The Privileged Life: Three Ways to Redeem Halloween for Christ

“Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works and glorify your Father in heaven.” Matthew 5:16

Halloween…is not my cup of apple cider.

Give me pumpkins, fall festivals, corn mazes, leaf-peeking, sunflowers, and bright blue skies. All the morbid stuff of skeletons, bats, and vampires? Sorry, not interested. Not even for the chocolate (and that’s saying a lot).

As a Christ-follower, I have an aversion to “celebrating” a holiday that glorifies witchcraft and horror-movie themes. But Halloween is hard to ignore. It’s big business now in America—we spend upwards of $10 billion on Halloween stuff. That’s scary.*

Believe it or not, Halloween has religious origins, growing out of a superstitious response to All Saints Day on November 1. It was believed, on the eve of a remembrance day about departed loved ones, that the dead roamed the earth. “All Hallows’ Eve” morphed into Halloween…and lots of other creepy things now.

How then do we handle it? You can always turn off your lamps and retreat from the kids ringing your doorbell. You can decide to join in the festivities but without all the grotesque stuff.

Or…how about deliberately using this time as an opportunity to shine the light of Christ into a darkened world?

Here are three ways you can “redeem” Halloween for Jesus:

Share the good news about salvation with trick-or-treaters. Buy some kid-friendly tracts…or download and print your own. Look for puzzles, word searches, mazes, etc., and add your favorite Bible verses and message. Then buy really good treats, not the cheap stuff. (And yeah, I went into sticker shock, too, when I saw how expensive Halloween chocolates have become!) Or, buy something different, like party favors. Wrap or tape your treats with your tract/paper for handing out to kids, so that they will be encouraged read your message while enjoying your treat.
Volunteer at a “trunk-or-treat” or fall festival event at a church…or get one started in your neighborhood. These are fun opportunities for kids to enjoy costumes and candy in a safe environment. Look for ways to bring the gospel to children (and their parents) through storytelling, games, crafts, songs, and a short message.
Pray. If you choose not to engage in evangelistic activities, you can still pray for those who do and for those who need to hear about the abundant life offered to them through Christ. Pray for hearts to be opened, for God’s truth to be revealed, and for this season of demonic emphasis to be robbed of its power.

The ultimate good news is that Christ has already won the victory over Halloween. He has already defeated Satan and death by His sacrifice on the cross. We have His message of love, life, and salvation that no Halloween darkness can diminish.

You can make a significant difference this year for Christ. Step out in faith, in love, and in joy—all for His glory.

Jesus, You are the conqueror of all things evil. As we witness the sadness of a fallen world, may we celebrate Your victory and share Your love with those who walk in darkness. Give us Your Holy Spirit and boldness to be Your salt and light. In Your powerful name, Amen.

* https://www.investopedia.com/financial-edge/1012/how-much-americans-spend-on-halloween.aspx

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When my children were young, pumpkin-carving was a fun activity—nine year, we wrote “JESUS-LOVES-YOU” on three pumpkins and got lots of good comments from trick-or-treaters.