Before becoming a disciple, I used to practice witchcraft. I could, and still can, meet people for the first time and pretty much know their life story. I use this intuition to read people when I study with them. Is that wrong? I definitely pray about the "feelings" I get and ask God for guidance. And most of the time they're right. My mother says I have a gift that she has and my grandmother had of a sixth sense. I know when the phone will ring. I have dreams that come true and can often sense "spirits" around. Is there any explanation in the Scriptures of this? Is it from Satan? What do you think about ghosts? I have encountered some really weird situations; could they be the dead, or demons? -- Lara (Los Angeles)
Interesting! But to be honest, I'm extremely skeptical about claims to the supernatural. You may want to read my book The Spirit if you really want to know where I stand on matters of "guidance," ghosts, the occult, etc.
As for the ability to discern someone's life story, many people can guess, by mere intuition, the sorts of things another person has been through. This is no special talent, as I see it. "Fortune-tellers" do it all the time! I would be hesitant to ascribe it all to Satan, though I do not doubt that he delights in misleading human beings, since he is "the Father of lies." Anyway, take a look at The Spirit (IPI, 2005) if you don't mind, as I have addressed most of your questions there.
This article is copyrighted and is for private use and study only.
Update: You might also want to listen to the lessons from the 2011 conference, Christianity and the Paranormal.
