"Halloween And The Church"

Halloween to say the least has been a controversial subject for as long as I can remember. I must admit, growing up I always looked forward to October 31st. To me it was a time to scare people and get as much candy as possible. These were days where everybody knew everybody in the community. We knew the houses where we could get the good candy. In fact, I vividly remember one house where the lady always gave out sweet potatoes. I didn't like to stop there but mama must have needed the potatoes.
Needless to say, times have changed. The world is full of evil people. There are many people that are simply servants of Satan, and look for ways to destroy, defile and demoralize the lives of the innocent.
Concerning halloween, there are so many things that can and should be said about this day. First of all, halloween is not a Christian holiday. A lot of the things that are practiced today during halloween have a very evil origin. The "Jack o lantern" for instance represents souls that are damned. Costumes were worn because the celts thought they could trick the demons into believing that they were one of them. Trick or treat came about from the belief that if you set food or candy on your steps or porch the spirits would pass you by not causing harm to your home or family. (SIDE NOTE) Houses were known to have been burned because of people not participating. On and on I could go about the traditions of halloween. Now I know that most people participate in halloween knowing nothing about the origin and evil behind it.
What can the church do during this time. First of all, I'm not a legalist. However, we should be very cautious with the activities we engage in. Study the significance of the activity. What does bobbing for apples represent? We should ask these questions when we are planning events.
This is what I believe. October 31st is the day the Lord made. We should rejoice and be glad. It is also a day when a multidude of people will be out in the street and attending special events. I think the church should use this time to be creative and reach out to the many people in the community. It is a time to let them know we are here to serve. October 31st is a wonderful time to evangelize and let our light shine like never before.
I think it is necessary for me to say, that condenming people for participating in halloween is very unwise. We win people through love and leadership, not condemnation and critisism. Show love, and lead people into a relationship with Jesus Christ. Condemnation is never an evangelistic method.
My prayer is many souls will be saved during all the events planned for Oct. 31st.