Oh, how I love Halloween! It isn't just that I love this day...but I love everything there is to love about fall! Crisp night air, crunchy leaves under foot, the smell of a blazing campfire and marshmallows roasting over top of it, apple cider, pumpkin rolls, the sounds of children laughing as they go house to house in search of a tasty treat...a time with family, a time with friends, and a time with God!
I know, many of you dislike Halloween as Christians. You think it is a night of witches, ghosts, and things that go bump in the night. This night, you think, will be full of evil worship, evil doers, and evil horror. Well, it could be, if that is what you make of it. Like many things in this world (facebook, instagram, twitter) that people seem to dislike without really going out and trying or seeing it for themselves...Halloween can be good or it can be evil. It simply is what you make of it!
I personally don't believe those little kids dressed like witches, ghosts, and gobblins can do me any harm. I don't believe that vampires, zoombies, or werewolves even exist. I do believe that real evil is everywhere, daily, trying to cause us GREAT harm. His name is Satan.
Scripture says, "Be alert and of sober mind. Your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour. Resist him, standing firm in the faith, because you know that the family of believers throughout the world is undergoing the same kind of sufferings." 1 Peter 5:8-9 NIV
Evil is all throughout the world, just watch the evening news if you don't believe me. I bet you can't watch 5 minutes without hearing of one form of evil or another, it's out there and it is real. But I choose to think that there is good to counteract the evil done daily out there! I choose to tune my tv to programs that promote love, honesty, and decency. I choose to listen to music that empowers, uplifts, and encourages folks in their daily lives. I choose to make my facebook page a place that makes people feel good!
So, on this Halloween night, choose to see good. Choose to see kids having innocent fun, families spending another night being together watching "It's The Great Pumpkin Charlie Brown", communities coming together to promote peaceful places for our kids to roam for treats. Choose to see that this night is the kick off to the greater holiday season yet to come! See God overcoming Satan on this night! Participate and find ways to have fun and incorporate your faith into Halloween...it may be the only time these kids ever hear or see the love of Christ shining through you. So, Happy Halloween!
Melissa
Read the following story below to see how one woman incorparated her faith into sharing the word of Jesus Christ on Halloween!
I know, many of you dislike Halloween as Christians. You think it is a night of witches, ghosts, and things that go bump in the night. This night, you think, will be full of evil worship, evil doers, and evil horror. Well, it could be, if that is what you make of it. Like many things in this world (facebook, instagram, twitter) that people seem to dislike without really going out and trying or seeing it for themselves...Halloween can be good or it can be evil. It simply is what you make of it!
I personally don't believe those little kids dressed like witches, ghosts, and gobblins can do me any harm. I don't believe that vampires, zoombies, or werewolves even exist. I do believe that real evil is everywhere, daily, trying to cause us GREAT harm. His name is Satan.
Scripture says, "Be alert and of sober mind. Your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour. Resist him, standing firm in the faith, because you know that the family of believers throughout the world is undergoing the same kind of sufferings." 1 Peter 5:8-9 NIV
Evil is all throughout the world, just watch the evening news if you don't believe me. I bet you can't watch 5 minutes without hearing of one form of evil or another, it's out there and it is real. But I choose to think that there is good to counteract the evil done daily out there! I choose to tune my tv to programs that promote love, honesty, and decency. I choose to listen to music that empowers, uplifts, and encourages folks in their daily lives. I choose to make my facebook page a place that makes people feel good!
So, on this Halloween night, choose to see good. Choose to see kids having innocent fun, families spending another night being together watching "It's The Great Pumpkin Charlie Brown", communities coming together to promote peaceful places for our kids to roam for treats. Choose to see that this night is the kick off to the greater holiday season yet to come! See God overcoming Satan on this night! Participate and find ways to have fun and incorporate your faith into Halloween...it may be the only time these kids ever hear or see the love of Christ shining through you. So, Happy Halloween!
Melissa
Read the following story below to see how one woman incorparated her faith into sharing the word of Jesus Christ on Halloween!
Implementing Your Faith into Halloween
Many people don’t celebrate Halloween because of their religious beliefs. While that should certainly be respected, how about using the holiday as a way of ministering instead of avoiding it all in all? Here’s an example of how one Christian woman, we’ll call her Ann, combines her faith with trick or treating every year.
Starting the day after Halloween every year, Ann begins preparing for the next year’s trick or treat guests. You see Ann believes that Halloween is a way of opening her door to the children who may, down the line, want to know more about Christianity. She starts preparing goodie bags well in advance and plans well.
Each child who comes to her door receives plenty of candy, but that’s not all. She also includes things in the bag of goodies such as:
Each child also gets something age appropriate explaining Jesus. Things like Cd’s with Bible stories, Veggie Tales videos, and other things are bought throughout the year at dollar stores, Bible book stores, etc. so as to spread the cost out throughout the year.
Why does Ann do this? Her prayer is that when any of those children is ready to learn more about Christ they will remember her as the one who knows Him and can help them do just that.
Ann also decorates her home for the holiday with pumpkins. You won’t find traditional witches and ghouls carved in the sides of her jack-o-lanterns. Instead, crosses, angels and the words of Jesus are the carvings of choice.
For those who might be thinking Ann probably doesn’t get a lot of visitors to her home each year think again. It couldn’t be further from the truth. Each year between 80 and 100 kids ring her doorbell. The past few years have seen a decrease in the number of visitors she gets due to her neighborhood parents doing Trunk or Treat activities.
Trunk or Treat is where parents gather at the school and give candy to the children from the trunks of their car versus going door to door on Halloween night. For folks like Ann, it can be a little sad, but she realizes the positive of having been able to do what she does for over 10 years in her community.
Many people don’t celebrate Halloween because of their religious beliefs. While that should certainly be respected, how about using the holiday as a way of ministering instead of avoiding it all in all? Here’s an example of how one Christian woman, we’ll call her Ann, combines her faith with trick or treating every year.
Starting the day after Halloween every year, Ann begins preparing for the next year’s trick or treat guests. You see Ann believes that Halloween is a way of opening her door to the children who may, down the line, want to know more about Christianity. She starts preparing goodie bags well in advance and plans well.
Each child who comes to her door receives plenty of candy, but that’s not all. She also includes things in the bag of goodies such as:
- Faith based coloring books
- Stickers
- Games
- Pencils & Erasers
- Notepads
- Anything with a message from the Bible
Each child also gets something age appropriate explaining Jesus. Things like Cd’s with Bible stories, Veggie Tales videos, and other things are bought throughout the year at dollar stores, Bible book stores, etc. so as to spread the cost out throughout the year.
Why does Ann do this? Her prayer is that when any of those children is ready to learn more about Christ they will remember her as the one who knows Him and can help them do just that.
Ann also decorates her home for the holiday with pumpkins. You won’t find traditional witches and ghouls carved in the sides of her jack-o-lanterns. Instead, crosses, angels and the words of Jesus are the carvings of choice.
For those who might be thinking Ann probably doesn’t get a lot of visitors to her home each year think again. It couldn’t be further from the truth. Each year between 80 and 100 kids ring her doorbell. The past few years have seen a decrease in the number of visitors she gets due to her neighborhood parents doing Trunk or Treat activities.
Trunk or Treat is where parents gather at the school and give candy to the children from the trunks of their car versus going door to door on Halloween night. For folks like Ann, it can be a little sad, but she realizes the positive of having been able to do what she does for over 10 years in her community.