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Call me a contrarian, but I LOVE Halloween.
And I, for one, am not prepared to concede this holy-day to the enemy. Here’s why:
Halloween is a contraction of two words, Hallows’ Eve.
“Hallows” (related to the word “holy”) is a reference to “saints” (having nothing to do with the Church conferring sainthood on dead people, but having everything to do with every one of us who loves, worships, and serves Jesus Christ). (See Ephesians 1:15 for but one example of the biblical usage of the word “saint.”)
“Eve,” of course, refers to evening, much as we use the word in reference to Christmas Eve.
Put it all together, and Halloween is in reality a “Holy Evening,” the night before “All Saints Day.”
Simply put, Halloween is the one night out of each year set aside for the dual purposes of (1) Identifying those precious saints of God, those committed Christ-followers who have had a significant, positive, and holy influence in our lives; and (2) Planning how we are going to honor them on the following day, November 1, All Saints Day.
This in the spirit of Romans 13:7, “Render to all men their dues… respect to whom respect is due, and honor to whom honor is due” (Amplified Bible).
Think of it this way: We have days set aside to honor our Mothers, Fathers, Presidents, historical individuals like Columbus, Martin Luther King Jr., and others, our veterans, those who have paid the ultimate sacrifice (Memorial Day), etc., etc.
All Saints Day is the one day out of each year to honor those who have encouraged us in our walks with Christ, including those who have…
Led us to faith in Christ,
Taught us His Word,
Set an example for us of godly living,
Encouraged us,
Prayed for us,
Counseled us,
Loved us,
Helped us along the way to take one more step in our spiritual journey,
Or perhaps the most important of all… Were there for us when no one else was.
Halloween is the night to identify these precious people, the unsung heroes of our personal faith, and to plan how best to honor them the very next day.
We can honor them in so many simple and yet oh-so-important ways:
A card, a letter, a note, a phone call, a text message, a Facebook post, an email message, a gift. Some sincere expression of what these dear people mean to us, and how these individuals have blessed our lives.
What a beautiful concept. More than that…
What a BEAUTIFUL DAY. All Saints Day. Preceded, as it is, with an equally beautiful evening. An evening devoted to identification and preparation. An evening called Hallows’ Eve!
So in the true spirit of this sacred holy-day, let me extend to each of you a heartfelt…
…HAPPY HALLOWEEN!!!