Blessings From Home

Changing how we celebrate halloween

I have a question for you guys....if you don't mind...My family has always celebrated halloween. Not anything major. We carved pumpkins, decorated with a few fall/halloween decorations, and let the kids dress up in "nice" costumes...meaning no blood sucking vampires, monsters, etc. Last year my kids dressed up so cute. My son was a cowboy, my middle daughter was an indian, and my youngest was a horse.

 I've felt convicted to change the way we celebrate halloween lately....meaning, I don't think we should celebrate it. But the thing is, I don't know how to go from a family who always celebrated halloween in some way to a family who does nothing for halloween. I was wondering if some of you would share with me what you do for the holiday. Or if you once celebrated it with your kids and now don't, how you made the change? It's so hard to walk through the store with all the halloween decorations and costumes with my kids and me trying to figure out a way to say, "kids, we don't celebrate that holiday anymore", ya know what I mean? I would love some input on this, but please no hatefullness or mean remarks. If you celebrate halloween, that's fine, this is just something that I would like to change in our lives.

Thanks,

Sara

Many many moons ago I decided that my children

{ 08:05, Monday, October 8, 2007 } { Posted by mommamarti }

would not be allowed to trick or treat or celebrate Halloween in a traditional manner. If our church held a fall/autumn celebration, then we participated. But if they didn't and the kids wanted to do something, we bought a package of their favorite candy and watched a fun movie. They grumbled, but they didn't ever act like it was a really big deal that they couldn't go out with all of their friends. It just became an accepted thing. My reasoning was 1. it was celebrating a witches /pagan holiday and if we attended church then we didn't celebrate those holidsys, and 2nd I didn't like the idea of my kids going up and down the streets "begging". That was 30 years ago and my kids survived quite nicely. LOL marti


~~Thank you...Ya know, I think my kids will be fine not celebrating. I was thinking, maybe we could do a fall celebration. Make some leaf masks, and watch a cool movie, and maybe go to the church carnival, and get some candy to share. I think we might continue carving pumpkins, but doing it a little differently....because that is one tradition we all enjoy doing. Carving the pumpkin, saving the seeds to roast and the innards for pie. We'll see how it goes. Thanks for commenting. Blessings,
Sara

Edited by Sara on Monday, October 8, 2007 at 11:09

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{ 05:44, Tuesday, October 9, 2007 } { Posted by Kitty }

Each year instead of my youngest watching all the other children go out trick or treating, my older dd and I take him out on the town. We go eat his favorite, tacos, and maybe take in a movie or the mall.
Another good thing is that most church organizations have something going on that night at the church, take them there. They will never know the difference. As for the decor, decorate with fall decor, that is much nicer.
Good luck.
Kitty

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{ 06:00, Tuesday, October 9, 2007 } { Posted by gokings13 }

I sat down and explained to my kids (at their level of comprehension) why we were not going to celebrate.....
They received no special treatment to compensate....

At first, we handed out candy and tracts. That didn't 'feel' right.
Then we just left candy on a table, and didn't answer the door. That didn't feel right either.
Finally, when we shut off the porch lights, pulled the kids out of school for the "harvest party" and didn't participate in the 'harvest parties' at church.........THEN it felt 'right'.
We never looked down on anyone else, or talked bad about them......we just read Scriptures that told us it was wrong.

We didn't try to 'dress it up and put christian clothes' on this holiday. It is what it is.
We didn't try to 'participate in a christian way' or claim it as a 'witnessing tool'. Because halloween is what it is.
We just decided to 'come out and be separate', and we moved away from it. Totally. We didn't 'substitute anything in it's place.......we treated it like Sept 4th, November 22 or July 9th. Just another day on the calendar.

Before I was saved.... let's say I was a drunk, a drug abuser, a harlot. Once I met Jesus, and received HIS Power thru the Holy Spirit, I stopped drinking. I stopped doing drugs. I stopped "harlot-ing" around. I changed. Totally.
I didn't say "well I can drink, just not whisky. And I can use drugs, just not heroine. And I can say I am not a harlot, because I only have 3 'men friends' instead of 23.
See what I mean?
It was an 'all or nothing' thing for us!!

Pray and fast and ask the Spirit to give you a Peace when you are in His Will!!

Laura

Edited by gokings13 on Tuesday, October 9, 2007 at 06:12

It is hard

{ 10:07, Tuesday, October 9, 2007 } { Posted by rashel }

First, is your hubby on the same page as your are? Does he agree about changing the way you celebrate, or not? We used to celebrate it and then changed so I understand where you are coming from. I think we have it a bit easier because our church doesn't celebrate it either. Our church has a Harvest Party,so that is what we do. We have explained to our kids that we choose not to celebrate Halloween anymore, explaining that it came from evil rituals and witchcraft and that the Bible tells us not to be a part of such things. We didn't make a big deal about it or anything. If they are older and ask more, I might explain that as we grow in Christ, we learn more about His ways and what He would have us to do and this is one of the ways we are growing. Hope this helps,
Rashel

Hi Sara!

{ 10:26, Tuesday, October 9, 2007 } { Posted by Pattisea }

My family has gone back and forth for years on this issue. Sometimes we do, some years we don't. This year we will.

HOWEVER, I have a friend who never does and this is what they do: They turn off all the lights, make popcorn and other finger foods and play board games by candle light (The purpose of turning off the lights is to discourage trick-or-treaters).

I know another family who prays for each group as they come to the door and hands out tracts.

I hope these ideas help.

Patti