Is It Really So Bad to Check My Horoscope?

Ah, horoscopes. It seems like you can find your sign and a “forecast” of your future in almost any secular magazine or newspaper.

Whole websites are devoted to helping you plan your future based on astrology. Some people refuse to date or hang out with someone based solely on their birth date.

So those are the people to take it too far, but what about those who just want to read it for fun? 

One reader asked famed evangelist Billy Graham: “Every morning my neighbor won’t do anything until she’s checked her horoscope for the day. I’ve always considered them kind of a joke, but she really takes it seriously. Is she possibly right?” 

Wise as always, here is Graham’s answer:

I don’t doubt her sincerity—but I’m afraid she is putting her trust in something that will only mislead her and take her down a wrong path in life. God alone is the one to whom we can look for guidance, and He alone can be trusted to lead us when we sincerely seek His will.

Why does the Bible command us not to turn to horoscopes or fortunetellers or astrologers for guidance? One reason is because often they’re only guessing about the future. Have you ever read the predictions some of them make at the beginning of each year—and then compared them with what actually happened? Isaiah mocked the astrologers of his day: “All of them go on in their error; there is not one that can save you” (Is. 47:15, NIV).

But the Bible also commands us to avoid such things because we may become involved with occult spiritual forces that are absolutely opposed to God. Instead of finding the truth, we will only find falsehood. Instead of finding freedom, we will only find spiritual slavery. Never doubt Satan’s power to deceive those who open their lives to his authority. The Bible bluntly says, “For all that do these things are an abomination to the Lord” (Deut. 18:12, MEV).

Pray for your neighbor, that God will open her eyes and turn her heart to Jesus. Ask God also to help you be a friend to her, and to give you opportunities to assure her of Christ’s love for her. He alone is “the way, the truth, and the life” (John 14:6). {eoa}