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WINNING WITH THE WORD by Dr. MaryAnn Diorio “Winning with the Word” is a weekly blog that will help you to be a winner in life by applying God's principles for living the abundant life as found in the Bible, God's manual for life. AN INVITATION TO YOU: To follow this blog, click here.   If this blog has blessed you, please encourage your family and friends to subscribe as well. Thank you! ______________________________________ Do you prefer listening instead of reading? Then click below on the PODCAST LINK to today's blog post: PODCAST: "THE DANGERS OF THE OCCULT" by Dr. MaryAnn Diorio   http://maryanndiorio.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/11/WWW.Podcast-26.-The-Dangers-of-the-Occult.mp3   ______________________________________   With Halloween just around the corner, I think it appropriate today to discuss the dangers of the occult. While occult practices are widespread in our country throughout the year, they become particularly intense around Halloween, since Halloween is considered a religious holiday, if you will, among those involved in the occult. Webster's Dictionary defines the occult as "matters involving the action or influence of supernatural agencies." I'd like to clarify this definition a bit by saying that the occult involves the action or influence of demonic supernatural agencies. Angels are supernatural agencies, but they have nothing at all to do with the occult. Many people today are involved in the occult and don't even know it. Perhaps you are one of them. Let me ask you a few questions. Do you start your day by reading your horoscope? Do you call the psychic hotline when you're facing a problem? Have you gone to a fortune teller, attended a séance, or spoken to what you thought was the spirit of a dead relative? Have you played with a Ouija board or experimented with levitation? If you've done or are doing any of these things, then you are involved in the occult, and you are in serious danger. So, listen very carefully.  If you've experimented with the occult to any degree whatsoever, even if just once, you've probably encountered forces outside the natural realm. Most likely, these forces, also called evil spirits, have produced fear in your life, perhaps even nightmares or panic attacks. In some cases, these evil spirits may have even taken over your personality. If so, I want to encourage you today, for there is a way for you to be delivered from the influence of evil spirits. The Bible God's instruction manual for man, in Deuteronomy 18: 9-12, has this to say about the occult: "Let no one be found among you who sacrifices his son or daughter in the fire, who practices divination or sorcery, interprets omens, engages in witchcraft or casts spells, or who is a medium or spiritist, or who consults the dead. Anyone who does these things is detestable to the Lord." If you are involved in the occult, you are on a road that will surely lead you to destruction and death unless you make an about-face. Why? Because the occult is the realm of Satan and his demons, and involvement with Satan and his demons always leads to spiritual and often physical death. Demons are fallen angels that sided with Satan when he rebelled against God. As a result of their rebellion, they were thrown out of Heaven and now roam the earth enticing unsuspecting people into their evil traps. The primary goal of demons is to get you to doubt what God says in the Bible. In other words, to get you to doubt God. This is exactly how Satan tempted Eve in the Garden of Eden. He got her to doubt the truth of what God had said to her. Let's take a look at this passage in the third chapter of Genesis: "Now the serpent was more crafty than any of the wild animals the Lord God had made. He said to the woman, 'Did God really say you must not eat from any tree in the garden?'" Let's stop here for a moment and notice the key to Satan's strategy of deception.