Is Halloween a Christian Holiday?

Let me ask the question... Is Halloween a Christian Holiday?? 

Year after year I am shocked and disturbed by my Christian friends happily posting photos of heir kids dressed up for halloween.

I don't get it.

Christmas - Christians celebrate the birth of Christ

Easter - Christians celebrate the resurrection.

Halloween?? Theres just no way to Christianize it.

Its not just about innocent dressing up and candy.

The holiday decor features witches, ghosts, vampires, tombstones, skeletons and promotes death and gore saying its fun to scare children. Ill never forget my last Halloween as a child we were invited into a house and a woman lay in a coffin with people mourning in the room. Suddenly she sat up to scare us. My mom decided we wouldn't go out anymore. The next year she bought us some candy and we stayed home. We never missed it at all.

One of my Christian friends a few years ago dressed up her daughter as a witch and son in a bloody white t shirt. How is that innocent fun? 

For me I couldn't pass out candy to a zombie, dead bride or a stabbing victim and feel ok about it. 

I also dont want my kids going to peoples doors who come out with a knife through their head or makeup looking like half their skin on their face is gone. Even something that moves or screams as they walk up the step. Scaring kids is not fun! Gore is not fun!

The street I used to live on had a body hanging from a tree each year. It made me think about a teen girl I knew who hung herself. Her mom cut her down and did cpr but it was too late. How horrid to see decor like that. I also met a stabbing victim at the hospital after his ostomy surgery. How would he like a child dressed up like they were stabbed coming to his door? Terrible.

So I ask again, is Halloween a Christian Holiday? Its the complete opposite!! Its a holiday the dark side promotes and loves. Satans favorite day.

I used to think church events were held as an alternative for families who didn't want to participate - but thats not the case 

I've seen church goers at a trunk or treat dressed up with witches hats and their trunk of their car decorated with skeletons. Ive seen churches decor with a ghost saying boo. Why?

Why do churches continue to participate in satans favorite holiday?

So many ex-witches and satanists have videos warning Christians not to participate. They are not just talking for fun. Its a serious warning from their experience. Witches and witchcraft are real. The dark side is real.

Please I beg you, do some reasearch on the origins of halloween. What does a lit jack-o'-lantern on your step mean? Why do so many witches choose to get married on Oct 31st?

There are several churches who choose not to have events on that day and they have my respect. Yet Ive been told by a pastor in my town that it was Ludacris to have any issue with halloween. Ive been told by church leaders in two churches that its a great outreach to the community. How so? It only shows churches celebrating evil. I had a church leader defend passing out candy saying she can be a light to her neighbors. How? Be a light another day. Do a non-Halloween related outreach another day. I think its more of a light to see a Christian not celebrating. 

Why dont churches offer a family worship evening that day? ..a light in the middle of the darkness sounds amazing to me.

Standing up for what is right is one thing but it can be harder to stand up against what is wrong. My son didn't want to go to school this year as hes tired of telling people he doesnt want to celebrate. Year after year i email teachers explaining why my kids refuse to watch a Halloween movie and sit in the hallway to read instead or refuse to do worksheets or dance to a halloween song in gym class. It certainly is going against the grain but i think people need to see more of that. It poses questions.. why are these people feeling this way? What issues do they have with it? Not everyone goes ahead to do what everyone else is doing without questioning it.

I beg you, please just ask questions! Watch a few videos of ex witches or satanists.

Please dont argue with me. Theres no chance of me changing my mind. Yet I feel someone has to speak up. Thanks for reading.

My Faith Journey

I went to Sunday school as a child. As we got older my mom had stopped going to church. When I became a rebellious teenager my mom started going back to church praying for me and my sister to come back to the right way of living. Her playing worship music in the house and taking her hands off of trying to control us and praying for us really made a difference. My sister and I both came to God at the same time in different ways. 

We went to a Baptist youth group and I attended a youth conference where I gave my heart to God. You may have read it already in my testimony but at that conference they asked "how would you respond if God made you Himself visible before you?". We were encouraged to find a quiet place by ourselves and respond to God in this way because He is right there. I pleaded for mercy, crying and repenting. In the middle of my repenting I heard God say "its ok". I said "how is it okay?" and I saw a picture of Jesus on the cross. I instantly gave everything that I had to God and committed my life to Him. 

Later in community college a friend in my class had never cut her hair and always wore skirts. I became good friends with her and she showed me in the Bible where those two things were mentioned. I wanted to do whatever God would ask of me so I started not cutting my hair and wearing skirts all the time and I did that for a awhile before I started questioning it. He was just one interpretation of that scripture. I thought that God wasn't really requireing me to wear skirts that he would love me just as much if I wore pants and I felt to stop. But my heart was right before God.

I believe that every denomination exists because of how people interpret the Bible. I believe that if you think the word is telling you to do a certain thing and you do it is beautiful.  Your heart is to do whatever he asks of you. That's how all of us should live. We need to be seeking whatever God wants and following as he leads us. He can speak so clearly and so personally.

In university I was invited to a church where they constantly were seeking more of the Holy Spirit. Mid week services focused on being filled with the Holy Spirit and to hear from God and be led by Him and hear His voice. Every Sunday was a celebration of whatever He was doing with everyone in the church all week. I was never happy going to any other churches after that because that's all I want. 

Later in life I have a few friends that believe that they need to follow the Torah. Many holidays and special dates and to remember certain things. I think it's beautiful to want to follow the whole Bible the whole old testament and do what God is asking you.  But for me to try to follow some of those things feels very difficult and religious. It's a struggle and a lot of the holidays are on days when other people are working and school is on that day and things like that. 

For me I've been battling for a while about whether I should follow the Holy Spirit or follow the Torah teachings. For me you can't really do both at the same time it doesn't feel like it's the same kind of God. I have written out many reasons why I could throw out the whole new testament and all of Jesus teachings and consider him a false prophet. But I can't I keep coming back to the fact that it's changed my life. The gospels have changed my life. I can't want to leave behind all my experiences that I've had with the Holy Spirit and speaking in tongues and the grace and mercy from the cross that I require to be right with God. So for me I can't follow the Torah teachings completely. Its like choosing to stay at the bottom of the mountain when Moses goes up to get the Commandments for me to follow. 

It's hard for me to see that they are the same God in the Old testament and the New testament. I've really been battling with that. So I asked God to show me how they could both be true. The next day I felt that God was saying "remember Adam and Eve in the garden and how I wanted to walk and talk with with them that is what I still want. I'm the same God. I want my Holy Spirit to be with you and surrounding you and I want to walk and talk with you and have a relationship." So the New testament God is the same as the Old testament God in Genesis with Adam and Eve. The same God that took Moses up the mountain to meet with him and show him his glory. 

I want to walk up the mountain. I want to be filled with the Holy Spirit I want to be surrounded by the glory. I want to speak in tongues and see miracles signs and wonders. I want to experience the God of the whole Bible. All through the Bible Yahweh spoke to people and led people. He still does.

Many times my mother has stopped tithing a rew times in her life. Every time she has stopped she'll start finding dimes when she's walking across a parking lot or walking down the street. She finds dimes. She feels that it is God speaking to her telling her that she needs to start tithing again so she does.

There was one time I was reading the Bible and I felt that I should do an Esther fast and I did. I had no food and no water for 3 days and come to find out it was right around the celebration of Purim. I thought it was just affirmation that I heard God right that I was supposed to do that fast and it was at the right time of the year. How beautiful is it to be led by God and have confirmation that you heard from him.

I want to do things that God is leading me to do and not just do things that other people are telling me to do. We are all equal no man is better than the next and we all interpret the Bible in different ways. All of us can hear from God and all of us need to be seeking him and being led by him and seeing the beautiful thing he unfolds. 

If I feel led to blow my shofar on the feast of trumpets and not even knowing that it's the:10 feast of trumpets and then looking at my calendar and seeing that that is: that's affirmation and confirmation that I'm doing the right thing. That God is leading me and speaking to me. I think it's amazing to research the different Hebrew feasts and to know why things happen what the significance of certain traditions are but I don't think I need to get caught up in long list of things to do. I just want to be led by God I want to seek him first and find him in every area of my life.

If I end up being religious it's because God has made me that way and led me to be that way. Not because I'm following someone else's teachings or a rulebook at all. The Fear of The Lord is the beginning of Wisdom. Prov 9:10.

I don't want to do all the things others teach only to die and have Him tell me "Depart from me I never knew you" matt 7:23

Seek and find Him. Listen for His voice. Ask questions and wait for answers. Rest. Give Him your all. See what beautiful tapestry he makes with your life.

Division

I have watched Kathryn Kick Videos. It raises my faith so much. It encourages me to be bold and confident. I have heard a few people speak negative about her. There is a whole website devoted to putting down various preachers and counting their faults. My mom told me more negative things google told her as well. Things I didn't think we're true. 

You should judge by the fruit.

In Mark 9:38-41 mention's someone casting out demons and the desciples wanted him to stop because he wasn't one of the 12. 

 Jesus said "whoever is not against us is for us"

Later in Mark 10 it talks of a man and wife becoming one flesh. He warns about division.

Verse 9 says " What God has joined together let no one seperate".

I think also about denominations and the body of Christ. The worst thing is for any believers to reject one another. I've seen how marriages can crumble fast when one starts to judge and reject the other. We must fight for unity!!! Forgive and work together as much as we can. This is a spiritual battle. We need to know we are all on the same team.

Breaking the Pattern of Dry Seasons

Dry seasons.

Discouraged. Frustrated. Hurt.

Surviving. trudging on but not very alive...

God help us!

I used to for years have worship music playing on repeat. My mom did this when I was rebellious too. I really feel it changes the spiritual atmosphere for the better.

When you have nothing to give its a great first step.

Also. I watched a recent video about how physically reading the Bible changes your spiritual life so significantly. It breaks patterns. He can speak directly to us through it. It opens your Spiritual eyes.

Lately with music and reading bits of the Bible regularly I honestly feel like a new person. I'm less interested in the trudging survival activities like watching tv, scrolling facebook or playing video games. Im more in tune spiritually feeling like He is speaking all the time- even through a kids movie! and Hes placing on my heart people and situations to pray for.

So. my enouragment... When youre in the desert places. Refuse to settle there. Turn your eyes, ears and attention to the things of God and He will meet you. 100% Im sure of it!

It feels like running and jumping into His arms. 

Yes you will likely be overwhelmed and brought to tears that He embraces you and kisses you on the head like you never left.

Its ok to be humbled.

All glory to Him. Theres nothing good we can do on our own. Without Him we have nothing! We can be an absolute mess.

Hes always teaching us more about His love and how He would never turn His back on us. And the depth of forgiveness...

:) ♡

Sourdough made easy for Busy People

Weeks ago I paid for a Sourdough and Pasta making class. I was excited. I had to book a month in advance. It was a Saturday morning. When the day came I forgot all about it. I went to get groceries and when returning home at 12pm I looked at the calendar and my heart sank. I had missed it. I had even paid in advance. so sad. :(

Shortly after one of my co workers said she had extra sourdough starter to give away, I jumped at the opportunity not knowing anything about it really.. She had gone to the class I missed and gave me the information. It was a lot to read, a lot to learn. I thought no way I can feed this stuff every day. forget it.

But then I saw hidden in the instructions somewhere that you can keep your starter in the fridge and only feed it once a week! Woohoo. I'd try it after all. So here are my summarized and simplified instructions. You will need a kitchen scale. you will also need a pot with a lid you can bake sourdough inside. I use a large soup pot.

If you receive a sourdough starter be sure you know what day it is due to be fed. When you keep it in the fridge it can be fed one week after it was fed last.

Make sure you have the weight of the container you put it into. write it on the top.

When its due to be fed, take it from fridge and put a big bowl on your kitchen scale. zero the scale and add 150g of your starter. zero again. add 25g of oil. zero and add 250g of warm water. it needs to be warm to counteract the cold starter from the fridge. Stir well with a fork. 

then zero scale and add 500g white flour and 10g salt. mix it up the best you can trying to get all flour from sides of bowl. cover and let rest 30mins-1hr. this starts the gluten making process.

Then, kneed it again a bit making into a smoother ball. this is the long part. it needs to rise til the ball doubles in size. This can be 3-12hrs depending on the temperature of your home. you can put it in the oven with just the oven light on for a bit of warmth. i used to turn my oven on to the lowest i could and let it warm up a bit then turn it off. be sure to put a sticky note on your oven saying sourdough is in there for others in your house :)

once its about double you can put parchment paper in the bottom of your pot and move it there, shape it again, decorate it, make cuts etc... put at least 1 slash across the top to let steam escape. I saw someone use a utility knife, and flour can be used on the surface before cuts are made.. let it rise in your pot one final hour before baking. at the end of this rise preheat the oven to 450 degrees. then before you put the pot inside turn it down to 400 degrees. leave the lid on for 20mins. then remove the lid for the last 40mins.

Now set your beautiful little loaf on a wire rack covered by a towel for 1 hr before cutting. if you cut sooner it may be doughy still. it will still be nice and warm after the hr. <3

My first time making sourdough I started late afternoon and had my loaf ready late at night. - you can start in evening and let it do the longest rise overnight. or start earlier in the day.

I hope this helps :)

Feeding the remaining starter:

The weight of your remaining starter is important. you will need to add an equal weight of water and white flour to it. This means a 1:1:1 ratio. example: if you have 150g starter you add 150g flour, 150g water making 450g for your starter. (that amount means you can make 2 loaves each week)

make a line on the side of your container and leave it on the counter til it doubles in size. then pop into the fridge til next week. you can use the starter at any point all week. its ready to use once it doubles in size :) when it starts to shrink back down it means it soon needs to be fed again. when it gets liquid (hooch) on top, pour that off and continue as usual.

Lights Belong in the Darkness

I am a Christian parent and feel strongly my kids belong in public school. I know im not cut out to teach and I know they will have much better experiences there.

My blood boils when i hear people say its irresponsible for Christian parents not to homeschool. or that "schools are on fire, get your kids out of there". no, i dont think so.

Lights belong in the darkness.

Yes i think theres messed up things there. but there is in all of society. eventually our kids are going to face it all. why not expose them to society gradually as they are young and still molded by your influence.

If every Christian parent took kids out of school what would be left. would there be good voices to the kids left behind? If you think Christian teachers belong in school why not Christian students too?

Christians are a minority. Before my kids started school they thought everyone followed Jesus. School really helped them see how much of a minority we really are. We do not do santa claus or halloween... they see what others do and understand why we do not. i think its healthy for them to experience going against the grain as young as they are. its good for teachers and other students to know there can be differences like that. not everyone has to go along with everyone else. 

Our kids know that there are mixed up things taught by their teachers and government. They know its ok to question things and decide for themselves. we help mold them to choose what makes most sense. We have alot of good conversations about things they hear or witness. We pray for their teachers and friends. They decide what friends are best. They have already had a good influence on some of their friends. I couldnt be happier.

I know they will be best prepared to take on all of society once they are out of the shelter of our home. I think the more experiences they have when they are young are best. We talk about everything. We dont hide anything. we taught them about sex early, why not? they have questions and it really helps them understand what certain things mean and how things are inappropriate. We are molding them.

Please dont feel you have to shelter your kids. Sure its nice to keep them in a bubble, safe. But is it really going to better prepare them to face this world?

As a Christian parent I can get involved in things at the school, meet other parents, have a say within committees and at meetings. I am very happy to be able to do that. Im happy to have met other Christian families doing the same.

I should add I have alot of friends who do homeschool and of course theres nothing wrong with that. Its good too. Im not saying you shouldnt. This whole thought is only in reponse to all the people saying homeschooling is the only way. I completely 100% disagree. This is the other side of the coin. Im not saying the opposite that everyone should choose public school. Just wanted to share why I make this choice for us.

Yes it is challenging, but in a good way. Choose whats best for you. Neither way is promised to be easy.

Unity

Unity.

Did you know the transformations films which are documentaries about revivals discovered that big outpourings of God always had one thing in common, Unity and Prayer.

When believers join together and pray.

We need each other. we are more powerful together.

my devotion today by nicky gumbel talked about unity. he spoke with a non believing man talking about 2 different denominations and all the problems they had with each other. the man said, until he could see these churches united he didnt want anything to do with their faiths.

so true. we follow the same God, and read the same Word... so why the issues??

Do you know why so many different denominations exist out there? We all have different ways of interpreting the Word. its our opinions and beliefs.

we are humans. imperfect. we are all unique and different. we have different ways of seeing and percieving things. Even in one church body we cannot all agree!!

no pastor will always preach things you completely agree with. they are another human being like you. imperfect too. no one has it all figured out just right

until we see each other as equals, each on our own personal journey with our faith.. we will always find areas to judge each other.

we need to have grace for each other like we expect others to have grace for us. we can be friends with people who believe differently than us believe it or not.

its possible! and its beautiful! to have mutual respect and understanding, or at least attempts to understand. we dont need to try arguing or convincing each other to believe the same way we do.

we need to accept our differences and love each other anyway. if we believe in the same God we are brothers and sisters under Him. we should never become enemies.

churches need to come together. its so easy to judge and stick with those just like us. 

yes its good to be in fellowship with like minded people. but dont shut out others who are not. love and try not to judge. if you see an issue simply bring it to prayer and give it to God but dont push them away or gossip causing more judgement and disunity.

im guilty of judging my brothers and sisters, taking offence at things. gossiping and causing disunity... its so easily done!

God help us to unite. we need it, the world needs it.

proverbs 19:11 

A person’s wisdom yields patience;

 it is to one’s glory to overlook an offense.

read also 1 Corinth 10,11,12,13. even in the early church they were arguing and in disunity.. it was sad to see. but we need to turn our attention to Christ who unites us all ♡

this is why i love the Christian Ashram fellowship camps that unite all denominations and simply say Jesus is Lord. its beautiful to have all leaders and believers as equals in one place. we can totally do it.

i recommend church hoping! once and awhile visit another church. its so amazing to see what the body of Christ is up to in other buildings. 

my mom and i used to go to evening services at several different churches through the week. ,we had so many "nudge worthy moments"! its exciting to see pastors preaching the same things or scriptures coming up we just read at home.. God is at work everywhere!! ♡

lets be united in Spirit.