We live in a culture that loves to be served.  Whether it’s as extravagant as an all-inclusive vacation on a cruise ship or as simple as going to the local fast food restaurant, we expect (even demand?) that we be served.  Successful fast food restaurants tell you that you can have it your way, convincing us that it’s all about “me”.  All week long we are bombarded with messages telling us that people are ready to serve us and do exactly what we want (just so long as we buy their products or pay for their services). And then comes Sunday.

The first challenge we have is simply getting out of bed.  We’ve had a busy week; some folks work two jobs; there’s the kids that need attention; there’s the laundry that is piling up; there’s the dozen “minor” repairs that are needed around the house (and did you know that of all the days of the week, we have guests coming over today?). The list is endless.  We are exhausted from a busy week and Sunday is “ours”.  It’s mine to do with it what I please.  If I feel like getting up, I’ll get up.  If I feel like sleeping in, I’ll sleep in.  If I feel like going for a drive that’s exactly what I’ll do.  It’s my day.  Or so we tell ourselves.

Actually, it is the Lord’s Day.  But in our mindset, where everything is about “me”, it’s easy to forget that. We can find a thousand reasons (some of which are very legitimate) why we can’t be in church.  Our attendance becomes sporadic.  We’ll miss a week here or there.  Then we’ll remind ourselves that so-and-so hasn’t been too friendly lately, or the music was too loud or too new or too old, or the preacher went on too long, and, after all, we can always watch religious programming on television from the comfort of our own couches.  And before we know it, the Lord’s Day becomes Our Day.

Ephesians 5:25 describes how “Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her”.  In our culture, we tend to give up the church, after all, we all know the church isn’t perfect.  But it’s because the church isn’t perfect, that Christ gave himself for her, because he loved her. Love never fails. Anyone who is in love will know that they count the minutes until they get together with the one they love. No distance is too far, no price is too high. I remember driving from Winnipeg to Toronto just to see the one I love for a day or two.  Love does that.

The Psalmist had it right, “I rejoiced with those who said to me let us go to the house of the Lord” (Psalm 122:1).  Why? Because there was something special about going to the house of the Lord—something that could not be fulfilled in any other way.  It’s the same reason why the early Christians met daily and it’s the same reason why the writer to the Hebrews says “Let us not give up meeting together, as some are in the habit of doing, but let us encourage one another–and all the more as you see the Day approaching” (Hebrews 10:25).

Whether we like to believe it or not, our attendance in church says volumes about our spiritual health.  It is true that going to church doesn’t make us a Christian but as Christians we should be doing everything in our power to get there.  It’s kind of like a bride being reluctant to go to her own wedding.  That sure wouldn’t be a very good sign of things to come.

Wherever you go to church; I encourage you, go regularly, go consistently, and go with an attitude of service.  Because in the end, it’s not my day; it is the Lord’s Day and my opportunity to be a blessing to everyone I meet in church.

Pastor Norman

It’s quiz time! Let’s see how many of these “fill in the blanks” you can do. Are you ready?

• I’m ready to throw in the…
• I’m at the end of my…
• I’m just a bundle of…
• My life is falling…
• I’m at my wit’s…
• I feel like resigning from the human…

If you got all six right, and especially if they are how you actually feel, you are probably suffering from The Seven Irrevocable Laws Of The Christmas Holiday’s. What are those laws? I knew you would ask. Here they are:

1. The time that you spend find a parking space is inversely proportional to the amount of time you have to spend shopping.
2. The other check-out line always moves faster – if you don’t believe me, change lines and see what happens.
3. Beware of the three most frightening words – Some Assembly Required. Be aware that unassembled toys take three times as long to assemble as they say, and while their will always be at least one missing part, there will always be a pile of nuts and bolts and washers left over.
4. The three most often overlooked words are – Batteries Not Included. Be aware that toys that require batteries seldom if ever come with them.
5. When you return to the store to buy the gift that your husband, wife or child showed you the previous day, it is gone and they will not be receiving any more.
6. If you hear a loud crash in the living room, it is highly probable that your Christmas tree is probably lying on its side (possibly with a cat beside it).
7. If your toilet is ever going to break or your sink plug up it will be when at everyone is at your house celebrating (especially the in-laws).

All kidding aside, we do live in a very stressful or stress-filled society. We feel overwhelmed, confused, worn out, inadequate and tense. In response, we get argumentative, angry, aggressive, forgetful and depressed. We’ll eat more food and have more digestive problems. We’ll experience difficulty in sleeping as well as tightness or tension in our neck or back. Many will look for more of whatever comforts them, whether it is alcohol, tobacco, or coffee. But it doesn’t do any good, not in the long run. And it always seems worse at Christmas.

Does Christ have anything to say to us in the midst of this season of hurry and scurry? I believe he does. After all, it’s his birthday party, so what does he think about all of this?

In Matthew 11:28 Jesus said, “Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest.”
There is nothing like a place of rest in the midst of chaos, but the rest that Jesus gives is not like traveling down a busy highway and every so often pulling off at a rest area. Yes, there are times we need to “pull out” but the “rest” that Jesus offers is a rest we can experience while we are traveling down the busy highway because we are not racing along trying to get ahead, we are moving along with the presence and peace of God in our lives, giving us purpose and meaning that this world would never be able to give.

Pastor Norman

A little over a week ago the CBC was reporting on a Supreme Court decision in a case involving former employees of a Wal-Mart store in Quebec that closed seven months after the store had been unionized. As with most all CBC stories on-line, readers have the opportunity to comment. The very first comment was indicative of the mindset we are living in today. This is what the writer said, “Hmmm…not a fan of Unions…but that then again not a fan of Wal-Mart and their beliefs either.”

I took note of this comment because it indicates how we tend to line up on different “sides” of an issue. The question this person was asking was, “who am I a fan of?” or perhaps “who/what do I dislike the most?” The decision to choose one side over the other became a matter of what the writers feelings were towards the two parties involved instead of which of the two parties is actually doing something right or wrong. It was a matter of who I “like” instead of who is right.

My interest in writing this commentary has nothing to do with what I think of Wal-Mart or the union; it is about how we make decisions. The question should not be how I feel about the two or more parties involved. The question should be if one or both of the parties involved did in fact do something wrong. In the case of Wal-Mart and the union, I can be the most passionate supporter of unions, but if a place of business didn’t do wrong, then I couldn’t support the union’s “side”. On the other hand, I can be the most determined critic
of unions, but if a business did do something wrong, then I would need to support the union. So in essence, who I am “a fan of” has nothing to do with who is actually right or wrong and who should have my support.

What’s the big deal about this? What does this have to do with us? It has a lot to do with us because much of the decisions that are being made every day, are not based on what is true and right, but based on what the majority of people feel. That’s why we have so many opinion polls. You can not turn on the news without hearing about some opinion poll. You would think that opinion polls rule the world! They have become our god. Whatever the majority of people think, that must be right.

It’s a good thing that Elijah didn’t commission an opinion poll on Mount Carmel. Let’s see; 450 or so prophets of Baal telling him that they were right, with Elijah pretty much standing alone believing that the prophets of Baal were wrong. If that happened today, no question about it, the prophets of Baal would have “won the day”, at least in the newspapers. But right and wrong are not a matter of opinion, they are a matter of truth. And truth is not subject to how we feel about something or someone, it is subject to God’s created order and design.

In our post-modern world we want to take charge of everything, even truth itself. But we can not manipulate truth (at least, not successfully), we can only accept (live by it) or deny it. In answering those who were questioning Him, Jesus said “If you hold to my teaching, you are really my disciples. Then you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free” (John 8:31-32).

Next time you are asked your opinion on a matter, instead of responding on how you feel, consider for a minute who or what is actually right.

Pastor Norman

The Burj Dubai tower in Dubai, United Arab Emirates is the tallest man-made structure in the world. It stands at 818 meters tall. If you laid that tower on its side, it would take up just under 9 football fields or, for us Canadians, over 13 hockey rinks. By the time it is complete, it will have required over 430,000 cubic yards of concrete and taken 22 million man-hours of labour; at a cost of over $4 billion.

It seems we are fascinated with “bigger and better”. We want faster computers, bigger buildings, and larger televisions (with high definition, of course). We get so caught up in the bigger and better that we forget to value the “least of these”. Fortunately, God doesn’t forget about the little guy.

Take a look at some of the people God used: Abraham, the coward who cannot believe the promise. Jacob, the cheat who struggles with everybody. Joseph, the immature and arrogant teen. Moses, the impatient murderer who cannot wait for God. Gideon, the cowardly Baal-worshipper. Samson, the womanizing drunk. David, the power abusing adulterer. Solomon, the unwise wise man. Hezekiah, the reforming king who could not quite go far enough. And finally, a very young Jewish girl from a small village in a remote corner of a great empire.

It is amazing how God uses under qualified and inexperienced people to do His work. He could have used “bigger” and “better” but he chose to do His work through the plain and ordinary. The greatest example of that, of course, is the birth of Christ, born in humble surroundings to a very common and ordinary family. If that’s the way God works, then there’s hope that God can do something in and through my life as well.

As we enter into the Advent Season, we are reminded that Advent is about hope. Not a “wishful thinking” hope, and not just a hope that there will be less pain and suffering (although that too is a part of it), but hope that our existence has value and meaning beyond our present experiences and circumstances. Our hope is in the fact that God has taken an interest in humanity. The evidence of that interest is the fact that Jesus came to earth. He could have come in His glory, but He came as a baby. He was tempted in every way as we are, but remained without sin. His life became a message of hope. Hope that there is more to life than tall buildings, faster computers or exotic vacations.

Sue Monk Kidd, in one of her books, recalls her youth and how she would prepare for Christmas. In early December, she would sit by the wooden nativity set clustered under their Christmas tree and think over the last year of her life. She would think deeply about Christmas and the coming of Jesus. She remembers, one time, visiting a monastery. It was a couple of weeks before Christmas. As she passed a monk walking outside, she greeted him with, “Merry Christmas.” The monk’s response caught her off guard a bit. “May Christ be born in you,” he replied.

Life is more than our circumstances. It is God with us and in us. That’s the hope of Advent.

Pastor Norman

The impression that people have is that churches are in competition with one another. Sad to say, this is probably because of the way churches conducted themselves at one time. There used to be an “us” and “them” mentality. “We” were the good guys and everyone else were the bad. “We” had it right or at least “more right” then the guys down the road. We might not have always said it, but that was the attitude. We were concerned more for ourselves than the church across town. Don’t misunderstand, there are differences among the churches and some of those differences are very foundational to the Christian faith. But for the most part, there is a spirit of partnership.

It is based on our understanding of partnership in the gospel that we as a church will be losing one of our very talented families to a sister denomination. After Christmas we will be sending a family from our church to use their gifts and talents to further God’s kingdom among the good people at the Salvation Army. The thought of this came about three weeks ago when I was in a ministerial meeting with the captains of the Salvation Army. Nothing was said about this. No one asked me to do this. No one, that is, except the Holy Spirit. As we sat together in a meeting, I felt compelled that this is something that God would want. I mulled it over in my mind for a couple weeks before approaching this family. Once they agreed, I knew it was a win-win-win situation.

First of all, it is a win for the Salvation Army. There is nothing so difficult as new leadership coming only to find very few “people” resources to work with, particularly the fact that there was no musical talent available. Having a Salvation Army without music is like having the Yukon with no wildlife. It just isn’t right! This family will most certainly add an element of music where it is much needed. But it won’t just be music. I’m sure they will be a blessing in many ways.

Second, its a win for the family themselves. They have a very strong Salvation Army background. They are familiar with it. They’ve lived and breathed the Salvation Army for many many years before coming to our church. In fact, their coming to our church was only supposed to be temporary in the first place - they just kind of got comfortable here and stuck around a little longer (to our benefit). In a sense, their return to the Salvation Army will be a “homecoming” for them.

Thirdly, and I’m not just saying this because it sounds good, it will be a win for us. Not that we don’t want a particular family here. We would take a dozen more like them any time. But obedience is its own reward and it is often the catalyst for God to pour out his blessing. Just as we give our tithes and offerings to the Lord and He says “trust me in this”, so also as we send a family to a sister denomination, I believe God would say “trust me in this and see if I don’t pour out so much blessing that you don’t have room enough for it”.

I’m excited to see what the future holds for all three parties involved.

On Sunday afternoon, December 6, there will be a Ministerial Christmas Celebration Service here at our church (4:00 pm). During that service we will formally pray for the two churches and the family involved as they minister and serve with the Salvation Army. I invite you to be here for that unique opportunity.

In the 1939 film, The Hunchback of Notre Dame, a Gypsy woman, Esmerelda, is being pursued by the authorities. In her desperate attempt to get away she runs through the doors of the cathedral. When the pursuers are about to go in after her one of the priests stops them claiming “sanctuary”. Out in the city Esmerelda was vulnerable, but the moment she crossed through the doors of the church she was safe. The sanctuary became a place of refuge for her; a place away from danger; a place where she would hope to find peace.

There was something special about the sanctuary. It was not common ground. It was holy. The word “holy” basically means “set apart”. The sanctuary was a place, set apart from all the common places in the city. Outside you would find the carpenter’s shop, the meat vendor, the bakery, the coffee shop, etc. People would be playing, working, going about their business. There would be vendors buying and selling trinkets and food. In the Old Testament days small and medium sized animals would be sold for sacrifices. But inside the sanctuary everything was different. The sanctuary represented the place where the presence of God was understood; a place where people can come and get away from it all and spend time with God.

Today we consider the meeting area for our worship services a sanctuary. It is set apart. The thing that makes it a sanctuary is not the building itself nor is it the decorations. Three weeks ago Heather and I had the privilege of worshiping in a church in Whistler BC that held its service in a gymnasium. Off to the sides there were basketball hoops. But while God’s people were meeting together in that place for the purpose of worship, it was a sanctuary. It didn’t look anything like our sanctuary, but it was still a sanctuary. It was a place to come and pray and worship the Lord in the company of others who were seeking to do the same. After the service there was coffee and tea served in the gym and some kids did toss around a basketball. But that was after the service. During the service it was a sanctuary - a place of prayer and worship.

I believe that today people are looking for something out of the ordinary; a place where they can put all the things of the world behind them and find refuge in the presence of God; a place that is set apart. One of the most beautiful things is to see people use the sanctuary as a place of prayer, praying individually or one person praying for another. Yes, people can pray at home or anywhere else, but there is something unique about praying in the sanctuary, particularly before or after the worship service.

At the ball park it is perfectly reasonable to come and go as you please, go get a cup of coffee or eat a hot dog while you’re watching. The ball park is an ordinary place. The sanctuary is not. How then can we keep the sanctuary from becoming ordinary and at the same time make people feel comfortable in coming? That is always a difficult thing to balance but I believe it begins with respect. Respect for where we are and what we are doing and respect for those around us who are also worshiping the Lord.

We definitely don’t want to give someone a difficult time because their young child makes some noise. Children are always welcome, even noisy infants. But neither do we want to treat the sanctuary like a coffee shop, coming and going as we please and entering into ordinary conversations. Somewhere we need to find the right balance.

Whereas Esmerelda ran into the church for physical safety, we come to the sanctuary to get away from the ordinary and enter into the realm of the extraordinary - an encounter with the living God. I encourage you to pray about that encounter before the service begins and then use the foyer for fellowship for as long as you like following the service. That way we can both honour God and encourage one another with our conversation.

Pastor Norman

The following is a good overview of Halloween, certainly helpful reading for anyone wanting to find out what Halloween is all about.  Take a look and feel free to comment.

Norman

What about Halloween?

By Bob and Gretchen Passantino

Copyright 1990 by Bob and Gretchen Passantino. Permission is granted for non-commercial replication of or excerpting from this material, provided (1) that appropriate notice is included of its copyright status, as above, and (2) that an appropriate reference to the Answers In Action name, address and phone number be included with all replicated and excerpted material.

Halloween is the most dangerous day of the year—when satanists and witches snatch children off the streets and sacrifice them in Satan’s name!

Halloween is nothing but a secular time of fun and games—an excuse for the kids to dress up and overload on sugar!

These are only two of the comments Christians hear during October. Certainly there are many things about celebrating Halloween with which Christians are uncomfortable, such as images of ghosts, devils, and witches; and rumors of satanic rituals involving criminal and anti-Christian activities. However, most adults also have fond memories of childhood trick-or-treating and dressing up as a princess or super hero. So many traditions, myths, and unfounded rumors have developed about Halloween that it is a complex issue Christians should consider carefully.

Origin

“Halloween” is a contracted form of “Holy Evening” and refers to the evening before All Saints Day (November 1), when Christians traditionally remember believers of other times who are especially good role models of faith, and many of whom were persecuted, tortured, and/or died rather than renounce Christ. The Christian Church long kept the Jewish custom of marking a holiday (contracted form of “holy day”) for the twenty-four hours beginning with sundown and ending with sundown the following day. That is why even today Christmas Eve is almost as special as Christmas Day; and in eastern orthodox churches, the resurrection (Easter) is first celebrated on Easter Saturday at sundown. Another tradition the Church inherited from its first century Jewish roots was to divide each year into comemorative events, doctrinal remembrances, holidays or seasons so that, throughout the calendar year, the history of God’s blessings would be recounted. This is called the “Church year” or “Church calendar.” It took many centuries before most of the dates were standardized throughout most of the Church. Some Protestant churches today do not follow a church calendar except for Christmas, Easter, and perhaps Pentecost (which is also a Jewish holiday, with a different significance).

Frequently the Christian Church in an area deviated from a standard church calendar in order to directly challenge the popularity of a local pagan custom, event, or idol. For example, the Church in the Roman Empire chose December 25 to celebrate the birth of Christ in direct opposition to the Pagan Roman holiday, Saturnalia, which celebrated the sun god. Easter, celebrating the resurrection of Christ, corresponds not only to the historical time of the crucifixion and resurrection, but also to the end of the Jewish festival of Passover, in which God prefigured the coming sacrifice of Christ, the “Lamb” who was slain for the sins of the world. Pentecost, celebrated fifty days after the Jewish Passover, was a Jewish holiday commemorating the beginning of the harvest (the “firstfruits”) and thanking God for blessing His people. When the Holy Spirit came on the disciples in Jerusalem on Pentecost in fulfillment of Joel 2:28-32 (cf. Acts 2:1-41), it marked the “firstfruits harvest” of Jews, Samaritans, and Gentiles who were brought into the kingdom of God by the gospel preaching of the disciples (Matt. 28:19).

One of the biblical inspirations for honoring believers of past times and thanking God for their service in His Name comes from Hebrews 11:1-40. The writer of Hebrews encourages us that our faith is completely trustworthy because it is faith in God, who has proven His character and power so many times in the past in the lives of others that we can be confident that He will accomplish whatever He has promised for the future. From this grew the idea of picking a special day during the church year on which to honor believers who were good role models of faith. This became known as “All Saints Day.”

Although most outposts of the Church agreed that it was spiritually edifying to mark a special day to honor believers of the past, there was no consistency in the dating of All Saints Day until Christianity began to flourish in northern Europe and the British Isles. There Christians found a well-entrenched pagan holiday called Samhain. They determined that All Saints Day should be celebrated at the same time as a direct challenge to the sentiments of pagan Samhain. Samhain, or similar holidays in different areas, was a pagan holiday celebrating the end of the harvest, the beginning of winter, and death. Just as crops live and then die, just as the sun rules for a long time and then “dies” until it shines for only a short time during the day, so all humans and animals eventually die. One of the common pagan beliefs was that the spirits of those who died during the previous year could not go to their “final resting place” until they were properly prepared with possessions, wealth, food, and drink (either for themselves or to pay the god who ruled the next world). Until then, their spirits wandered where they had lived and died. A common Samhain tradition was to placate the spirits and send them off on a one-way trip to the nether world by “treating” them. If a spirit was not “treated” well, it would “trick,” or haunt, those who had neglected preparing it for leaving this world.
Fire became associated with the pagan holiday not only to symbolize the power of the sun, but also to ward off the trick-bent spirits. The spirits were believed to assume grotesque appearances, and some traditions developed that if one could costume himself to look like a spirit (or at least not to look like the guilty relative who had neglected his departed loved one), then the spirits would not be able plague him. Some traditions said the spirits could be warded off by carving a grotesque face into a gourd or root vegetable (the Scottish used turnips) and setting a candle inside it.

Samhain was also the customary time for the pagans to use the occult practice of divination to determine the weather for the coming year, the crop expectations, and even who in the community would marry whom and in what order. “Bobbing for apples” is one practice the pagans used to divine the spiritual world’s “blessings” on a couple’s romance.

As northern Europe and the British Isles became Christianized, the Church saw that the pagan festival of Samhain was still a lure for Christians to compromise their faith. Consequently, the Church in those areas designated October 31 the “Holy Evening” preceding All Saints Day. The Church not only sought to give Christians an alternative, spiritually edifying holiday; but also to proclaim the supremacy of the gospel over pagan superstition. There was no need to “placate” the spirits, or buy their way into the afterlife—eternal life is offered to all who believe in the atonement of Jesus Christ, who shed his blood to reconcile us to God and bring us eternal life. Rather than fearing the “tricks” of those who have died, Christians reflected on the lives and deaths of those who were faithful and used them as role models for their own walks with the Lord; and thanked God for preserving the saints in the midst of suffering and persecution, and for giving grace to endure life’s tribulations.

In 1530, a monk named Martin Luther honored the faithful saints of the past by choosing All Saints Day (November 1) as the day to publicly charge the Church heirarchy with abandoning biblical faith. This became known as “Reformation Day,” a fitting celebration of the restoration the same biblical faith held by the saints throughout church history.

Halloween didn’t become a commonly celebrated American holiday until the immigration of the working classes from the British Isles in the late nineteenth century. The mischievous aspects of the holiday were attractive to many American young people, and they borrowed or adapted many customs without reference to their pagan origins.

Today Halloween is almost exclusively an American secular holiday. Most people who celebrate Halloween have no conception of its religious origins or its heritage of paganism. Most people who celebrate Halloween perceive it as a fun time to party, dress up in outlandish costumes, and eat and drink. Small children enjoy the costumed role playing (an important part of learning, as any preschool or kindergarten teacher can testify) and enjoy the games and refreshments.

Unfounded Rumors

It is not true that Halloween is the most important celebration for most contemporary satanists. Most contemporary satanists celebrate their own birthdays as their most important “unholi”-day, which is to be expected from adherents of a religion that is focused on self-worship, self-indulgence, and self- gratification. The actual incidence level of satanic-associated crime is very low, and on Halloween consists mostly of petty vandalism and desecration of graveyards and churches; satanic graffiti; rauchous rituals including drug and/or alcohol use and sexual promiscuity; and very rarely sexual violence or animal killing.

The most well-known documented criminal activity associated with Halloween are the “Devil’s Night” fires that were rampant in the Detroit area for several years. These destructive bonfires were not, however, religiously inspired, but were instead a convenient excuse for out-of-control juveniles to act destructively, often in their own communities.

It is not true that satanists look for “Christian virgins” to rape during Halloween rituals. A young Christian is much more likely to be in danger of a drunk driver, or a party that gets out of hand with drug or alcohol use than of satanic abduction.

Occasional anti-social, criminally committed individuals or small groups that also practice self-styled satanism commit crimes on Halloween, but they invariably betray a pattern of sociopathy at other times as well.

It is not true that poisoning or sabotaging of Halloween treats is a significant risk if parents take sensible precautions. Most of the horror stories are unsubstantiated rumors that quickly cross the country, gaining embellishments, and unnecessarily frightening parents. If parents are careful about restricting their children’s treats to ones from people they know and trust, or from a formal program run by a church, community group, or merchant association, they should be fairly safe. In many communities, local hospitals and/or police stations will screen treats free of charge.

Christian Response

Christians can carefully evaluate Halloween and determine for themselves and their own families what their appropriate response should be. A good general principle should be to refrain from any participation that would either compromise one’s faith or bring dishonor to the Lord Jesus Christ. Another good principle is to look for ways to become a positive, Christ-honoring voice in the midst of secularism and paganism. Each Christian must be persuaded in his own conscience about how he approaches Halloween.

Some Christians decide to have absolutely no contact with Halloween. They have the legally protected right to keep their children from participating in any potentially spiritually compromising activity, such as listening to ghost stories, or coloring pictures of witches. They may decide to completely ignore the holiday, not answer their door to trick-or-treaters, and instead have a family evening watching Bible story videos or playing family games. Parents who choose this course need to explain to their children why they have taken this stand, and give them strong encouragement, since their children will undoubtedly experience some teasing or ridicule from their friends and schoolmates.

Some Christians decide to have a limited, non-compromising participation in Halloween. Sometimes their activities can be creative and help to promote the gospel. One mother was planning to keep her son home from his public school’s Halloween parade but he convinced her to let him go dressed as his favorite Bible character, David. He stood on the stage before his entire public school and told the story of how David trusted God and saved God’s people from Goliath. Other families respond to trick or treaters by including a salvation tract with each treat. Many families restrict their children’s trick or treating (this seems consistent with our continuing parental admonition “Don’t take candy from a stranger!”) and instead let them attend a community party or a party in the home of friends. Most Christian families restrict their children’s costumes to exclude evil, pagan, or demonic costumes. Some insist on biblical characters.

Some Christians decide to “overcome” the pagan and secular trappings of Halloween in a manner similar to the way the Church “overcame” Samhain with All Saints Day. Many churches have “Harvest Festivals,” where children may dress as farm animals or farmers. Others host “Reformation Festivals,” where children may dress as their favorite Bible character or as a figure from church history. Some churches sponsor “Hell Houses” for older children and teenagers where the gospel is preached as the way to avoid the horrors of eternal punishment. One church youth group has a costume party (no evil characters allowed) where participants play games and have contests as part of preparing food baskets for the needy. Then they ring the doorbells of needy people in their community and “treat” them with the anonymous food baskets (each of which includes a personal message with the plan of salvation and an invitation to church).

Regardless of the position you take regarding your family’s response to Halloween, all Christians can rejoice that “He who is in you is greater than he who is in the world” (1 John 4:4); that we can “resist the devil and he will flee from you” (James 4:7); and that through the cross Christ has “disarmed principalities and powers,” and “made a public spectacle of them, triumphing over them” (Col. 2:15).

Answers In Action
P.O. Box 2067
Costa Mesa, California 92628
(714) 646 9042

When I think of my father I think of the long hours he worked at two and sometimes three jobs. Being an immigrant in Canada and taking care of his family were very demanding. But I also think of the times we spent picnicking as a family, trips to the zoo, the Quebec City winter carnival, road trips, and camping in New York state.

As I reflect on my own kids growing up I feel a tremendous satisfaction in being a father to them. I haven’t been perfect by any means, particularly when it comes to doing things that I don’t especially enjoy, but we have had many great times together. What an incredible experience to have little children look up to you, trust you, and learn much of life from your own life experiences. What a blessing it is when I see other fathers taking time to interact with their children, playing with them at a picnic, rolling around “wrestling” in the living room (often at the chagrin of their mother), or enjoying the outdoors together. I have learned that children are quick to overlook your faults when they know you love them, which, in the mind of a child, is equated with spending time with them and doing things together. Long gone are the days when fathers were expected to be the “bread winner” while the mother was the only one who developed a relationship with the kids.

Unfortunately there has been a movement that promoted the idea that children don’t need fathers. From the entertainment industry that portrays fathers as buffoons to feminists who flat out reject the necessity of fathers, fatherhood has taken a beating.

The truth is that there are fathers who have really blown it. Let’s face it, some fathers have not been much of a father, (maybe because they didn’t have a father themselves?) and in some homes have made life worse by their presence. But to reject the importance of fathers because a small minority of people managed without a father in the house is like finding a 80 year old smoker and saying that smoking is fine because smoking doesn’t seem to have hurt the 80 year old. We know that smoking kills. Maybe not always, but almost always. And certainly, there will be a few homes in which a father is more harm than good, but by and large children do much better with fathers than without. Statistics confirm it again and again. The percentage of children who are content, productive, and responsible citizens is much higher in two parent families than in homes without a father. When it comes to raising children, there is no substitute for a mother and a father (which is all the more reason we need to stand by and support the single parents in our community).

If you are a father, take pride in raising the next generation of godly men and women. God has given you an incredible and awesome responsibility. Don’t listen to the voices that say you have no part in the lives of children. Enjoy your children. Be involved. Do things together. Teach them the things of God. Set boundaries. Lead by example. Treat their mother with love and respect. And you will be blessed.

God’s Word is true.  Psalm 127:3,5 says it well: “Sons are a heritage from the Lord, children a reward from him… Blessed is the man whose quiver is full of them.”

For additional resources on fatherhood, check out the Focus on the Family web site at Fatherhood Resources or for general family information, go to the Focus on the Family Main Web Page. They will provide you with much encouragement, resources, articles, research and support.

Pastor Norman

Dogs are great. I loved my dog. He came to us as a little puppy when my youngest was just 3 years old. There was much excitement in our house the day Frisky came home. She became a great part of our family. Most of our kids lives have been lived sharing the living room with our dog. We had her for almost 15 years. She was a great dog.

On the news recently I heard no less than three different reports about animals; a dog, some ducks, and a koala bear. The one closest to home was Trevor the dog. Trevor had a rough background, was given a new home, but things didn’t work out and was taken back to the shelter and slated to be euthanized.

The “news” part of the story was the fact that people were upset that this dog was going to be put down and that efforts were under way to save the dog. It seems the city was taken to court and the dog has been given a reprieve until an expert can come up and assess whether the dog is really dangerous or not. Then the dogs fate will be determined.

Then there was the story about the fellows shooting ducks (not in the Yukon). Someone posted a YouTube video showing these poor ducks being shot while the shooter celebrates. The “news” didn’t appear to be the illegal hunting; the news was that the otherwise happy ducks were being killed. How can people kill ducks? It was inhuman.

Finally, there was the story about the koala bears. I can’t remember what happened with these bears but apparently we needed to be informed about their plight.

Now, let me be clear, I love dogs, I enjoy seeing ducks (and I don’t mean on my dinner plate), and while I’ve never been up close to a koala bear, I have nothing against them either. They are all part of God’s creation. But it seemed strange to me that so much “news” was centered around these helpless little creatures when so many more helpless little children are not even given a chance to live.

I don’t have all the answers to what to do with so many unwanted pregnancies. I can not imagine the challenges of a single mother raising one preschooler, never mind two or three. But I do know that the answer is not to simply do away with them as if they were no more than an overgrown wart. It seems to me that dogs are given much more protection than unborn children. Something isn’t right.

Children are being aborted by the hundreds every day, approximately 100,000 annually in Canada alone. But the headlines don’t speak about it. Instead the headlines speak about dogs, ducks, and bears (and yesterdays news that a mouse was found chewing $20 bills inside an ATM machine in Oregon).

This is what our society has turned into; a society that is fragmented (little or no family support) and highly self-centered (I do what feels good for me). In that setting, it’s no wonder we see the lives of unborn children taken. What can we do? We can “do” three things.

First, we can pray. Pray for the generation that feels they can do whatever they want without worrying about consequences (including premarital sex). Pray for the moms and moms-to-be that are considering abortion. Pray for the fathers to take responsibility.

Second, we can support pregnant women. Help them so they don’t feel they need to go through this alone, or point them to agencies/people that are eager to adopt a child.

Third, we can educate. Many people don’t realize just how well formed an unborn child is extremely early in the pregnancy. The pregnancy is not just a “blob” of tissue. There are tiny feet and tiny hands that will one day clasp a finger.

Go ahead and love your dog. But let’s not forget the most vulnerable and pinnacle of God’s creation - the children of God.

Pastor Norman

“Why should I join the church?” That’s the question that many people have when the topic of church membership comes up. Many people are reluctant to formally join the church. After all, we don’t see membership ceremonies in the early church. We can participate in worship, we can get involved in various ministries, and we can certainly feel a part of the family of God, all without official membership in a local church. So what’s the big deal?

I’d like to offer several reasons to join the church.

1. Biblical Precedent. While we don’t see membership ceremonies in the New Testament, the New Testament does speak of those “inside the church” and those “outside the church” (1 Corinthians 5). The context is not about physical location but about formal association. Likewise in Acts 5, when the judgement of God fell upon those who had lied to God, the result was that “no one else dared join them” (5:13). The word “join” indicates a formal commitment, a bonding. Clearly there were those who had formally bonded with a particular body of believers and were then “inside” the church.

2. Identity. By formally joining a church you are identifying yourself with a local body of Christ. You are saying that you stand by and support the work of a particular church. This does not mean this church is perfect and other churches are not good, it simply means you are prepared to identify yourself with the work of the Lord where you worship. This is not only significant for yourself, but significant for others who have also identified with the church body.

3. Accountability. No Christian should live his or her life in solitary confinement. One of the benefits of being part of the church is accountability. It means I can’t go off and do whatever I want, however I want and whenever I want. It means I have to think about others and even answer to others. Many people shy away from accountability, but without accountability we run a very high risk of wandering around spiritually or creating our own spirituality. We may have good intentions, but good intentions aren’t always enough to keep us on the straight and narrow.

4. Responsibility. The whole reason why the Lord talked about the church as the Body of Christ was to indicate that we all have various areas of responsibility and service. Certainly there are responsibilities that can be taken without formal membership, but when we become members we are taking on greater responsibility for the life, health and direction of the church. As members, we are responsible for electing our leaders in the church and making important directional decisions.

5. Commitment. When someone joins the church, it indicates a formal commitment. It means I’m going to stick with it even when the going gets rough. It doesn’t mean that a person can never change their commitment but it means that a person isn’t so loosely associated with a group that the first time something strange happens they are quick to leave the church. They are there for the long haul to see that the church does indeed function as it should.

A word of warning: Joining the church does not make you a Christian. A right relationship with God comes only through repentance and faith in Christ as your Saviour, not by church membership. You can have your name on the church membership roll but it is only when your name is written in the Book of Life that you can be assured of eternal life.

If you have made a commitment to Christ and if you are enjoying the fellowship and life and ministry of this local church, I encourage you to give church membership serious consideration. We would be glad to welcome you.

Norayr Hajian