Halloween: 3 Controversial Things to Celebrate, Avoid, and Redeem

The Battle of Halloween

is second only to the War on Christmas, at least in terms of passionate tweets and boycotts. It seems that Christians get a bad rap for being "against" a lot of things surrounding this holiday. I've already lost count of the number of "Fall Festivals" and "Halloween Alternatives" at local churches on Halloween night. There are certainly negative and dangerous traditions that go along with Halloween, but it's also the single greatest evangelism holiday in America. When else will your neighbors, friends, and total strangers willingly walk up to your door to talk with you? Halloween night is opportunity unlike any other night to share the Gospel and show others what Jesus is like. 

     Assuming that you're not boycotting Halloween altogether (again, think of the Kingdom impact your could have!), you've probably wrestled with how to participate without getting sucked into all the negativity. Here are a few common questions about Halloween, and how you can Celebrate the good, Avoid the bad, and Redeem the traditions in light of the Gospel.

How Can I Help My Kids Pick An Appropriate Costume?

• Celebrate Creativity. Halloween costumes are a prime opportunity to help our kids think outside the box and get creative. We can encourage our kids to make their own costumes instead of buying one off the rack.
• Avoid Halloween Stores. These stores are bad news for a few reasons. 1) They are incredibly expensive and overpriced. Halloween stores are only around for 1-2 months a year, and therefore they mark up their products to astronomical levels in order to make it worthwhile. 2) They celebrate and normalize violence, occultic practices, and sexualization of adults and kids. The vast majority of the products at these pop-up Halloween stores are either explicitly inappropriate or send the wrong message about what is acceptable. ProtectYoungMinds.org has an insightful and helpful article on how sexualized Halloween costumes affect young girls and boys.
• Redeem Costumes of Postive Role Models. A lot of Halloween costumes represent negative (or at least neutral) role models. Kids and adults dress up as villains, specters, and otherwise bad people. We can encourage our kids to dress up as someone they admire and reinforce their positive influence. A role model can be real or fictional, but it should be someone who stands for justice and morality.

Should My Family Go Trick-or-Treating?

• Celebrate Community. Trick-or-Treating is more fun with friends and family. Instead of going alone, ask your kids to invite a friend from school (maybe you could even invite their whole family along too!). Welcome trick-or-treaters to your door with a smile and a compliment on their costume. You can't change how other people celebrate on Halloween night, but you can make your home inviting!
• Avoid Gluttony & Greed. ALL. OF. THE. CANDY. When the kids burst through the door with a bag full of sweets, we can teach them a valuable lesson about self-control by limiting their indulgence. It's ok to enjoy the loot, but we shouldn't get carried away into gluttony and greedy attitudes. Let's teach our kids to share what they have and enjoy it with others.
• Redeem Your Neighborhood Relationships. Like I said before, there is no other night of the year when everyone in your neighborhood willingly walks up to your door to talk with you. We need to find a way to meaningfully connect with the people that come to our door - have the best candy on the block, set up a photo booth for families, or invite the neighbors over for a Halloween party. We can start a conversation on Halloween that will turn into a chance to share the Gospel later.

Are Scary Movies OK for My Kids?

• Celebrate Empathy and Good Defeating Evil. Every channel on TV runs a Halloween special at some point around the 31st. Some of these are outright bad choices (read more below), but some movies give us a chance to teach our kids positive lessons. 1) Feeling empathy for a character who is scared is a good thing. We should encourage our kids to identify how they feel after being frightened and how they can recognize fear in others. Empathy helps us to show compassion to those who are hurt, scared, or alone. 2) When Good defeats Evil, the Gospel is on display. Every human story ultimately reflects the story of God. Sometimes you have to dig, but art almost always portrays a longing for God. When the bad guy is defeated and the hero triumphs, we are reminded in some small way that Jesus has defeated death and evil for good.
• Avoid Glorifying Slasher Violence & Occultic Practices. Violence and evil are a part of our broken world. There's no sense in completely sheltering our kids from negativity. If we're able to guide them through negative experiences with a firm faith and a critical mind, we can prepare our kids to face whatever life throws at them. However, there's not a lot of redemptive qualities in celebrating serial killers, summoning the dead, and glorifying sin. We should avoid these things altogether.
• Redeem Acts of True Bravery. Fear reveals character. Some run from fear and cower. Others face fear head on. During a holiday that celebrates fear, we should celebrate true bravery. In To Kill a Mockingbird, Atticus Finch explains bravery to his son like this: "I wanted you to see what real courage is, instead of getting the idea that courage is a man with a gun in his hand. It's when you know you're licked before you begin, but you begin anyway and see it through no matter what." We can share stories of when we were afraid and the decisions we made. Whether we acted courageously or cowardly, we can still point to Christ. Jesus knew he was licked before he began, but he climbed up the hill, took the nails, and died in our place. That's true bravery.

Let's take advantage of this amazing chance to live like Jesus and turn Halloween into a Gospel-centered experience.

Have a Fun & Frugal 4th of July

     4th of July is one of my favorite holidays, mainly because it is usually filled with delicious food, pretty fireworks, and great company. If you've ever thrown a themed party, you know that hosting can be a stressful and expensive experience. Oh, but it doesn't have to be! Whether you plan on inviting the whole neighborhood over or just want an easy and special treat for your family, there are endless creative ideas out there! Here's just a few:

     Kara has included 15 different treats and decorative ideas for 4th of July on her blog Saving by Design. From patriotic fruit and cheese trays to a refurbished painted pallet, you will find that the majority of her ideas are fun, frugal, and easy! For all you moms and dads with full calendars, you will have no trouble pulling together a quick snack or activity this holiday for your friends and family.

     And if you need help with the small details, Kathy over at The Budget Decorator has some great, affordable DIY decorations that will be a breeze to pull together if you decide to have a spur of the moment party. 

     Regardless of your holiday plans, I hope these ideas will cultivate memories and traditions that bring you and your family closer together. Kids won't always remember the mundane, but they will remember the unexpected. Throw a little bit of creativity into your regular plans for the 4th, and your kids will remember it for years to come.

Holiday Traditions That Matter: Point Your Kids to Jesus With Your Family's Holiday Plans

“What does your family do for the holidays? Anything special?”

     I asked a friend this question just this morning. I'm sure you've started to hear this question more now that winter is closing in. It usually sparks nostalgic conversations of childhood memories and time together with family. My friend answered my question by sharing some of his family traditions of going to basketball games, cooking food, and spending time with his grandparents. It got me thinking about my own family’s traditions, and I had to ask myself, “Why do we do all this stuff?”

     As I thought about it more, it was helpful to break things down into town categories: rituals and traditions. Most of us, myself included, fall into the habit of rituals: setting up a Christmas tree, giving presents to family, and saying what we’re thankful for at Thanksgiving without much intentionality. Rituals aren't bad, but they can have so much more meaning when they're rooted in a tradition. Simply giving my kids a gift at Christmas is performing a ritual. But, I can pass on a meaningful tradition by giving my kids a gift because it is a reminder that God gave us the ultimate gift by becoming a man in order to die in our place. God perfectly established the tradition of giving, and I can pass that on in a small way through giving gifts to my children.

      Traditions are much more than performing an empty ritual— they are passing on a truth from one generation to the next. Paul says in 2 Timothy 2:2,

You have heard me teach things that have been confirmed by many reliable witnesses. Now teach these truths to other trustworthy people who will be able to pass them on to others.

Starting traditions grounded in Scripture is an important aspect of discipling my own children, especially during the holidays.

     Here are a few ways to help us remember and teach our children the biblical truths behind some of our holiday rituals:

• Give each member of your family a chance to share how God has blessed them this year before you eat Thanksgiving dinner (It will be a chance to practice self-control too!).
• Use an Advent Calendar to keep the weeks leading up to Christmas focused on the truths behind our traditions and rituals. If you’ve never done this before, check out John Piper’s free ebook Good News of Great Joy: Daily Readings for Advent. 
• Read the story of the wise men (Matthew 2:1-12) while wrapping presents for others.
• Read the Christmas story (Luke 2) while opening presents on Christmas morning.
• Read through the Gospel message of Jesus’ death and resurrection (Matthew 23-24) as a family on New Years to remind us of the new life we have been given in Christ.

     Keeping traditions focused on the Gospel can be both exciting and intimidating. Just remember that the goal is to simply remind ourselves and our family about the truths contained in Scripture. So let’s get creative to make this holiday season all about Jesus! What traditions does your family celebrate during the holiday season? How can we point our kids to Jesus in the chaos of Black Friday, school programs, and family gatherings? We'd love to hear your thoughts in the comments!