How to Share Your Faith Using Halloween

By Jane Dratz, Christian Post Guest Columnist Tuesday, October 30, 2007

Is Halloween good for more than a sugar-induced high? Can you really share your faith using Halloween?? While this may sound like a contradiction in terms, with a little forethought, the ghosts and ghouls of Halloween can be a natural conversation starter for talking about the spiritual dimension.

Christian views of Halloween vary dramatically from a fun-filled, sugar high for little kids in cute costumes to an evil holiday which focuses on the occult, devils, and all things dark and demonic. So out of respect for those divergent opinions, approach this topic with your friends in the way that best fits you. But don't let the opportunity for a conversation about the spiritual dimension and eternal life slip by!

Halloween was originally known as the Festival of the Dead and was a time of fear and fright. The ghosts, goblins, and the Grim Reaper-esque characters that inhabit the holiday provide an easy transition into the topic of what happens when we die and whether we should be afraid of dying. Take the opportunity to share with your friends some of the truths of the Bible when it comes to the topics of death and dying. Check out some of these verses:

Don't let your hearts be troubled. Trust in God, and trust also in me. There is more than enough room in my Father's home. If this were not so, would I have told you that I am going to prepare a place for you? When everything is ready, I will come and get you, so that you will always be with me where I am. (John 14:1-3, NLT)

That is what the Scriptures mean when they say, "No eye has seen, no ear has heard, and no mind has imagined what God has prepared for those who love him." But it was to us that God revealed these things by his Spirit. For his Spirit searches out everything and shows us God's deep secrets. (1 Corinthians 2:9-10, NLT)

Incredible words of reassurance and hope in an afterlife that we need not fear!

So as an avalanche of Halloween candy hits your world and pumpkins pop up on doorsteps, open up the God-talk dialogue with your friends using some of these types of questions:

• Does all the imagery of Halloween, like ghosts and ghouls and devils and witches, ever make you feel uncomfortable? Listen and share your own feelings.
• Does the topic of death make you uncomfortable? Why or Why not?
• Ask your friends if they think people have a soul? Do they believe in an afterlife? Use the opportunity to share about God's free gift of eternal life through Jesus gift of salvation.
• Why do you think some people enjoy pretend-scary experiences like haunted houses?
• Find out what your friends find scary in real life. Share how having God in your life has impacted your fears and anxieties. Describe how your life has changed since you've experienced a relationship with God through Jesus. Let them know he gives you peace and hope and release from the ultimate 'scary' thing which is life (and death) apart from God.

And if you don't like all the Halloween focus on death and ghosts and dark things, try this angle that's circulated and re-circulated on the web... Being a Christian is like being a pumpkin at Halloween time. God lifts you up, takes you in, and washes all the dirt off of you. He opens you up, touches you deep inside and scoops out all the yucky stuff - including the seeds of doubt, hate, greed, and bitterness. Then He carves you a new smiling face and puts His light inside you to shine for all the world to see. (Author Unknown)

So shine for all the world to see!

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Jane Dratz works for Dare 2 Share Ministries in Arvada, Colo., a ministry committed to energizing and equipping teens to know, live, share and own their faith in Jesus. For more information on Dare 2 Share Ministries, please visit www.dare2share.org. Send feedback to jane@dare2share.org.