A Bloodied Sword and My Integrity

Yesterday when I was picking up something in Walmart I saw something which solidified my feelings on the celebration on Halloween.

My issue with the day has never been its roots. My issue is its present.

A mom and her young boy were shopping and he was carrying an addition to his costume - a 18 Inch long sword covered in blood. As a culture, something is wrong with that. Very wrong. And so I looked through the costume isle - and I saw many similar things. Princess costumes which would cause my little girls to look like hookers, ghoulish masks which would frighten my younger boys, various knives and swords and other weapons covered in fake blood, severed arms with bone and blood coming out, and more.

My choice was again solidified. I've been wrestling with the issue of Halloween for weeks, I've read dozens of articles and engaged in several conversations. I have searched the Bible for wisdom.

I cannot participate in a celebration of these things. As a parent I cannot look my children in the eye with any form of integrity and say that this is either normal or that they should overlook it and carry on. I feel that this is not normal, it is not ok to look passed.

And so, Halloween and I have parted ways. I have great memories of it as a child. I will make great memories for my own children as we enjoy family time and as I teach them to stand against those things which should not be considered normal.

"Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is commendable, if there is any excellence, if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things." (Philippians 4:8 ESV)

Story-Training

Could there have been a better way for God to reveal himself to humanity than through story? Is it possible that in our culture today that we have oriented ourselves toward fact and information and away from story - and therefore, away from God?

Think clearly. When you were a child how did you interact with the world? Was it through lists of facts, collections of information? Or rather, was it through story - those told to you, those you experienced, those you made up while you played?

"Story doesn't just tell us something and leave it there. It invites our participation. A good storyteller invites us into the story. We feel the emotions, get caught up in the drama, identify with the characters..." [Eugene Peterson]

When I speak the name of a person, rather than visualizing their eye color, their weight or their height, you remember their story, and how their story has interacted with your own. When I mention a point in our shared history, rather than remembering the date and location, you focus on how you felt, what you experienced, how the event impacted you and those who were there.

Your mother's name - stories / memories about her, filled with meaning and emotion. Your first car - stories / memories about it, how it smelled, the places you drove to, the conversations you had while you travelled. Your wedding day - stories / memories about it, how your spouse looked when you first saw them, the people who came, the party, the night after. The first time someone you knew died - stories / memories, both of them and their life, and also of you and your emotions.

In our haste for information, in our tweets and status updates, as we read for facts and not for experiences, as we distance ourselves from story... have we also lost our ability to connect with God?

Will you children, when they are older, remember facts about you or will they have stories / memories which connect them to you? Will they have only facts and information to base their faith in God upon? Or will you immerse them [and you!] in the stories of God - in the Bible - complete with memories of what He has done, and the hope of what He will do.

Are you story-training your children? Are you story-trained?