No Fear

By Lane Palmer, Christian Post Guest Columnist Thursday, October 20, 2005

So I’ve spent the past few weeks on an extremely frustrating and complicated internet journey in an attempt to find out the true and historically accurate roots of Halloween. After all, I have four children - and I’m pretty sure this holiday isn’t going away. In fact, I read that it is the second most celebrated day in America.

So are you ready for my definitive statement on the origins of this hotly debated, sugar coated, highly adorned holiday? Here it is: I’m not quite sure.

Oh, I know all the information floating around (pun intended). The legends of the Celts and their Festival of the Dead, the druid and spirits and ghosts (oh my!)…and on and on and on. The problem is that all these “reputable” sources disagree with each other all over the place. Like how the ancient Celts carved pumpkins to ward off evil spirits - except that the pumpkin is a new world vegetable, so they didn’t have any pumpkins!

It seems to me that much of the disinformation and misinformation is due to the fact that the early Irish folks passed along historical information through oral tradition, which oftentimes can become a wee bit embellished.

So then I decided to look outside the roots and more into the cause behind Halloween. Why is it that people are so attracted to the dressings and trappings of this haunting holiday?

Well, besides free candy and a chance to maybe stay up later, I’m convinced that a large part of the attraction is fear. People love to have some fun with fear, especially when they know they can face it and defeat it.

But then when fear takes a holiday from this holiday and enters into our everyday life, it becomes a little different. I know that for the first time in my life this is starting to be the case. From terrorist attacks to natural disasters to a killer flu bug, my fear factor has definitely increased over the past few years.

Being afraid suddenly isn’t a “fun” event on October 31st anymore; it’s an anxious and queasy feeling that we live with everyday.

Which is why I’m bringing all this up. Since this is the season of “fear,” and we have real things to be afraid of, let’s look to the truth for a solution. You see, the people in Jesus’ day were also fearful. The Romans could come and take their lives at a moment’s notice. Jesus had an interesting statement regarding their apprehensions about life:

Do not be afraid of those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul. Rather, be afraid of the One who can destroy both soul and body in hell. (Matthew 10:28)

He is not saying that we shouldn’t be concerned about real dangers in the real world. Yet He is making an important distinction: your biggest worry should be about your eternal soul.

This Halloween would be a good day to remember that if you have trusted Christ as your only hope of salvation, you really have nothing to fear. Here’s what Paul said:

For you did not receive a spirit that makes you a slave again to fear, but you received the Spirit of sonship. And by him we cry, "Abba, Father." (Romans 8:15)

Commit your fears and your life to your Daddy. If He can take care of your soul, He can certainly take care of your circumstances.

Oh, and by the way - here are a few ways that this “scary” time of year can remind you of the peaceful truths of Scripture.

• Let the masks remind you that God has set you free to be yourself.

• Let the candy remind you of the sweetness of God’s grace.

• Let the darkness remind you that you belong to the Light of the World.

• Let the demonic themes remind you that you have victory over the "god of this age" through Christ.

• Let all the talk of fear remind you that your eternal future is secure.

• Let this be your verse for the day: The LORD is my light and my salvation -- whom shall I fear? The LORD is the stronghold of my life -- of whom shall I be afraid? (Psalm 27:1)

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Lane Palmer is the Youth Ministries Specialist for Dare 2 Share Ministries in Arvada, Colo., where he works with youth leaders and students, equipping them to be effective in sharing the gospel. For more information on Dare 2 Share Ministries, please visit www.dare2share.org. Find out how Dare 2 Share Ministries and Focus on the Family® are working together to capture the hearts of this generation of teenagers, visit www.capturetheirhearts.com Send feedback to lane@dare2share.org.