Blog Following

There's this new thing on my side bar. Did you see it? It's called "followers". I have no idea what it does or how it got there. At first I thought it was a new feature from Blogger and they automatically put it on everybody's. But then I noticed that other blogs I follow don't have it on their side bars so I still don't know.

Anyway, check it out if you want. Maybe it e-mails you when I post or something. If you sign up and figure out it does something neat let me know.

A Bit Of Goodness

October and I had some plans. Twice really.

First I wanted to do a RENEW with my homeschool group. Honey said "yes", but I just couldn't see how it would work out. It would definitely be a hardship on the family and I didn't have the go-ahead from God.

THEN, my son was invited to play as a guest player in a soccer tournament in Tulsa. The same weekend that the Wings would be there! Oh yes! How to do it?? It was trickier this time b/c we'd have to take more people. I thought of all sorts of scenarios and played it over in my mind. Nothing was working out and (again) we didn't have the go-ahead from God.

But in His great sweetness, God gave us something else. The same weekend as the Tulsa tournament all 3 of my sons get to walk out on the Rapids field with a Rapids player, get a uniform, and a ball, and watch the game. Plus Honey gets to take pictures *on the field*! What an opportunity! I wonder if it'll be televised?

God is good. I had plans, but God had better ones. He knew. And the Wings are still coming!!!

Romans 15:1-2

I spilled sour cream all over the floor, up the cabinets, and on the rug. It wasn't even 7:30am. Yuck. Before I knew it I had 2 kids in there with offers to help me clean it up. Ahhh, such sweeties.

Not an hour later I hear some squabbling in the living room. You see it was Saturday morning and kids had been trading beds and camping out the night before. A little boy needed his big sister's help to fold up his sleeping bag. But it wasn't going well. He wasn't doing it the way she wanted. She was unwilling to step in with more than her mouth. Tears were rolling, frustration was mounting. That's when I came in.

How glad I am that I spent some time with the Lord that morning. His Word was perfect for my day.

"We who are strong ought to bear with the failings of the weak and not to please ourselves. Each of us should please his neighbor for his good, to build him up. " Rom 15:1-2

I can sympathize with my daughter. She helps out a lot and cleans up a lot of messes that are not her own. However, her brother needed her and she should be just as willing to bear with his failings as she was with mine. We talked about serving and about being a peace maker. I also talked to my little son.

I've been meditating on this verse this week and asking the Lord to show me the ones I can bear with, do good for, and build up. I need to look no further than my own living room. Loving my children, patiently teaching them, and always pointing them to the Savior.

This Week

This week is one of fun. And busyness. I'm tired just thinking of how it will begin, yet excited to get it underway. I've scaled down school this week to math and Bible. Flexibility is the advantage of schooling year round! It's a bit of a working vacation week with lots of fellowship and fun mixed in. Here goes.....

~I woke up this morning to a wonderful e-mail. You see I was invited to speak to my homeschool group on saving money but I could not go. So sad. They found somebody else and I will miss it. BUT Angelia invited me to e-mail her my ideas and she'd pass it out. OK, really everybody attending is invited to do the same so I'm nobody special, BUT it is a way that I can be included when I so very much wanted to be. And Renee will mail me the other ideas I've missed.

~I got up, read my Bible, started potato soup, cut roast into steaks, and made breakfast. Not as incredible as it sounds since the potatoes were from date night and breakfast was simple.

~I had some weekly errands to do and took 2 kids with me.

~My daughter had a friend over and I visited with her mom. It was nice to get to know her a little better.

~This week I'm working on the clothes exchange. It's getting pretty cool and it's time to put up the shorts. That is my main goal of tomorrow. And the next day. And the next.

~We have a birthday coming up! My little man will be six! He's so excited that it's only 3 more sleeps. He's picked all his meals except breakfast. Actually he picked steak for breakfast but it was strongly vetoed by his donut loving siblings.

~I won a contest!!! Dr Bobak had a contest to see who could guess how many mouth guards he's made for the high school athletes in the area. So while my kids were getting their braces adjusted I put in my guess. I don't even remember the number but I WON!! A $50 gift card to Sports Authority. (Just in time for Jes' b-day)

~Book day is coming up fast. Friday as a matter of fact. 7 moms and 16 kids. I'm just about done with the prep work and putting the finishing touches on this week.

~My son is getting sick. Lots of vitamin C, fluids, and not kissing anybody.

~This week marks one year in CO. Wow.

Today's meals...
breakfast- cream of wheat
lunch- potato soup
dinner- roast steaks, creamed spinach, baked potatoes, salad

Observing The Sabbath

My friend Yvette has spurred me on to try to make Sundays more restful. She works hard on Saturday and rests on Sunday...just like God meant it to be I guess. I've never had a clear picture of what that looked like until talking with her. So today I've been busy busy busy so that tomorrow I can read, walk, nap, or whatever.

~I got up early, read my Bible, and made a big batch of cereal for today and tomorrow.

~2 soccer games. 2 wins!

~I worked a little on the clothes exchange.

~I've had my kids working extra hard on their jurisdictions. The clothes exchange always brings that about!

~I've made extra everything so tomorrow's kitchen work will be minimal. AND it fit in with my new monthly menu. (more on that later)

~Tonight we will pick clothes for tomorrow and make sure everything is ready..including a clean house.

Today's meals...
Breakfast- cereal
Lunch - leftovers
Dinner- hamburgers, oven fries, chocolate oatmeal cake

Looking forward to tomorrow.

This Week

I just commented that I thought I would look back on this week and be disappointed in the way it went. I've felt too busy and rushed and spread too thin. But when I went running God pointed my thoughts a different way. I just kept thinking on the good and fun of this week.....is that perhaps the renewing of my mind?

~I connected in a new way with my husband. It was over a Pastor Dale sermon on Romans 12. Do you have that dvd? It's really good. We watched it for date night. Afterward he commented about being homesick. What? He has never mentioned being homesick. He's talked about missing Greg and Brandon but that's about it. We had a nice long talk. And ya know what? Somehow just knowing he feels a little of what I feel about it made me feel so much better.

~Speaking of home...the Wings are coming!! Did I say that already? I'll probably say it a lot more.

~The spinach isn't growing but the garlic IS! And so is the dill.

~I got to go grocery shopping! Inspired by all the food in the house, I menued the entire month! Never done that before. It's my new experiment.

~Conner came over to play with my son. He was the entertainment of the day for everybody. The thing I like about this kid is the fact that he seems so positive, so happy, and has a big smile. He's a good conversationalist and has no problem talking to adults. I pulled my son aside and pointed out these things to him. I'll probably re-visit it later.

~I saw Fireproof with 2 of my daughters.

~I got to buy Eldest a new book b/c I love her.

~I made 3 batches of banana bread for the freezer and muffins for worship practice.

~We had fun company over for dinner Monday and they brought us buttercup squash and zucchini to play with.

~I took Bird and Lane shopping and looked at Christmas decor at Hobby Lobby. They fixed a picture for me for free. I don't like to shop but I LOVE the delight in my kids when they shop. We talked about which Christmas tree would look the best in Emo's house and how wreaths look like donuts We felt all the soft pretty yarn on the yarn aisle and wished we knew how to sew. I love my girls.

~I bought pumpkins! 1 big one to cut open and play with. 1 pie pumpkin to cook. 10 little pumpkins to paint. My 4 yo son kept singing "We got a pumpkin, we got a pumpkin!!" Simple pleasures. It was the first thing they showed Conner when he came over. They are sitting on my porch with the buttercup squash and look so fall-ish.

~It's been a good school week for the little boys and we're working on their speeches for Oral Reports on Friday. Of course now all of our calendar time centers around how many more sleeps until my son's b-day (9 more).

~Did you get that?? Oral Reports and Gym on Friday...no other school!! Then Eldest and I are going to dinner with Cherry and her momma to meet a friend in town from Wyoming. After that she's going to a new Bible study. I'm so thankful for her friend Cherry.

It's a good week.

Walking

My quiet walks are so refreshing. I'm not going in the mornings anymore. Sometimes I go in the afternoon, sometimes I go in the evenings during soccer practice. Tonight I slipped out before worship practice and took Joey for a run. It's such an alone time to think, worship, sing, and reflect on the day.

I've been thinking about going to a different place just to change things up. But tonight I decided...why? This is such a pretty place why change it? So with my dog and iPod I headed off. A little ways up the road my ponytail started falling out. So I dropped the leash and fixed it. And as if he hadn't already peed on everything up until now the dog had to pee on his leash!!! Grrrr......

It's dusk and there's not many people out. I figured it was safe to sing out loud. But when I turned the corner there were people in the place I like to run! Apparently they were disappointed that I was there b/c they left soon afterward. Maybe it was the singing. In any case Joey and I had the place to ourselves.

God brings to mind so many things for me to ponder and pray about when I'm running. I love it. But tonight my mind kept going to the remorse of past sins. Do you know what song was next on my iPod (set to shuffle)? Chris Tomlin's Amazing Grace. Ahhhhh..... Isn't God good? That song has been special to me for a long time anyway. And I don't think anyone does it as well as Chris Tomlin.

"My chains are gone, I've been set free! My God, my Savior has ransomed me!"

Making Do

Company for dinner tonight and I thought I had it all planned out. But when it came time to actually cook, I found myself out of several important things. I had neither time nor money to go to the store so I decided to work it out one way or another even if I had to change my entire menu.

My plan was chicken spaghetti, salad, bread, and brownies.

Problem #1... No diced tomatoes. I need diced tomatoes. I always have diced tomatoes. Where did they all go? Actually I needed Rotel but I certainly didn't have any of that.

Solution #1...Crushed tomatoes w/a can of diced green chilies. Totally different texture and slightly different taste.

Problem #2...Not enough butter to make garlic bread.

Solution #2... Plain bread. Not as good but it was fresh from the oven. I sliced it then sliced the whole loaf in half and put it nicely in my bread basket with a towel. It looked pretty even if it wasn't garlic bread.

Problem #3...No sugar, no honey, no syrup. How in the world do you make dessert without at least one of those?

Solution #3...I had a box of brownie mix that I picked up for .50 one day. I totally messed it up. HOW do you mess up a box mix, you ask? I don't know. Luckily we had ice cream left over from my daughter's b-day.

Overall the dinner turned out pretty good but not like usual. Nobody will be fighting over left overs. However, I was happy that I was able to figure something out without going to the store.

The company was a bunch of fun. And nobody gagged over dinner. I'm learning to relax so much in my hospitality. Yes, I want a good dinner, Yes I want a clean house. But it's not about that and I didn't catch our friends running their fingers over our furniture to see if we dusted. It was just a fun time of getting together, enjoying music, a fire in the fire pit, and happy kids playing together.

I hope we get to do it again soon.

2 Days Until Payday!

And since my fridge is bare that is great news!

Such a restful Sunday after a hectic Saturday. The part that makes any day restful is if babies are happy and not demanding. Yesterday was demanding. Today was happy. Ahhh.......

And I did basically no cooking. Here's our menu, even though I'm a little embarrassed to type it..
Breakfast- cream of wheat
Lunch - leftovers
Dinner - (date night) Ramen noodles for kids, take out for us.

I know. But surely ya'll eat like this sometimes too don't ya?

Next week is a different story. A super busy week with lots of company and lots of cooking. I have a lot of zucchini to grate and use. And.....GROCERY SHOPPING!!

Yay! Our growth spurt totally blew my budget. I *can* blame it on that can't I? I haven't figured in my rebates yet, but rebates or not it was not pretty. Hopefully this month will be better. It needs to be.

Tomorrow's menu..
Breakfast - overnight french toast with homemade syrup (b/c I'm out of store bought)
Lunch- chicken soup w/ bread
Dinner- chicken spaghetti, salad, bread, brownies (company for dinner)

I have old bread I need to use up so it'll be perfect for the french toast. I'll put some pears in the crock pot on low all night to use for the syrup in the morning. The chicken is already cooked so it'll make lunch and dinner easy. We're having company for dinner and that'll be fun.

Date night in 1 hour!
Have a blessed week!

happy birthday LB!!!

My beautiful one is eleven!

We're having a fun day today just being with her and doing nothing in particular...no school! Meg is taking her to see Fireproof this afternoon and I get to go too.

My favorite memory of LB is when she was about 5 sitting at the kitchen table with her cousin Tate. Tate is just a few months older. LB started preaching the gospel to him right then and there. Tate would change the subject to action figures or something but she would steer him right back. I listened from a distance wondering how far she'd get and being very proud of her for relating it so accurately. When she was all finished, she added ..."And a wise woman builds her house, but with her own hands a foolish one tears hers down, WHATEVER that means!" Apparently we had just memorized that and she knew it must fit in there somewhere.

Here's some cute stuff about my cutie....

~She has read her Bible all the way through.

~She is our only kid to get stitches. Twice.

~She loves everything beautiful but is a bit rough and tumble too. A good mix.

~She has a solid sense of right and wrong.

~She hates wearing shoes.

~She is very good with little kids and will be a good babysitter someday.

~She has a special job at church of greeting and passing out bulletins.

~She is a good friend to everybody and never meets a stranger.

~She's hardly ever in a bad mood and usually wears a pretty smile.

She scored big points with her brother today. She couldn't decide about her b-day meals and went with his suggestion. Birthday meals are VERY important to him!

So here they are...

Breakfast- donuts, fruit, eggs, and juice

Lunch - special sandwiches w/chips

Dinner - chicken fried chicken with mashed potatoes & gravy

Happy Birthday Baby!

Old And New

I like Job's story but I wish we knew more about the ending. I mean that's great that the Lord gave him back everything that he lost and then some but do you think he missed the old? I know that if one of my children died and was replaced with another, I would still miss the one I loved and lost.

Even if the new is tons better it is still different than the old and I think it's ok to miss whatever was special in the old.

Today I miss home. I love this one. I really do. No I don't wanna move back. I'm not feeling sorry for myself. I'm just a bit homesick and I wish I could go visit every weekend.

OTHER THINGS......
~Life is outa whack here. Soccer season is in full swing. I'm usually able to adjust and love it. But this season has been tougher for some reason. Probably poor planning. In any case I gotta get on the ball and work it out.

~My spinach isn't growing.

~I'm too busy. Bible study at my house tonight and I almost forgot. No time to even make a snack! I had to buy something...oh the shame ;-p

~I took Joe and my iPod went for a big walk. (I forgave him for his past rudeness.) We were almost the only ones out. That means I could sing out loud. We watched the fish in the lake and went the long way home.

~The water heater's working.

~My pot to the coffee pot broke. And since we don't drink coffee I'm thinking I'll make tea on the stove and save this expense until my coffee drinking family comes next.

~I wonder if I can get free canning jars on Craigslist or Freecycle?

~B-day for LB tomorrow. It'll be a good day. I went shopping for all her meals today.

~Grocery shopping for 11 takes a long time.

~Wagon rides distract tired babies.

Today's meals...
Breakfast- cereal and muffins w/juice
Lunch - nachos and leftovers
Dinner- broccoli soup and bread

Miscellaneous Grossness

1. Get this. My next door neighbor has a dead rotting deer head in his front yard. Trash day came and went and here it still sits. We can't step outside without inhaling the smell of death. My husband and boys think it's cool to see the changes in it and report to me what all is crawling in and out of it's nose. Why is it there??

2. There are too many flies in the house. Could it have something to do with my neighbor's new pet? So *somebody* (it wasn't a girl) suggested we go get the bug zapper from outside and hang it from the dining room ceiling fan WHILE we're eating. Um, NO. But since it was such a good idea Honey brought it in and set it up on the bar. Of course we had to turn off all the lights and not talk lest anyone miss the zap of death. Honey reassured them that we could still talk *and* hear the bugs turn to ash. Dinner and a show.

3. Not a good day for Joey. He pooped 7x in the music room...but we already talked about that. Later in the day he was laying in the living room sound asleep. Apparently he had some scary dog dream b/c out of nowhere he jumps(!) and slings a slobber on my face. I've just about had it with him this week.

Today

~I got up earlier than usual and tip toed into the kitchen. GASP!! There in the music room was 7 piles of dog poop!! What in the world? Joey will occasionally throw up on the floor but poop? No way. Immediately I hear him bound up the stairs. He wanted out NOW and ran off to do his business....as if 7 piles weren't enough. Don't know what to make of it and I didn't yell at him since this never happens. Besides he sorta had a repentant look on his face. He's lucky I didn't step in it.

~An easy school day. I'm still needing some things for Meg this year so her work load is light right now. We actually figured that she has enough credits to graduate this year but she decided to stay home another year. Good choice I think.

~The kids and I did some cooking today and made 4 dozen muffins, cereal, refried beans, salsa, canned 5 jars of pickles, and 2 jars of salsa. Lots of dishes.

~I walked with Lane and LB and we found some grape vines. Nice! Hmmm, I wonder what I can make with those? They have seeds though.

~Soccer practice tonight and that means a wagon ride to the park. I'm not sure what we'll do when it gets cooler.

~My spinach isn't growing.

~I'm working on my flylady routines. Today I cleaned up our dresser and my nightstand. Dusted, lit candles, and it looks nice. While I was at it, I hit the baseboards that were nearby.

~I got many many things on my list done. As Honey would say....it was a "productive" day.

Meals-
Breakfast- oatmeal and juice
Lunch- leftover spaghetti & garlic bread
Dinner- bean burritos with all the fixins

My Getaway Spot

I read about these little escapes to the coffee shop and I think, "awwww.... I should try that sometime."

So I decided that Sunday was sometime. But where to go? I don't drink coffee so that didn't make sense. I thought about the library but although our library is super neat it doesn't have many cozy reading nooks. The weather was nice but the park didn't sound too appealing since I would feel guilty for not taking kids or dog.

Know where I picked? The garage! I opened the garage door cause it was nice and sunny, pulled my chair into the shade of the garage and propped my feet up on the trailer. I had my Bible, my journal, my book day book, and my juice. Simple, free, and nobody cared that I was in the garage without them.

A tiny little vacation spot that I look forward to visiting again.

Ps 138:3

Sibling squabbles, baby fits, hard math problems, unexpected errands, and a broken water heater. Regular type stuff for a Monday.

The Lord gave me a good Word for today even before I knew I needed it.
"for You have exalted over all things Your name and Your Word. When I called You answered me. You made me bold and stouthearted." Ps. 138:3

And He just kept playing it over in my mind. And with this rattling through my head, I found myself peaceful and enjoying the day.

Yes, He has exalted over every irritation, every interruption, and every little hardship. Nothing is a surprise to Him and He had already accounted for it. His Word has made me bold and stouthearted and enabled me to face the day with a smile.

confession~
Ok, I didn't *start* the day with a smile. I did have a minor blow up at 2 kids who were trying to pick up an over turned trash can with their feet. But it doesn't count if it happens before 7:30am, right?

Time And Time Again

It all started one day last week. I felt distracted and unfocused all day. The day sort of fell apart, schedule wise, and I basically just decided it was a bad day. Going to bed that night I wondered what went wrong and figured that I wasn't using my time wisely.

Then Renee shared her devotional with me. She wasn't even in town! Wait a minute, she's not in town anyway since she's in FSM and I'm here, right? But she was really really out of town on a trip. Anyhoo it was about ordering her (our, my) days.

And THEN...Honey had the nerve to tell me that he thought I could probably plan my trips more efficiently.

hmmm, perhaps I should pay attention, ya think? I'm guessing Les will preach something on time management tomorrow. Just a guess.

My biggest distraction is computer time. So I'm cutting that back to only times when kids are in bed/naps. With no door on the office, my computer time usually involves a teenager who plops in the chair beside me to talk. Honey uses it at night. Maybe I need to get up earlier (even though I love those chatty teens).

More careful planning of my grocery lists will help with the trips. I always forget something no matter how detailed my list though. Besides, living so close to everything makes life easy. And just when I think I have absolutely everything for the week then we eat it all and there's no more and it's only Wednesday. I'm telling you everyone is growing! I gotta find a way to adjust or compensate.

What else? I find that I'm the one wrecking my own schedule.

Strawberry Soup and Pizza Sauce

The picture is boring but the snack is delicious. It comes from my friends Tracy and Lana...a sweet mother-daughter team of good cooks.

We made this the other day for tea and served it with graham crackers. It would also be good as a fruit dip or poured into popsicle molds.

Tracy and I have known each other a long time and first met in a mother/daughter Bible study at her church. Now I'm here and we're good e-mail buddies. She is a wonder at sewing and just sent me 6 of the softest sweetest diaper inserts that you can imagine. She's a fellow frugal zealot and has taught me lots of good stuff...like making your dish soap go farther. She also makes her own laundry soap and diapers!! I wish I could sew.......

Lana is sweetheart and I love following her blog. We were honored to attend her most gorgeous wedding and I got to spend a little time with her momma too. Her courtship story is not to be missed! Her love for the Lord and devotion to her family has encouraged me as a mom of teenagers. Thank you Tracy and Tyler for raising such a sweet girl. And thank you God that she's a friend to mine.

Strawberry Soup

1lb frozen strawberries almost thawed.

1/4 C. honey + extra for drizzle

1 3/4 C. sour cream

1 1/2 T. vanilla

1/4 C. half & half

Drizzle berries with honey. Run through food processor until small. With electric mixer mix in sour cream, honey, and vanilla. Gently stir in 1/2 & 1/2. Refrigerate 2 hours.

Here's another...

Bulk Pizza Sauce

1 #10 can tomato sauce (aprox. 12 cups)

6 T. onion powder (3/8 cup)

2 T. each garlic powder, basil, oregano, salt

1/4 C. honey.

Mix all together and freeze in 1 cup portions. 1 cup is enough for 1 large pizza.

Canning

I'm in such the canning mood and have been all summer. But, alas, no produce. Or at least not enough to can except pickles. And if you can't can at least of few jars of tomatoes then it's not really canning in my book. Summer is coming to an end and so is my garden. But Honey I have big plans for next year (Pleeeeeeeze!!! cause you love me so much)

So to satisfy my canning lust I'm moving on to jams. Blueberry, apricot, and strawberry to be exact.

I need some more jars.

Dinner Menu Woes

I don't know what I was thinking when I menued for this week. I think I was being lazy. I had a couple of meals left over from last week that I didn't get to fix and I guess I just added to that. Really I don't remember since it's been like 3 days ago and I can barely remember what I did 10 minutes ago. But it looks something like this....

meatloaf and mashed potatoes w/salad
sloppy joes with oven fries
roast with mashed potatoes (whatever!)
lasagna (impossible since I forgot to buy noodles at the store)

Doesn't that look incredibly boring? And to top it off I left it at 4 meals. What was I thinking I was going to do for the rest of the week?

I did make 4 meatloaves last night and was so busy preparing them for the freezer that I forgot to thaw something out for tonight. I have a few chicken breasts so I'm thinking chicken pot pie since it doesn't use so much chicken.

I need some new ideas.

My Take On Halloween

Quick disclaimer: This is just my own opinion and experiences. I've worked on this post for 3 days and wanted to shorten it. However I felt the Lord leading me to post the entire thing. I know I usually blab about anything and everything on this blog but this is a glimpse into a past that I am very much ashamed of and a piece of my testimony that I rarely share. And while I don't think I struggle much with the fear of man thing, I find myself afraid to push the publish button. Well, deep breath....here goes....

I hate Halloween. All of it.

I used to love it. As in love it like my favorite day of the year. It was in my teenage years when I did not know my Lord. My friends and I would go out on Halloween night spending all our $$ on haunted houses. None of them were scary b/c I was calloused to such things. It was just fun.

It moved a bit beyond fun and become something I fixed my mind on. I was very interested in the evil spirit world. Thankfully I never had the opportunity to delve too deep and I look at that as the Lord's protection.

There are so many lessons in my story of Halloween and I want to stop and interject one here. I did not grow up in a Christian home and had few Christian influences around me. I can't explain it very well but somehow I felt different. Maybe it was the prayer I prayed on the 700 Club when I was seven. Having no instruction, I never grew beyond "I believe in God".

I look back now and can fully appreciate "While we were yet sinners, Christ died for us". He was always there protecting me even though I was rejoicing in evil. I was His and He wasn't going to give me up.

There came a night when I was out where I wasn't supposed to be with "friends" I shouldn't have been with. They wanted to show me something and we went to a deserted field with a single house standing. There was nothing and nobody else around. As the sun was setting it was very eerie and scarier than any sort of haunted house. Remember, at that time I did not scare easily. We walk up to this gutted house with no locks on the door. Above the door hung a crucifix. There was blood on the walls. I have no idea what this house was but it was clearly all wrong. It looked like a house of sacrifice. I was suddenly terrified to be there and wanted to run.

That was a huge turning point for me. Evil was no longer fun and it was something that I felt I experienced a little too closely. It was hard to sleep that night and it's something that I still (unfortunately) think about.

~~~~~

Fast forward a few years. I'm now a wife and mom and above all a follower of my Lord Jesus Christ. It is my desire to please Him in all things.

Now that I have my own children I have to decide just what to do with this day of Halloween. It is advertised as innocent fun. Merchants make loads of money selling plastic masks and candy and it gets far more shelf space than Thanksgiving ever will. Sadly it draws the attention of my kids and creates in them the same desire to know what it's all about. I can't see how celebrating evil can ever be innocent or even more importantly, be pleasing to God.

I know there are fairy princesses and little noble firemen but children dress up like that in everyday play. Hardly a day passes that my little super hero doesn't have a cape safety pinned around his neck. But that is not really the point of Halloween. It is all about fright and children don't usually dress as the Grim Reaper in July. That is saved for the special fun of Halloween.

Every church that I've ever been a part of does some sort of Harvest Festival. Some tie it to All Saints Day but they are all the same...a Halloween party, an outreach and safe place. Here's my concern:

"be careful not to be ensnared by inquiring about their gods, saying, "How do these nations serve their gods? We will do the same." You must not worship the Lord your God in their way, because in worshiping their gods, they do all kinds of detestable things the Lord hates." Deut 12:30-31

He's not talking about serving their gods. He's talking about serving Him in the same way they served their gods and not to do it. We're not to be like the rest of the world.

Honestly there are years when I feel like a fuddy dud for not participating--and there have been a couple of years that we actually have. But in my heart I feel that by participating I am no different than the rest of the fallen world. I don't want to follow along or be part of anything the Lord hates. God hates evil. The whole premise of Halloween is having fun with evil. I don't see value in putting a Christian twist on it. To me it's like having a foot in both worlds.

"Everyone who confesses the name of the Lord must turn away from wickedness." 2 Tim. 2:19