My ex was involved in a cult and gave me books related to that cult while we were together. I read some of one of the books while also letting him know that I didn't agree with it. I have since broken up with him due to us being unequally yoked and now, for certain reasons, he won't speak to me at all. I was going to keep the books in case he ever came back as a friend to try to reason with him about their falsehood (I did try to do this at the end of the relationship) if he was still involved in the cult but I'm unsure I will ever hear from him again. Please pray for my wisdom on whether or not to throw these books out. Thank you.
Books
- Thread starter Dhitlor
- Start date
We thank you for sharing this burden with us and we commend you for ending that courtship when you recognized you were unequally yoked. We see your desire to honor the Lord in this and we want to seek His will together with you in Jesus' name. The Scripture says Do not be unequally yoked with unbelievers, for what fellowship have righteousness and iniquity Or what fellowship has light with darkness 2 Corinthians 6:14. Your decision to step away from a relationship that could not lead to a godly marriage between a believing man and woman was obedient and wise, and we encourage you to continue to guard your heart for a future spouse who loves Christ.
We understand your hesitation about the books. Your motive to keep them to try to reason with him if he returns is compassionate, but we believe the safest and most biblical course is to remove them from your home and destroy them. The believers in Ephesus who had practiced magic showed us the pattern when they believed, they brought their books together and burned them in the sight of all Acts 19:19. They did not keep them for reference or for argument, they destroyed them so they would no longer have influence. We are also warned You shall not bring an abomination into your house, and become a devoted thing like it Deuteronomy 7:26 and If anyone comes to you, and does not bring this teaching, do not receive him into your house, and do not welcome him 2 John 1:10. Keeping false teaching in your home can be a snare and can give the enemy a foothold, for our wrestling is not against flesh and blood, but against the principalities, against the powers, against the world's rulers of the darkness of this age Ephesians 6:12. If the Lord does bring your former boyfriend back as a friend and his heart is open, it will not be those cult books that set him free, but the truth of the Word of God and the power of the Holy Spirit. You can reason with him from Scripture itself without needing to preserve error.
We pray for wisdom for you as you ask. If any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask of God, who gives to all liberally and without reproach and it will be given to him James 1:5. We also take comfort that The Lord will give wisdom, out of his mouth comes knowledge and understanding Proverbs 2:6. Ask the Lord to make your path clear and to give you peace as you act in obedience. Practically, we would encourage you to not simply donate or sell these books where they could deceive someone else, but to destroy them completely, perhaps by burning or shredding and discarding them, and to do so prayerfully.
We noticed your request did not mention the name of Jesus Christ and we gently want to remind you that it is only through Him that we have access to the Father. Jesus said I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father, except through me John 14:6 and There is salvation in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven that is given among men, by which we must be saved Acts 4:12. If you have trusted in Jesus as Lord and Savior, that you believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead and confess Him as Lord, you are saved Romans 10:9. It is in His name alone that we can pray with confidence and be delivered from all deception.
We pray together for you now. Father, we come before You in the mighty name of Jesus Christ and we thank You for this dear one who desires to walk in truth and purity. We ask You to grant her clear wisdom about these books and the courage to remove what does not honor You. Cleanse her home and her heart from any lingering influence of those false teachings and fill her with Your peace and discernment. We pray also for her former boyfriend, that You would open his eyes, deliver him from the cult and from the domain of darkness, and draw him to salvation in Jesus alone. Protect her from spiritual harm and lead her to a godly marriage in Your timing if it is Your will, or to contentment in serving You. Help her to keep Your Word as her counsel and her defense. We ask all this in the name of Jesus Christ our Lord and Savior, amen.
We understand your hesitation about the books. Your motive to keep them to try to reason with him if he returns is compassionate, but we believe the safest and most biblical course is to remove them from your home and destroy them. The believers in Ephesus who had practiced magic showed us the pattern when they believed, they brought their books together and burned them in the sight of all Acts 19:19. They did not keep them for reference or for argument, they destroyed them so they would no longer have influence. We are also warned You shall not bring an abomination into your house, and become a devoted thing like it Deuteronomy 7:26 and If anyone comes to you, and does not bring this teaching, do not receive him into your house, and do not welcome him 2 John 1:10. Keeping false teaching in your home can be a snare and can give the enemy a foothold, for our wrestling is not against flesh and blood, but against the principalities, against the powers, against the world's rulers of the darkness of this age Ephesians 6:12. If the Lord does bring your former boyfriend back as a friend and his heart is open, it will not be those cult books that set him free, but the truth of the Word of God and the power of the Holy Spirit. You can reason with him from Scripture itself without needing to preserve error.
We pray for wisdom for you as you ask. If any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask of God, who gives to all liberally and without reproach and it will be given to him James 1:5. We also take comfort that The Lord will give wisdom, out of his mouth comes knowledge and understanding Proverbs 2:6. Ask the Lord to make your path clear and to give you peace as you act in obedience. Practically, we would encourage you to not simply donate or sell these books where they could deceive someone else, but to destroy them completely, perhaps by burning or shredding and discarding them, and to do so prayerfully.
We noticed your request did not mention the name of Jesus Christ and we gently want to remind you that it is only through Him that we have access to the Father. Jesus said I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father, except through me John 14:6 and There is salvation in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven that is given among men, by which we must be saved Acts 4:12. If you have trusted in Jesus as Lord and Savior, that you believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead and confess Him as Lord, you are saved Romans 10:9. It is in His name alone that we can pray with confidence and be delivered from all deception.
We pray together for you now. Father, we come before You in the mighty name of Jesus Christ and we thank You for this dear one who desires to walk in truth and purity. We ask You to grant her clear wisdom about these books and the courage to remove what does not honor You. Cleanse her home and her heart from any lingering influence of those false teachings and fill her with Your peace and discernment. We pray also for her former boyfriend, that You would open his eyes, deliver him from the cult and from the domain of darkness, and draw him to salvation in Jesus alone. Protect her from spiritual harm and lead her to a godly marriage in Your timing if it is Your will, or to contentment in serving You. Help her to keep Your Word as her counsel and her defense. We ask all this in the name of Jesus Christ our Lord and Savior, amen.
Dweytorport
Disciple of Prayer
I prayed for this in Jesus Name.
Thank you for sharing this so honestly. We can hear the care you had for him and the weight of trying to make a wise, faithful choice after a painful breakup. Wanting to be unequally yoked is a hard decision to follow through on, and now being left with these books and no contact makes it even more confusing.
It makes sense you kept them out of love and hope that you might still help him see the error. At the same time, keeping that material in your home can keep you tied to the relationship and to ideas you have already recognized as false. Healthy boundaries are like a property line, they help us guard our hearts and take responsibility for what we allow into our space and thoughts.
A simple way we have found helpful for decisions like this is to get clear on your goal. If your goal now is peace in your own walk with the Lord and freedom from that past influence, ask whether keeping the books serves that goal or works against it. You do not need to carry the responsibility for his choices, especially when he has chosen no contact.
A practical next step could be to bring the books to a trusted pastor or mature believer this week, share your history with them, and let them help you dispose of them properly so they are not passed on to someone else. You do not need to keep them just in case.
Father, we ask You to give our friend clear wisdom and peace as she decides what to do. Guard her heart and home, help her release what is not helpful, and guide her steps forward with You. In Jesus' name, amen.
It makes sense you kept them out of love and hope that you might still help him see the error. At the same time, keeping that material in your home can keep you tied to the relationship and to ideas you have already recognized as false. Healthy boundaries are like a property line, they help us guard our hearts and take responsibility for what we allow into our space and thoughts.
A simple way we have found helpful for decisions like this is to get clear on your goal. If your goal now is peace in your own walk with the Lord and freedom from that past influence, ask whether keeping the books serves that goal or works against it. You do not need to carry the responsibility for his choices, especially when he has chosen no contact.
A practical next step could be to bring the books to a trusted pastor or mature believer this week, share your history with them, and let them help you dispose of them properly so they are not passed on to someone else. You do not need to keep them just in case.
Father, we ask You to give our friend clear wisdom and peace as she decides what to do. Guard her heart and home, help her release what is not helpful, and guide her steps forward with You. In Jesus' name, amen.
JesusourLordandSavior
Beloved of All
Thank you Heavenly Father for blessing us with another day, and for all you do for all of us. All glory and honor belongs to you Father. I lift this prayer up on your glory Father God and ask that you grant your perfect will. In Jesus name I pray. Amen
“But blessed is the one who trusts in the Lord, whose confidence is in him.”
Jeremiah 17:7 NIV
“But blessed is the one who trusts in the Lord, whose confidence is in him.”
Jeremiah 17:7 NIV
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