Reclaiming Halloween

You ever get finished with something and think, “Wow. What a great night?” I’ve never really had that feeling on Halloween before, except as a child getting home browsing through my gluttonous loot, but tonight, we did.

We had the opportunity to go to a friend’s house and trick-or-treat in that neighborhood, but at the last minute, God gave me another idea. We stayed home to pass out the giant bowl full of candy our children collected at the Fall Festival we attended yesterday.

We figured we had the perfect witnessing opportunity; people were coming to our house looking for candy, so we might as well make the most of it. We gave it to them AND Gideon and Scarlett passed out Gospel tracts along with information about our church’s children’s programs. There wasn’t too much opportunity to begin discussions because the trick-or-treaters were itching for candy and a quick get-away, but at least we were able to plant some seeds.

Many churches have started a Fall Festival alternative to Halloween, which I think is a great idea. It’s safe, family and kid-friendly, and a super easy opportunity for outreach in the community. Some people refuse to even acknowledge the day, seeing it as Satan’s day o’ iniquity. Today, I was reminded that no day is Satan’s day; God created them all, but

we can reclaim this day as a day to shine for our Lord and share the precious treasure we hold within our hearts, the truth of Christ’s sacrifice for our sins and the forgiveness he freely offers.

Anyway, it was such a blessing to see our preschool-aged children get excited about passing out their candy and information cards because 1.) they didn’t seem to notice ‘their’ candy was quickly dwindling and 2.) what better age to start than when their excitement about Jesus is fresh and contagious? Why don't you try it next year?

On very much a lesser note (but I thought it worth writing), our pediatrician (whom we absolutely LOVE) gave us a practical piece of advice about all that candy we don’t want them eating. He said that his dentist, I think, recommended that he let his kids gorge themselves on the candy after they’ve trick-or-treated, and then while they’re asleep, toss the rest. Better on the teeth than spreading it out for days or even weeks. A great piece of advice I’m happily distributing to you, and yes, we’ve adopted it. Our children gorged last night on the way home from my parent’s house. It was the quietest ride we’ve ever had. They’d never gotten to eat that much candy at one time, EVER!

(posing on my parent's stairs with our costume clad characters)