Fall Fest

I love the fall season in south Louisiana. We finally get a break from the sweltering heat and humidity, and we say goodbye to mosquitoes the size of Volkswagens!! This recent cool snap has pulled people out of the comforts of their air-conditioned homes and into the life and activity of neighborhood streets. As we neared Oct. 31st, Rachel and I talked about how to approach the topic of Halloween with our girls (ages 7 & 3)--this can be such a divisive and explosive topic in Christian circles.

We brought them Sunday night to the fall festival at our church, and they had a blast!! Mikaela wore me out by going down the inflatable slide for an hour straight. I'm learning the strategy of our children's department at HPC: after 2 hours of pure adrenalin, inject our kids with sugar (cotton candy) and send them home with toys that make plenty of noise!!

The next night was actually Halloween, and our neighborhood was brimming with activity. I felt like this would be a wonderful chance to connect with people we might not normally see or talk to. Why surrender this day to the devil? October 31st does not belong to the enemy!! The Bible tells us, "This is the day the LORD has made. I will rejoice and be glad in it!!" I wasn't going to let someone else's theology cause me to miss an opportunity. If we as believers are suppose to be the salt of the earth, then in order to effect change, we must come out of our "holy shakers." How are we supposed to change culture if we never engage it? I refuse to hide in my house with all the lights off and spy behind my curtains in judgment of others.

The girls got all "dolled" up and laughed all the way around the neighborhood as they collected enough candy to rot their teeth out...as I distributed candy, I ate chicken chowder with my neighbors and talked Monday Night Football!!