Make It Real: October 2011

Question: As a Christian I do not want our family to participate in Halloween. How should I handle my children’s disappointment?

Answer: After the death of my daughter Lauren at the age of seven, I absolutely wanted nothing to do with any celebration that would glorify evil or death. Even prior to her death, our family did not celebrate Halloween. We chose to take our children to church carnivals that did not emphasize the traditional Halloween symbolism. They never went trick-or-treating, but I did give them goodie bags that were upbeat and colorful. My husband’s and my intention was that our children would not feel deprived of a special celebration but instead claimed the day as being a fun day created to glorify God. When our children were older, we avoided the trick-or-treating by taking them to a restaurant and movie. We just wanted the kids to look forward to enjoying October 31st in a way that would not glorify the enemy.

Some well meaning Christians would disagree with any type of recognizing October 31st as a day to do something special. I do understand their reasoning and recommend that they handle the day in a way that their faith permits. Since I committed my life to Christ I did yield to the convicting voice of the Holy Spirit. He has taken away any excuse for justifying evil. However, He has taught me how to reveal truth to my children about the goodness of God. Therefore, they have never felt deprived because they are Christians. I do not apologize for making family choices based on our understanding of God and the leading of His Spirit. Now that my children are young adults, I know that they will have to make decisions based on their own relationship with God.

Personally, when my children begged to dress up and go trick or treating, I explained to them that satan was real. Halloween is a pagan celebration of evil Even as children, they understood that their sister’s death was an attack from the evil one. Her brothers and I witnessed her tragic death as we watched a tree branch smashed through her skull. You can find my book, Joy Comes In the Morning or hear the testimony on our web site at www.beautyforashes.org. A few days after Lauren’s funeral we found a picture she had drawn at school of a demon fleeing from a tree that stood next to a house. The Holy Spirit spoke to me that He had her draw the picture, so that when I would see the good He would bring from evil, I would never misunderstand Him and think He devised the evil. Evil is real and should not be celebrated by those who know Jesus Christ.

I now pastor a church in Newport News, VA and we have a plan to Take Back the Night with the Light. I don’t want satan to benefit from one single night on the calendar. We now see Oct. 31st as a night to evangelize our neighborhoods. We use bright colorful lights and Christian music playing on our front porches. We give out the largest and best treat bags in the neighborhood, each with a tract or card sharing about the love of Christ. We don’t make our neighbors feel ashamed for trick-or-treating. Instead, we just love them and bring light into the darkness. If every Christian would Take Back the Night with the Light then October 31st would become a day of great impact for Christ. What was meant for evil God would desire us to turn it for His glory.