SBNR

When you look into the book of Acts, you see that there was supernatural activity all around, including the expression of the power and presence of God.  In Acts 19, we read about a man with an evil spirit who overpowered someone who was trying to drive the spirit out. This obviously terrified the witnesses, but in the aftermath, God was glorified, as we read:
18 And many who had believed came confessing and telling their deeds.
19 Also, many of those who had practiced magic brought their books together and burned them in the sight of all. And they counted up the value of them, and it totaled fifty thousand pieces of silver.
20 So the word of the Lord grew mightily and prevailed.

I believe we are living in times where there is significant spiritual activity, and we have to be incredibly discerning to determine what is of God, what lines up with His truth, and what doesn't. A person who is not reliant on God's Word and begins to investigate and experiment with other spiritual practices opens himself or herself up to the power of the enemy.  In this age of spiritual experimentation, we have to hold on to the one true God and model His truth.

+++++

As the early Church began to progress, ministers of the gospel ran into some errant spiritual practices. They encountered a sorcerer named Simon in Acts 8, who accepted Christ and was baptized, who tried to pay for the expression of the Holy Spirit and was told to repent.  Acts 16 talks about a girl
who made money for her employers under the influence of an evil spirit:
16 Now it happened, as we went to prayer, that a certain slave girl possessed with a spirit of divination met us, who brought her masters much profit by fortune-telling.
17 This girl followed Paul and us, and cried out, saying, "These men are the servants of the Most High God, who proclaim to us the way of salvation."
18 And this she did for many days. But Paul, greatly annoyed, turned and said to the spirit, "I command you in the name of Jesus Christ to come out of her." And he came out that very hour.

There continues to be a marked departure from organized religious practice among the Millennial generation, and young adults are getting a spiritual "fix," it seems, from a variety of other spiritual practices that do not involved the worship of a deity.  Liberty McArtor of The Stream calls attention to a MarketWatch story that includes information on the so-called "psychic services industry." That story states:

...more than half of young adults in the U.S. believe astrology is a science. compared to less than 8% of the Chinese public. The psychic services industry — which includes astrology, aura reading, mediumship, tarot-card reading and palmistry, among other metaphysical services — grew 2% between 2011 and 2016. It is now worth $2 billion annually, according to industry analysis firm IBIS World.\

The statistic relative to astrology being a science comes from a 2014 study by the National Science Foundation, as reported at UPI.com.

McArtor quotes from a 2012 Pew Research Center poll that found that "a third of millennials have no religious affiliation. But that doesn’t mean they’re atheists. Of that group, one third identify as spiritual but not religious (SBNR). One in five pray every day. Two-thirds believe in God. Over half feel a 'deep connection with nature and the earth.'"

And, MarketWatch reports on a Pew study released last week that says that, "The majority of Americans now believe it is not necessary to believe in God to have good morals...The percentage of people between the ages of 18 and 29 who 'never doubt existence of God' fell from 81% in 2007 to 67% in 2012."

The opening statement in the Pew summary states:

Most U.S. adults now say it is not necessary to believe in God to be moral and have good values (56%), up from about half (49%) who expressed this view in 2011. This increase reflects the continued growth in the share of the population that has no religious affiliation, but it also is the result of changing attitudes among those who do identify with a religion, including white evangelical Protestants.

McArtor, in her article, also explores what some academicians are saying about the so-called SBNR movement (which stands for "spiritual but not religious").  There are those that have their theories about the departure from organized religion, which would include Christianity. But, two things stand out from her article. One is: "millennials still want meaning. " She quotes Matthew Hedstrom of the University of Virginia: “They also want to be a part of something larger — a spiritual belief … a movement to improve the environment, or social justice.”

Another comes from Casper Ter Kuile, a "ministry innovation fellow" at Harvard Divinity School, a 30-year-old religious "none." He told the PBS News Hour, “We aren’t young people who hate religion,” adding, “It’s a growing group that feel like they have been left behind by religious institutions.” He talked about how community is important in filling a void.

McArtor writes:

As examples he named The Dinner Party, which brings people together to share a meal and grieve a lost loved one. He also mentioned CrossFit. The fitness brand has communities across the nation. In June, The Atlantic talked with Ter Kuile on how CrossFit and other gyms function like a church.

Ter Kuile said these kinds of communities are more than “simple entertainment.” He noted how members help each other in times of need, much like a religious congregation.

I think there are several concepts that come to mind here:

It's a bit discomforting in this context to refer to Christianity as a "religion." We really can't put our faith into a sociological box; our practice of faith is more than a ritual or religious expression - it is to be vibrant relationship with a living God.  In a sense, Christianity is in a class all by itself, and that is consistent with Jesus referring to Himself as "the way, the truth, and the life."  The Christian who is following Christ as His disciple, outside the survey world, could be considered SBNR (spiritual but not religious).

But, Christianity, in a demographic sense, fits more with theistic religious practices than these rogue spiritual experiences such as astrology and the so-called "psychic services industry."  But, we can look around and identify that young adults are seeking out a sense of spirituality, which is consistent with that "search for meaning," a sense of something greater than themselves.  That is where the Church has a chance to present the true Jesus, the One who comes to redeem our lives, who invites us to experience His love, and who will bring purpose and direction to our lives.

The Church also has the potential to provide community - an environment in which people can grow in fellowship with God and one another.  Millennials are apparently desiring authentic relationships, rather than, as Ter Kuile says, "simple entertainment."  And, it's important that the Church not become just another entertainment source driven by the consumer culture.

We also can stay away from spiritual practices that do not exalt God.  Astrology puts faith in the stars, it's a diversion from the truth of the Word.  And, it's certainly not harmless.  According to John Ankerberg: "astrology is related to the occult in four main ways." They are: 1) "dictionaries often define astrol­ogy as an occult art because the practice employs occult divination." 2) "astrology appears to work best when the astrologer himself is psychically or mediumistically sensi­tive, what most astrologers term 'intuitive.'" 3) "prolonged use of astrology leads to the development of psychic abilities and the contact of spirit guides." 4) "astrology often becomes the introductory course to a wider spectrum of occult practices."

You have occult practices and witchcraft which offer a spiritual experience, but they stand opposed to the truth of God and open people up to demonic influences.  That is why elements of the practice of Halloween have become concerning to Christians, and why the Church has sought to provide alternatives to the immersion in negative spirituality.  We have to recognize that there is a spiritual realm and there are practices and influences that can be damaging to the spirit of a person.