Observations Regarding Halloween and Fall Fest

As a status line in Facebook, I posed the following question:

Is having a fall fest in place of Halloween a good substitute, a compromise, or hypocrisy for churches/Christians?

In asking such a question, I expected to receive many different responses, based on numerous lines of reasoning. From those who contributed answers, I believe all are professing Christians, though the ideals regarding the stated question appears to differ some more than others. Following the nature of my initial request, be it for thought and not to determine one to be right or wrong, I would like to post my observations of the input here for persons to ponder to themselves; as it may contribute wisdom as to how we view Christianity and its principles as a whole.

Here are my observations in no particular order:

Observation 1: Some avoided the question, whether willingly or unknowingly, by giving a reply that did not directly answer the question at all.

Observation 2: Some stressed they had previously allowed their children to take part in Halloween, yet not to the extent other parents had allowed their children to take part in.

Observation 3: Some expressed their dislike of Halloween, but that it really wasn’t a matter worth much of their concern.

Observation 4: Some felt Fall Fest was better, for it gave the children a safer environment, allowing them to miss the more sadistic side of Halloween, but did not make them feel as though they were missing out on something others were enjoying.

Observation 5: Some chose their answer based on childhood experiences, based on their participation or lack thereof, as to what they would allow their children to take part in.

Observation 6: Some appeared to justify the celebrating of Halloween (though the question did not approve or condemn the holiday), by declaring that the church celebrating Fall Fest was neither better nor any different in principle.

Observation 7: Some believed that none should judge nor be judged in such a matter, but to allow each one’s own conscience to approve or condemn them.

Observation 8: Some mentioned that persons should study the birth of Halloween, which would lead to a further understanding of its roots, and possibly enlighten others as to why it should not be celebrated.

Observation 9: Some asked persons to seek God, to ask Him as to the holiday of Halloween, regarding whether or not it glorified Him to be celebrated.

Observation 10: Some admitted the celebration of Halloween was merely for their children’s enjoyment.


In conclusion, I would like to ask for us all to consider the following. Regardless of how we may deem such a question, in reality it does fall into relevance regarding Christian living. It cannot be simply passed over as having no merit, for all that we say and do leads us (along with those who observe us) either closer or further away from God; and all that we declare by word and deed ultimately shape and mold our children into what they become.

Note: I am still not declaring for you whether Halloween/Fall Fest is right or wrong, but merely stating the reality that the question itself cannot be avoided as having no merit. Consider the fight for the foundational principles of the gospel and Christianity. How would have the above observations aided or hurt the church in its battle of truth, if you replace Halloween/Fall Fest with the many battles Christianity has had regarding doctrines and beliefs? Where would we be had not men and women stood firm upon their beliefs, grounded in Scripture, willing to give their life for the cause of Christ over compromise, indifference, and being men pleasers in both great and small matters?

Judge thyself each matter, laying it hold upon the purifying fires of Scripture, giving opportunity to the Holy Spirit to cleanse us all of sin that we may walk diligently in His ways, teaching them unto our children, that we may all be conformed into the image of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. Let us not wavier in our service to God, but be found to be a good and faithful servant.

God Bless!

A Call To Evolve Contrary To Scripture?

Sometime ago I happened upon an atheist’s blog entitled ‘Atheist Revolution’, and although I no longer visit to comment, I do often read what the author has to say. Even though I seldom, if ever, agree with what is written, I read the articles more to try and understand the mindset of atheists (or at least one) than to simply argue with them at this point.

Today, I happened upon the author’s post, ‘Church of Sweden Votes to Allow Gay Marriage’, and the part that really caught my eye was the comment ‘I admire the progress the gay community has made in forcing some churches to evolve when it comes to human rights’. The writer acknowledges ‘The Christian bible is undoubtedly anti-gay’, and appears to suggest that churches need to evolve away from such.

My dispute is not really with the author of the article, for I would expect a non Christian to vary in their opinion regarding Scripture and homosexuality. It is rather directed more so to those who profess Christ and proclaim to trust in the Word of God; for, as the author declares, it is impossible to claim that the Scriptures are silent or pro homosexual.

The Bible clearly defines marriage was one man and one woman, and although one can find mankind living various lifestyles, the fact remains ‘from the beginning of the creation God made them male and female. For this cause shall a man leave his father and mother, and cleave to his wife; And they twain shall be one flesh: so then they are no more twain, but one flesh.’ And likewise, Scripture declares, ‘If a man also lie with mankind, as he lieth with a woman, both of them have committed an abomination’, along with being against nature, unseemly, in error, reprobate, etc.

For any person or church to profess Christ, claiming to trust in such through the Scriptures whereby the gospel is declared, yet holds not to the foundational teachings of marriage and homosexuality, it is not an evolving to a higher plain in spiritual understanding but is rather as one of the commenters said: the church ‘"softening up" a bit.’ Clearly, the embrace of homosexuality, whether of clergy or by marriage, is a declaration of the person’s or church’s degeneration from the truth, and from God. One cannot claim to uphold the oracles of God found in Scripture, yet deny sin as sin.

If one must repent, by confessing and turning away from sin to Christ, to be forgiven and saved by the work of Christ upon Calvary, according as it is written in Scripture, then to embrace homosexuality and the marriage thereof is in clear violation of Scripture and of God, and will send the sinner ignorantly on their way to hell, having only a corrupt blessing from a church, being in sin themselves, which has no merit with the Almighty. Not only does the homosexual need to repent and trust in Christ, but the church who embraces such sin must also.

When You Think No One Is Looking

Okay, so it has been a while since I have posted a thought here, but I was recently sent an email entitled ‘When you thought I wasn't looking.....’ It is one of those generic emails which get sent around from person to person, most often mass mailed to everyone in a person’s contact list. Displaying a cute picture of a little child with their arms crossed, it declares, ‘A message every adult should read because children are watching you and doing as you do, not as you say,’ as it shares a list of positive things children may see us do in our daily lives. And, as always, the email ends with ‘send this’ on to others.

Well, call me a pessimist if you must, but I cannot help but consider also the negative aspects we must share with our children, or any person for that matter, when we think they aren’t looking. This goes especially for the Christian, being this is a Christian blog, but also for the non Christian as well; given we are not only often judged by what/how people think we should act, but also by how our actions line up with our ideals we share aloud.

When I was in the US Army, a sergeant, one I invited to church a few times but never did he come, shared a story with me. He said one evening as they set down for supper, he bowed his head to pray over their food. After the prayer, his son asked his him why they were praying over the food since he had just cursed moments before.

Even a child can see hypocrisy, and quite frankly they don’t understand it until we teach them (by our actions) so very well how to do it. So, how much more can those who spend the majority of their time looking around the beam in their own eye spot our inconsistencies of voice and action?

We are teaching our children and most often others, while displaying what we really think about our voiced ideals, many times silently by our actions. Even as we endow positive ideals into the minds and hearts of persons by our good deeds, we also provide them opportunity to evolve into our own hypocrisy and/or find reason to ridicule us and our ideals by our contradictory actions.

However true, our own failures to stand firm in our actions toward our voiced Christian values – or any positive values for that matter – should not invalidate them, the reality is it most often does in the hearts and minds of those wishing to find a way to dismiss them already.

Let us not give one a reason to blaspheme or deny that which is right.

2009 Mission Trip, Hesperus, Colorado

A Missing Link Without A Chain

Here we go again with another few scientists wishing to market the idea they have found ‘the first link to all humans ... truly a fossil that links world heritage,’ says Hurum. Dr Jorn Hurum’s claims are that ‘Ida’ is supposedly at 47 million-year-old fossil of a 9 month old female, with ‘a foot bone called the talus bone links Ida directly to humans.’ Not to mention her dental analysis (‘the lack of a "toothcomb" or a "grooming claw"’), and optometrist examination (‘forward-facing eyes’).

So, surely if she had eyes, teeth, and feet similar to modern humans, she must be the ‘missing link’. I mean, she ‘shows characteristics from the very primitive non-human evolutionary line (prosimians, such as lemurs), but is more related to the human evolutionary line (anthropoids, such as monkeys, apes and humans).’ There is even a marvelous redition of a ‘Death scenario’ to accompany the story also. And look at the above portrait, ‘how Ida might have looked.’ I am thinking that looks pretty close to humans for sure.

Of course, Dr Jens Franzen declares, 'She belongs to the group from which higher primates and human beings developed but my impression is she is not on the direct line.' And ‘Dr Henry Gee, a senior editor at the journal Nature, said the use of the term 'missing link' was misleading.’ Along with ‘Dr Chris Beard, of America's Carnegie Museum of Natural History, said: 'I would be absolutely dumbfounded if it turns out to be a potential ancestor to humans.'’

I realize that some people like Dr. Hurum may like to claim they have found their ancestry in the creatures of history, but the fact remains all so-called ‘missing links’ are without a chain to connect them to humans; who were directly created by God Himself, without evolution from the other animals He also created.

Finding Ourselves and Rest in Christ, Not in Self

I recently visited my grandmother in the nursing home for her birthday. When I made my way into her room, she was reciting multiple letters of the alphabet. I could not comprehend what she was trying to spell, until she said, ‘Can you help me spell Whittington?’ Whittington is her maiden name, but she was unable to spell it. Through our conversation, she declared, ‘I don’t know what to do’, and ‘Can you help me help myself’. I quietly told her, all she needed to do was simply rest, and she replied, ‘I can’t. It’s not in my vocabulary.’

My grandmother has dementia, and possibly Alzheimer I suppose. They have arranged for her to have hospice, so they aid the nursing home in caring for her. She seems almost always in a state of worry and unrest, along with having problems remembering some persons and even the most common elementary things about everyday life. I cried. Why? Because I have felt and sometimes do feel the same way she expressed to me she does.

Have you ever stood in front of the mirror, and just wanted to shout out ‘Who am I? Do I even know who I am or what I am doing?’ Have you ever spent the night kneeling in prayer and weeping, finding no peace or understanding in the situations that surround you, what you should be doing, or how to do that which you know you should?

Consider we have something more comforting and a greater Physician, than that of hospice. I told my grandmother that we all feel lost sometimes with unrest, and are often at a loss for what we should be doing. I asked her if she knew Jesus, and she declared, ‘Yes, I talk to Him everyday.’ Her recollection of our Lord and Savior, through all her forgetfulness, moved my heart. Praise God through all her loss of memory, she can still recall the very One who will save us body, soul, and spirit.

Have we not professed to have put faith in Christ, and claim to trust in the very Word of God? Why then do we allow the flesh, the world, and the devil to toss us to and fro into all kinds of worries and dismay? How can we let the testimony of the Scriptures, and the moment of our very salvation fade somewhere into dark forgotten parts of our mind, while we try to survive in this corrupt world by the means of the flesh? We cannot hold onto faith and Christ in one hand, while refusing to let go of the worries and cares of this world in the other.

Scripture declares ‘the Son of man is come to save that which was lost,’ so by grace through faith we repent and are no longer lost. Christ bids us unto Himself, by His words, ‘Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.’ Do we not find the most rest, and see the clearest direction when we converse with God through prayer and mediate on His given Word?

May we all draw from the wisdom of God, as we prepare, work, and live our daily lives as diligent servants subject to Him. May we find who we are in Him, while trusting in His help, finding peace and rest in knowing He loves and cares for us more than we can ourselves.

Entrance of the Donkey

Okay, this is apparently 'old news' but interesting nonetheless. Apparently on January 19, 2009, a sculpture of Barack Hussein Obama attached to a donkey was paraded down the street, where 'onlookers waived palm branches' as they were followed by 'a motorcade consisting of 4 black SUVs...and secret service agents.'

Have people really gone this insane, to even suggest such a sight of a so called 'mile long triumphal entry' to be in anyway similar to that of the Lord and Savior Jesus Christ?

Something tells me that even Balaam's donkey would have had something to say about this...

Imitation Is Never the Real Thing

My department manager came in to work this morning asking if we had seen the new painting of President Barack Hussein Obama, which would soon be unveiled. I had not, so I did a quick Google search. To my interest, I found this news article, and the above picture of the painting.

The article: The 30" x 54" acrylic painting on canvas depicts President Obama appearing much like Jesus Christ on the Cross; atop his head, a crown of thorns. Behind him, the dark veil being lifted (or lowered) on the Presidential Seal. But is he revealing or concealing and is he being crucified or glorified?

The artist: D'Antuono insists that this piece is a mirror; reflecting the personal opinions and emotions of the viewer; that "The Truth" like beauty is in the eyes of the beholder. D'Antuono expects that individual interpretations will vary as widely as they do in the political arena. The work will be seen by one viewer at a time behind a voting booth-inspired public installation.

So, since the artist ‘expects that individual interpretations will vary,’ I would like to share mine.

It appears to me to be a portrait of Barack Hussein Obama, the current President of the United States, slightly bowing his head in counterfeit piousness. While he holds the likeness of the crown of thorns of which the Lord Jesus Christ wore upon his brow at Calvary, the care and love for the souls of mankind the Savior displayed in His ultimate sacrifice appears missing from the continence of smiling Obama. At last, we see Obama’s arms stretched forth to the sky, though not in victory, but in the closing of the show as he draws the curtains on The Great Hypocrisy; whereby all the people are left in darkness.

A Question for Calvinists? Or, Non-Calvinists As Well?

On a forum I frequently visit, the following question was posed as a ‘Calvinism question’:

1. Did God create some people for hell?

On the surface, such a question may appear to be directed only to Calvinists, with the possible inclination of leading into an attack upon it. The idea of election, foreknowledge, predestination, and possibly limited atonement may come to mind rather quickly, but that is limiting the scope of the question to one set of teachings, namely Calvinism. But, the question actually supersedes Calvinism, and encompasses also non-Calvinist Christian theology regarding the salvation and punishment of sinful man.

Sometimes the non-Calvinist will confront a Calvinist, immediately claiming that the Calvinist theology makes God a tyrant that chooses to create some persons just to go to hell. Just the thought of such would make most people cringe. How could a holy God create a person and predestine them to go to hell? How can holy God do such a thing, and not be guilty of sin Himself?

The answer may come in a variety of ways, ranging from ‘I don’t fully understand it myself’, to the quoting of scripture such as Romans 9:19-24 regarding vessels of wrath and mercy.

With this, the non-Calvinists may find themselves puffing out their chest, considering they have exposed the flaw of Calvinism once and for all. Prideful they smile; sharing with everyone it is they who hold to the true doctrines of the faith regarding salvation and punishment.

Now, pose again the question to a non-Calvinist, and one will most likely answer, ‘No.’ Whereby I must ask, ‘How so?’

Most Christians (at least that I know – whether Calvinist or not) hold to the belief that God is omniscient (all knowing), and therefore His foreknowledge would include having knowledge of who will and will not accept Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior before they are ever created. If God creates a person knowing they will not accept Christ, has He not basically created one for hell? A non-Calvinist cannot escape such a question, without denying the perfect foreknowledge of God. So, the question becomes more personal, and cannot be simply directed at others.


* The purpose of this post was not to prove, disprove, or explain the question, but to show that this question [Did God create some people for hell?] is more than just a Calvinist one. It is a question that needs much prayer and meditation in the Word of God, and not just something that can be tossed about like a grenade to seemingly crumble another’s theology without also causing one to take a look at their own.

Someone Is Always Watching

On my way to survey the camp for our mission trip to the Navajo (Dine’) in July, I passed by this scene in New Mexico. It reminded me of the verse, ‘The eyes of the LORD are in every place, beholding the evil and the good.’

Isn’t it interesting how true the scriptures are when it comes to the depravity of man, whereby mankind loves ‘darkness rather than light, because [our] deeds [are] evil. For every one that doeth evil hateth the light, neither cometh to the light, lest his deeds should be reproved.’

How often do we try to veil our sin in the shadows and the darkness, in the secret when we believe there is no one else around that may condemn us? Do we somehow believe this will keep us from judgment, or allow us to save our image by living a double life? Has not the scriptures declared, ‘A double minded man is unstable in all his ways;’ whereby we are called upon to ‘Draw nigh to God, and he will draw nigh to you. Cleanse your hands, ye sinners; and purify your hearts, ye double minded.’

Have you not seen family or friends, coworkers or church members do things you felt were unbiblical yet remained silent? Even to this day do they have no knowledge that one they know has witnessed their behavior? Shall you deceive yourself into believing that the same is not true of thy actions also? Hmmm…what of your spouse or children, or the children of others you hold company with?

Someone Is Always Watching. May we always be quick to repent and turn from our wicked ways, and dwell in the fellowship with our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ in obedience.

Discrepancies within Stem Cell Approval

Apparently Obama has decided to sign ‘an executive order Monday repealing a Bush-era policy that limited federal tax dollars for embryonic stem cell research.’ While I read the article from CNN, I couldn’t help but notice a couple of inconsistencies in the ideals of the quoted supporters of such an action.

Barack Obama: "In this case, I believe the two [sound science and moral values] are not inconsistent. As a person of faith, I believe we are called to care for each other and work to ease human suffering. I believe we have been given the capacity and will to pursue this research -- and the humanity and conscience to do so responsibly."

[Comment] I assume we are just not responsible enough to have the humanity and conscience to exercise our faith in ensuring the unborn child also does not suffer and is cared for.


Nancy Reagan: "Countless people, suffering from many different diseases, stand to benefit from the answers stem cell research can provide. We owe it to ourselves and to our children to do everything in our power to find cures for these diseases."

[Comment] I assume we are to allow the death (or destruction, as some put it) or suffering of some children to benefit the children chosen to live, since apparently a cure for a disease is more important than the life of an unborn child.


Faith and responsibility….indeed…I would say America needs some.

Does Faith Combat Anxiety

Today, I read the short article entitled Study: Believing in God can reduce anxiety in the Health News section of UPI.com. According to the report, apparently the studied showed that those who believe in God were less stressed about their errors than those who profess to not believe in God.

"We found that religious people or even people who simply believe in the existence of God show significantly less brain activity [in the anterior cingulate cortex of the brain] in relation to their own errors," Inzlicht said. "They're much less anxious and feel less stressed when they have made an error."

I found this report quite interesting, and my initial thoughts surrounded the idea of believers. Why would a believer feel less anxious and less stressed even after having made an error? Would such arise from the scriptural teaching that through Christ all is forgiven, that all men error and should merely strive to do better, or that making an error simply didn’t matter that much to them? But, then I thought, surely the unbeliever would also acknowledge that all men error and should strive to do better, and clearly there are those who obviously don’t care if they error at all. So, as the study shows, we are left with the only real difference is the believing or not believing in God.

Interestingly, a similar article on the same topic from Medical News Today.com goes a little further in declaring, ‘The stronger their religious zeal and the more they believed in God, the less their ACC fired in response to their own errors, and the fewer errors they made.’

So then I wondered, does this reflect the thought that believers acknowledge a forgiveness of error through repentance and faith in Christ, or is there a belief that the weighing of the scales (good deeds vs. bad deeds) in the hands of God will lend them mercy and grace? Basically, is there a faith vs. works doctrinal difference among believers, yet lending both to have less anxiety regarding their error? And not only does the report show believers as ‘less likely to feel anxious about making errors,’ but also about ‘facing the unknown.’

Given just the little we have in these two articles, it should cause us to ponder two quick thoughts: (1) the further away from believing in God one becomes, the more likely they are to be anxious about their mistakes and the more they are likely to make; (2) although a believer in God becomes less anxious about their mistakes as they become less frequent, this does not guarantee true conversion has occurred even if profession has been made.

How so, one may ask. Scripture tells us that believing in God is not enough, for ‘the devils also believe, and tremble.’ Scripture also acknowledges that though there will be many who claim their works should be counted to save them, believers are saved by faith and not of works. So, dear unbeliever, maybe you would consider believing in God to ease a little anxiety. And to both, make sure your belief is grounded in faith.