this is something that worries me in the Church--the pleasure in the books and movie, Twilight.


Along with
Harry Potter and The
Shack , mixed emotions abound about Twilight, as this article attests:

(Click here:) Should Christian Teens Be Reading "Twilight?"

It concludes: So, what's the verdict?

There really is no verdict here, just a conscious choice. Like anything we see in the world today, you have to make a choice you can live with. As Christians, we need to be mindful of what we put in our minds and hearts.

Some Christians have read and seen a lot of books on witchcraft, sex, violence, and more without it ever even denting their faith.

However, a lot of other Christians are more vulnerable, and the smallest mention of something tempting can lure them away. You have to know where you are and what you can handle in order to choose wisely.

Sure, we should consider the weakness of some Christians.

But what about the feelings of our GOD?

He hates powers not from Him. He said in the Old Testament that anyone who dabbled in them could not go into the Promised Land!

Has He changed His mind today? We're under grace. But does it still hurt Him? Even if He won't keep us out of the Promised Land, will He have to discipline us?

The article does mention Deuteronomy 18:9-14

Detestable Practices
9 When you enter the land the LORD your God is giving you, do not learn to imitate the detestable ways of the nations there. 10 Let no one be found among you who sacrifices his son or daughter in [a] the fire, who practices divination or sorcery, interprets omens, engages in witchcraft, 11 or casts spells, or who is a medium or spiritist or who consults the dead. 12 Anyone who does these things is detestable to the LORD, and because of these detestable practices the LORD your God will drive out those nations before you. 13 You must be blameless before the LORD your God.

14 The nations you will dispossess listen to those who practice sorcery or divination. But as for you, the LORD your God has not permitted you to do so.

Whoa. Detestable. Not permitted you.

And consider: Leviticus 17:10. God said to Moses, "Any Israelite or any alien living among them who eats any blood-I will set my face against that person who eats blood and will cut him off from his people."

To me, it's a matter of obedience.

Holding God in awe and reverence and holy fear of His loving discipline.

And even more, it's a matter of love and loyalty to the One who loves and protects us and gave His life for us--and to us.

Some would object that we're not under the Old Testament. Well, Galatians 5 in the New Testament lists sorcery as something that can keep someone out of the Kingdom. Of course, most people who watch these won't do sorcery. But vampires do; at least, they use powers not from God to do things God hates.

People will say vampires aren't real. ***But the concept of sorcery is real.*** It just seems disloyal to be entertained and amused by something God hates. I fear it will bring His discipline, too. He does discipline those He loves. Not to mention that we are in spiritual warfare.

(And I've recently read here that some teenagers are no longer just giving each other hickeys, but real bites, drawing blood.)

I just read a book of John Wesley's sermons, The Holy Spirit and Power. It reported that in Augustine of Hippo's church, SIX people were raised from the dead.

This was over two hundred years after the death of the last apostle.

Holy Spirit power did not diminish with the death of the last apostle, as some traditions teach.

But we recall that Jesus could do few miracles in Nazareth because of *their* unbelief. He did manage to heal a few!

Heal a few! Wouldn't we love to see a few healings!

Because of current events and prophecy, I suspect we are in the lukewarm Laodicean Church Age. And in the very last of the Last Days.

If so, we share a challenge:

Jesus questions whether He would find faith on the earth when He returns.

He also said in John 14:6 that those who love Him, obey Him, and He will love them, and show Himself to them. So I think obedience is key to more faith. Ephesians 5:18 tells us, Be (continually) filled with the Spirit.

And this plays out in part by not turning for entertainment to books about things God hates. Especially when He tells us so for our own well-being.

I'm no great example of an obedient one. I have temptations and strongholds of my own that I battle.

But I find it easy to resist these popular stories.

Because I've had so much fun seeing God move in my life and I want more. Praise God. I'd much rather have that than any fun I can get from a movie.

And I really, really long to see a few more loved ones healed! Not to put a guilt trip on people who have not been healed. But I suspect the whole church is missing out by allowing the world to distract us from our reasonable service--loving God more than anything else.