Fear

1 John 4:18 (ESV) There is no fear in love, but perfect love casts out fear. For fear has to do with punishment, and whoever fears has not been perfected in love. 

Most people associate Halloween with fear—fear of death, fear of dying, fear of evil. But when we come to know the true power and trustworthiness of God, many of the fears we have in life melt away. Fear, however, is a natural and good feeling. Without fear we would make many stupid mistakes, hurting ourselves and others in the process. Without fear, we would not have enough wisdom to flee when true dangers present themselves. 

One of the ways people deal with their fears is by making fun of the fear itself. That, in fact, is part of the origin of Halloween, which means "all hallows eve." People were naturally afraid of death and dying, and so they decided to face their greatest fear by poking fun at death. In 1 John, we are told that perfected love drives out fear. That is to say, when we become certain of God's love, we don't have to be afraid anymore. It's as if God is the parent who comes in at night and tucks us in, turns on the night light, and tells us that there are no monsters. In God's great love, all fear melts away. 

We can remove our fears by serving others. When we abandon our lives in service, we often discover that our fears lessen as our friendship and love deepens. As you and I think about our fears now, I hope that we will see that just as God has protected and redeemed those who have come before us, God will protect and redeem us, too. Even from death itself! 

Dear Lord, help us remove our fears by serving others. Open the doors so that we can share Your love to those around us that need it. In the Name of Jesus, Amen. 

Halloween thoughts 2015

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.

It’s an age-old question in the faith community: Should Christians celebrate Halloween? I read a great article dealing with the origins of Halloween and the issues of Christians celebrating it. They compare it to the issue in the Bible of eating meat sacrificed to idols. They also raise the about Christmas trees. The Christmas Tree was originally part of a festival to a fertility god. Does this mean that if we have a Christmas Tree, we are worshiping the fertility god? No, because of its cultural context. I do know of some Christians who don’t have Christmas Trees, for that reason. It is a matter of personal conviction.

I found this illustration you can use as you carve a pumpkin with your children.

Being a Christian is just like a pumpkin! Let me try to explain, I brought this pumpkin here to help me illustrate what I mean. (Proceed to carve the pumpkin.)

First, God picks you from the pumpkin patch and brings you in from the field. The Bible says He selects us out of the world. We are in the world, but no longer of the world.

He then washes all the “dirt” off the outside that we received from being around all the other pumpkins. All the outside influences of our former life must be cleaned up. Old things are passed away and all things are become new.

Then, He carefully removes all the “yucky stuff” called “sin” out from the inside. Look at this! Yuk! Sin will not have such internal power. He then changes us from the inside out by the Power of His Word. That’s why it is important to go the church and learn about God’s Word.

He carefully removes all those seeds of doubt, hate, greed, and fear. He replaces them with the seeds of faith, hope and love. After Jesus is invited inside, you begin to experience the changing power of God’s love in your life.

Then He carves a new smiling face. Our countenance is changed by the power of His presence in our life. We then become so grateful. It can even show on our face!

Now we are going to light this candle inside. Look! This pumpkin now reflects the light from inside out. So too, when Jesus, who is called the Son of Light, lives inside of us, He shines through our life for all to see. We can let His light reflect through us to reveal His presence. “Let your light so shine before men that they may be able to see your good works and glorify your Father, who is in heaven.”

So you see, we Christians are really like this pumpkin! We will never be the same with Jesus inside of us. We can say like this jack-o-lantern, “Thy presence, my light!”

Let us close this devotion with a prayer based on carving a pumpkin.

Dear Lord, open our minds so we can learn new things about You. Remove the things in our life that don’t please You. Forgive the wrong things we do and help us to forgive others. Open our eyes to see the beauty You’ve made in the world around use. We are sorry for the times we ‘ve turned our nose at the good food you provide. Let everything we say please You. Lord, help us show your light to others through the things we do. In the Name of Jesus, Amen.

October 31, 1517

Ephesians 2:8-9 (NIV)

8 For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God— 9 not by works, so that no one can boast.

With a hammer in one hand and a large scroll under his arm, Martin Luther approached the Castle Church in Wittenberg, Germany. He paused to take a couple of nails from a pouch hidden in the folds of his dark woolen habit then began pounding his 95 theses to the church’s heavy wooden doors.

The date was October 31, 1517 and the event changed the course of human history.

Luther’s protest was not against ghosts and goblins or children dressing up to trick-or-treat. He chose All Hallow’s Eve because it was the night before All Saints’ Day, a day when most of Wittenberg’s inhabitants would be in church. It was good advertising.

Unlike in the United States of America where freedom of speech is protected as a Constitutional right. The Catholic Church was the supreme authority in the land: those who went against the Church did so at the peril of their lives.

What prompted this act of courage and defiance on Luther’s part?

As Luther studied Scripture, his eyes were opened to a new concept: the concept of God’s grace. Passion burned inside him as he read verses like Ephesians 2:8-9:

“For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith – and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God – not by works, so that no one can boast.”

The established Church in Luther’s day misled people into thinking they could be saved by their own works through pilgrimages, confessions and by purchasing indulgences, which were basically “get out of hell free” cards. It became clear to Luther that men could not purchase God’s grace: it was freely given. This conviction led him to write out 95 main points of contention with the Catholic Church, his “theses,” which he ended up nailing to the door of the church in Wittenberg.

Today many Christians debate the proper stance to take toward Halloween. Some believe that the holiday glorifies witchcraft and evil, while others see it simply as innocent fun. One of Satan’s most successful tactics is to incite Christians to fight each other on matters of doctrine. Perhaps we would do better this October 31 to focus on what is most important to God, just like Martin Luther did on that fateful day in history.

Luther was determined.

Luther was passionate.

Luther was willing to sacrifice his credentials.

Luther was willing to sacrifice his social status.

Luther was even willing to sacrifice his life for the sake of sharing the news about God’s saving grace.

At his very core  were the words of Romans 10:14:

“And how can they hear without someone preaching to them?”

Are you willing to make similar sacrifices to bring people from darkness to light?

Dear Lord, we pray that today we would have the same conviction that Martin Luther had. Make it our goal to bring those that are in the dark to the light. In Jesus’ Name, Amen.

God can Use Halloween.

Two men were walking home after a Halloween party and decided to take a shortcut through the cemetery just for laughs.
Right in the middle of the cemetery they were startled by a tap-tap-tapping noise coming from the misty shadows.
Trembling with fear, they found an old man with a hammer and chisel, chipping away at one of the headstones.
"Mister," one of them said after catching his breath, "You scared us half to death --we thought you were a ghost! What are you doing working here so late at night?"
"Those fools!" the old man grumbled. "They misspelled my name!"


Oct. 31 is one of the best opportunities we have all year to share the gospel with children. Where else do we have contact with so many young people coming right to our front doors? Tracts can be used with candy and placed in trick-or-treat bags. What a great challenge to Christians to use this opportunity to share the gospel of Christ with 31 children this Halloween."


Dear children, let us not love with words or tongue but with actions and in truth.

-1 John 3:18 (New International Version)


Dear Lord we pray that we would take the opportunities you give us to share your Love. In Jesus’ name, amen.