For the record....and for those who are interested.....our family doesn't do "Halloween." There are several reasons for this. Most of them are personal convictions that we have as a family, so we don't judge other families or look down on other families if they don't feel as strongly about this day as we do. But these are some of the reasons we do not "celebrate" Halloween:
- This holiday has it's foundational beginnings in "hallowing" all things evil....spirits, Satan, demons, etc. Do a google search on Halloween and find out it's historical background. These websites have some really good things to read about it........go here....and here.
- As a believer in Christ and the Bible as the Word of God, I believe we are warned that "....we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places." Ephesians 6:12
- Because of this I believe we are being warned not to meddle with, dabble in, play with, or entertain anything related to the occult, demons, spirits or the devil. Instead, we should "Put on the whole armor of God, that ye (we) may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil."
Ephesians 6:11
- As a Christian, I am an enemy of the devil. He is out to try to destroy my family, ruin my marriage, and break up my relationship with Christ. The Bible says he is as a "roaring lion, seeking whom he may devour."
I Peter 5:8
- Because of these things, not to mention the scary, creepy images all around that frighten my children and put images in their minds they can't get away from at night, I don't play with Halloween. Even the softer side of Halloween is not something we do. I've noticed that costumes and decorations are getting more whimsical and cute and harmless looking. But I just feel very strongly that the devil wants us to be deceived and can disguise evil as good in an effort to make us comfortable with what is inherently not right.
- Plus, with a Type 1 Diabetic child in the house, we don't need all the extra candy floating around.
With all that being said, I LOVE FALL. I love the seasonal changes, and harvest time, and pumpkins, and pumpkin patches, and caramel apples, and county fairs!! We put up all the cutsy fall scarecrows and pumpkins and indian corn. We enjoy the season.
We also feel that it's our responsibility to find opportunities to share the good news of Jesus Christ, and to be light in the darkness and sadness pervading our culture. So I don't feel that it's right to slam the door, lock it, shut off all the lights, and hole up in the back of the house when the trick -or-treaters come knocking. What a terrific chance to tell them about the Lord and His answers to the problems in their lives!!! So since they are coming right to my door, I'm going to excite my children about being a missionary to their friends and neighbors.
So we bag up candy, tuck in a gospel tract, and wait for the children to come and get them!!! We don't generally dress up, and we love to show the love of Christ to those around us. This year we prepared 100 good news bags and can't wait to plant some seed in our community!!
**Reposted from the archives
