Vermont in the fall is the most fantastic place to behold the splendor of God’s majestic power in the colors of His foliage. As a profoundly deaf person, I rely on my eyes to take in and understand the world. This time of the year is the most incredible, awesome sight my eyes can behold!

God is basking in His glory through all the warm colors of Autumn. As His Garment sweeps the Earth, He surely is the King of kings, as revealed by the Bountiful Harvest of His  own creation.

Is it little wonder that for generations men have bowed humbly before Him in adoration and praise for the Bountiful Blessings of the year’s Harvest? In the US we call this day Thanksgiving, and it has become the gateway of the season which holds all the various festivities and celebrations. At one time it was a season that once held  purity and joy and purpose.

I say, ‘once held’  because long gone are the days when families gathered around the laden table with heads bowed to give thanks and praise for the bountiful blessings that God had bestowed upon them throughout the year. Those days have been replaced by eating until we are stuffed,  then plopping on the couch to watch “The Game” on TV.  Or there is the frenzied shopping for the Black Friday sales (which now start on Thursday before the leftovers are even stored in the fridge).  Who has time to quiet their hearts until they are overflowing with thankfulness when the turkey is calling, and they are being torn by exciting sales and the thrill of watching a leather football sail through the air?

Thanksgiving is not the first celebration of this season, though, nor is it the most popular one in our Western culture. Are you surprised? You should be. The most anticipated and favored celebration of our culture is the celebration of the dead…Halloween, or Hallowed/Holy Evening.  The name alone is a smear on the name of all that truly is holy. Even God’s people say “Happy Halloween”  when they should be saying “Hallowed be Thy Name…Thy Kingdom come!”

When I was young on Halloween,  kids dressed up as clowns to make people laugh. But today, in some towns, clown masks have been banned because of their association with the violent killings by those wearing a clown mask.  We donned cowboy and Indian outfits, but today that is considered racist.  We modeled those we admired, and posed as policemen, and nurses, and firemen.  But respect for our elders is lost today and these innocent costumes have gone by the wayside.  The entertainment world now dictates the costumes of our kids.

Today our western society has a morbid fascination with the realm of darkness and the underworld.  The perversion of the haunting has overtaken the mind.  The entertainment world has capitalized on the season of Halloween and is constantly trying to outdo itself with eerie darkness and violent death.  The gorier the presentation, the more exciting to the audience.  You cannot even escape to the grocery store or the hardware without observing how they revel in the dark side through the displays. While the adults are morbidly fascinated by the haunted themes that attempt to make people shiver with fear; visions of witches and the Walking Dead have overtaken the minds of our children. I recently read a news article that shared how a young boy, as he attended the funeral of his friend’s father, attempted to console his friend by saying, ” It’s so cool…your Dad is now one of the Walking Dead!”   The thin line between Reality and Fantasy has been broken.

What can we do? In a day when the enemy goes about as a roaring lion, we must be bold!  Romans 13:12 truthfully speaks these words, “The night is far gone, the day is at hand, so then let us cast off the work of darkness and put on the armor of light.”

How much do we as a culture love Halloween? In 2015 Americans spent 6.9 billion dollars, in 2016 we spent 8.4 billion dollars and this year we continue to grow at 9.1 billion dollars!! Certainly, these staggering figures show where our hearts are!  It is truly hard to comprehend that we spend this overwhelming amount of money on the lifestyles of the dead and the darkness!

Perhaps you’ve not given much thought to Halloween and what it signifies.  But, as a Christian,  have you pondered the thought that where your treasure is so your heart will be also? If you want to know where your heart is, then just look where you spend your money! Scripture echoes,  “For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.” (Matthew 6:27)

May I challenge you this year to seriously think twice before you add even $1 to that 9.1 billion in celebrating the things of darkness? Our world is dark enough.

It is very hard to comprehend that my eyes behold both the majestic splendor of fall with such vibrant living colors of His Creation, and at the very same time I see those that He created shrouded in darkness as they seek new decibels of fear and dread.

Where are you today? Are you celebrating life and giving thanks, or are you like one in  that popular TV series, The Walking Dead, wandering with no purpose or hope?

You have the choice, to choose life or to chose death. And at this time of year, will you choose the lifestyle of the living, or will you celebrate the lifestyle of the dead?

As for me and my house, we choose life…there is no Halloween candy here, so please pass us by and don’t knock on the door!!!