Here is what I believe the Lord showed my husband and I about Halloween because we took the time – after years of participating –  to stop and ask Him what he actually thought about it. He is so good to always answer what is best for us when we ask.

I share this learning experience with you in case you have similar thoughts and questions around Halloween. I share it with no judgement, just love! There is no condemnation in Christ Jesus.

Many Christians highlight Christian liberty as their reason for participating in Halloween. I understand the thought of wanting to live the abundant life Jesus died to give us! But personally I don’t feel I’m given liberty to participate in darkness, we are told to resist it and to abstain from “even the appearance of evil.” 

Maybe you know you feel conviction but don’t know what to do about it! I have been there friend. Some of you wrote to me on Instagram or other places, which is why I posted this. Take heart and know it’s not just you. This article is for you!

Your Conviction is Not An Accident 

Maybe you get this, but I never felt truly comfortable being out on Halloween. I would participate and even have “fun,” dressing as some nice character – living under the tagline “I’m not doing the scary stuff.” But I felt deep down that I didn’t belong there. (Hi Holy Spirit!) That I was taking myself down to a level of participation with death and darkness that Jesus died to deliver us from. 

Maybe now that you think about it, you notice that same feeling too.

Background: Night Terrors

One main thing that impacted our decision was our kids. We realized we will answer to the Lord for what we expose them to, and I started to think about that. 

My son was plagued with awful night terrors at one point that allowed us a glimpse into the spiritual battle for our kids. Not just bad dreams (which are also of the Enemy) – these were terror filled experiences straight from you know where. Think demons in the room. After a few of these experiences, the demonic attack was so clear that we did the only thing we knew to do: We said, “In the name of Jesus leave now and don’t come back.” And the most supernatural thing happened. It left – instantly. We saw right in front of our eyes the darkness that Jesus died to defeat! Resurrection power, right there in our house. We learned that the Enemy stands no chance of survival after the cross. The only way it can impact you is if you agree with it (opening a door) because God allows us to have our own free will even as Christians. (More on this later.) 

Spiritual Warfare Implications 

After the dreams, we learned a lot more about spiritual warfare. We were reminded that there is a natural world and an unseen, spirit world  where angels and demons are fighting. I find some of the Christians celebrating Halloween that I talk to are only looking in their natural world, not thinking about the spiritual implications. But we are told to look not to the things that are seen, but to the things that are unseen. 2 Corinthians 4:18

If you believe the Bible and that there is good and evil, then you likely believe in a spirit realm and haven’t thought about it. You hear about the unseen spirit world often in the Bible. With Daniel and his angel fighting the prince of Persia (Daniel 10), when God allowed Elisha to see all the angels fighting around him in battle, (2 Kings 6), when Jesus met with Moses and Elijah on the mountain even though both of them had died (Luke 9), etc. Then there are the countless times that Jesus told spirits to leave the individuals he healed. All of this shows us: The Spirit world is real and it very much affects your life, even if you choose to only see the physical. There is no fear with Jesus, but you are still in a war and the sooner we realize that the more alert and vigilant we can be with our family and our calling.

The Enemy can use the spirit world (demons) to influence our children where we as parents “agree” with him with our free will, whether we are Christians or not. When we open a door to Satan, we give him access. As Christians we can resist him and he will flee, but embracing his darkness is still a choice left for us on this Earth. Doing so opens a door to impact your life and that of your family. After studying these things, I realized I was signaling to the Enemy that I was ok wth darkness by celebrating Halloween – I was essentially welcoming him to attack my family. 

It all suddenly made sense. The decor on a lawn of bones, grave stones and dead things? It sends the message – come on in spirits. This house loves what you stand for and you are welcome here. The witch hat you wore as a joke? It says – sure witchcraft spirits, I’m open to you. I know many may eye roll at this, but it’s truly that simple to open a door. (1 Peter 5:8 – Be alert and of sober mind. Your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour.) He is looking for someone with an open door first. 

I realized: it doesn’t matter what the decor means to me (you know how it goes, “Oh it’s harmless and good fun – we don’t mean anything evil by it.”) That didn’t matter – it’s what it says to the spirit world. You indicate to the spirit world whose team you are on in the battle of good and evil: by what you say, how you live, and how you think. 

What does the Bible Say?

After coming into these realizations, I realized the only reason I still did “trick or treat” was because of what other people would think. Jesus said we would be different from the world, why was I so concerned?

*YET.*

I still went to the Bible to see if there was any way we could still trick or treat “our way,” just having fun, ignoring the evil and darkness that passed by us. I found nothing to support that. I found the following:

1 Thessalonians 5:21-22 (KJV)

“Prove all things; hold fast that which is good. Abstain from all appearance of evil.”

If it says abstain from even the appearance of evil? Halloween is definitely that, I thought. It celebrates dead things and fear. Exactly what we are told to abstain from. 

In another version: 

1 Thessalonians 5:21-22 (ESV)

“But test everything; hold fast what is good. Abstain from every form of evil.”

Other verses:

Romans 13:12 (ESV)

“The night is far gone; the day is at hand. So then let us cast off the works of darkness and put on the armor of light.”

James 4:7

“Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you.”

Philippians 4:8

“Finally, brothers and sisters, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable—if anything is excellent or praiseworthy—think about such things.” 

(Halloween does not fit into any of these definitions to us.) 

Conclusion 

There comes a point in your walk with the Lord where you don’t want to do anything that could remotely offend him. Not to be a legalist, but because you don’t want to grieve him. After reading God’s word that he left here for us, I believe celebrating dead skeletons, death and ghosts (demon spirits), grieves the heart of God. It’s that simple. I want to be able to tell him we resisted any form of evil and gave zero days to fear or darkness. Jesus died to overcome that. Why would we go backward and give it an ounce of our time or energy? 

This is where the Lord led us. If you are thinking through this issue for yourself and your family, I hope these verses above are helpful. Bring your cares and questions before the Lord for he cares for you! He will show you what is best for your family. 

God bless each person who reads this! No matter how you feel about this, know I love you and so does the Lord. I wish you the happiest fall! ❤️

PS: A question I get often is what to do with your family when you know you’re done celebrating Halloween. Taking them to Chick-fil-A and a carefree movie is one idea a friend decided on. Personally, this year we went north to see the fall leaves change and have a fire with smores. Whatever you do, celebrate God’s fall season. October 31st is his day just like all the others! It’s a day the Lord made, let us rejoice and be glad in it! I know he has a great plan for your family if you ask him what to do! (Man plans his way; the Lord establishes his steps Prov. 16:9). 

PSS: Have questions or want to discuss? Comment below or message me in the comment tab. I’d love to connect and share what God has shown you!