Redeeming the Sacred Night of the Candy

Oh sweet hallows eve.  Some thoughts for incarnational living on this most...religio-sacro-spirituo-holish-day.

It's that strangely universal celebration of after-hours-candyholics.  One that draws your neighbors out of their homes once a year - so hand something out and connect with them.  (If you don't agree with candy do something cool like temporary tattoo's, please avoid the rice cakes, please.)

1. Why not walk around and chat it up around fires, glowing pumpkins and bowls of sugar with the rest of the neighborhood?  In fact, make it point to connect on a deeper level with at least one other family on your journey.  (I've not yet been accused of anything more than having a sweet beard and a lot of fun on Halloween.)
2. Join up with your missional community, small group or extended family and have a party in your front yard handing out candy to neighbors.  Why not add some sweet music and a barbecue and I promise you'll not only connect with the unknown hermits down the street, but you might enjoy it yourself!
3. If you simply must redeem the night through blatant Christianization from the commercialized-pagan-holish-day, and if you must dress up as your favorite patriarch of the faith, and if you  must quote copious amounts of Scripture...then please, please, please at least do it with some serious pizzaz, drama and fanfare as though you actually believe and enjoy the dramatic ancient beauty of the text, the heroic people, and the their powerful God.

Oh, and whatever you choose to do with the night, model for your children what it means to glorify God through missional candy collection, proliferation and neighborhood connects...and for those of you staying indoors with your kids, demonstrate healthy fasting from what you believe to be all-too-close identification with and worship of the worlds gods without condemning the rest of the Body.

Party on Wayne...Party on Garth.