Redeeming Halloween

 

This is a great book on the topic. We have always participated in this holiday, but I have thought many times about how we could do it. Kim Wier and Pam McCune, the authors, used to bow out of all the festivities and are open in dealing with struggles Christians have with such a dark holiday. I'll share one little idea from the book and if you are interested you can pick up a copy for yourself. We are to be missional Christians. What kind of message does it send to the world we are supposed to be reaching, especially the kids, when they find a dark porch with no candy or a note that says "We don't participate in this holiday." How much better would it be if, in the midst of such a dark night, we had the brightest house on the block, decorated with tons of white lights. We could hand out the BEST candy! Full sized candy bars. And, if you have time to spare, make cool wrappers to tape around that say, "Taste and see that the Lord is good! Psalm 34:8" That is one night that we have a unique opportunity. When kids from non christian families in our neighborhood come to our house year after year hopefully they will remember the Christians as the most generous, the most joyous, the least fearful. Lastly, highlight Reformation Day. Talk about how Martin Luther nailed his 95 Thesis to the door of an old church on October 31 so many years ago. Gear up for All Saints Day on Nov 1st. It is a great day to teach our kiddos about the saints that have gone before us. We have no need to fear all the dark things that are paraded around on Halloween and so we should not be hiding. We should be redeeming and transforming! And our kids will have tons of fun in the process.