Jesus comes knocking at our doors at least once a year. On Halloween He comes dressed in a costume and saying ‘trick or treat.’ I’m taking seriously the words of Jesus when He said, “whatever you do for the least of these, my brothers and sisters, you do for me” and on this night, I give Him/them candy. But I realized a long time back now that this was just the bare minimum. On this night, it’s not just kids out, it’s whole families. It is little kids in strollers, kids, teens, parents, grandparents.
We have never done a church thing on Halloween night, even when we had many more families with young children than we do now and that is because I want to be in my neighbourhood and I want you to be in yours. I like the kids in my neighbourhood, I like their parents too, and because I like them, I don’t want to miss the one night in the year they are all out in the street.
Last year we had a family of newcomers stop by. The kids were young teens and this was their first ever trick or treat and they were having a ball, running from house to house, marvelling at the event. We got to meet the whole family as they stopped and chatted at our house. The reason they stopped and chatted is because we were outside where they were and we had hotdogs.
We realized a long time ago that we needed to take this operation out to the street and here’s how it works at our house now. First, we fill a table with candles, string lights, and of course candy. Then we wheel our BBQ out to the end of our driveway and cook hotdogs, lots of them. We hand them out to the parents waiting in the cold with their kids and any kids who want one on top of all the candy in their bags and we get to visit while they eat. People tend to linger longer this way and we can chat way more than was possible when we were just jumping up to the door, greeting kids but only able to wave at parents on the curb. Kids get candy and a hot dog and this has become a tradition in our street. A few years ago I remember a dad breathing a sigh of relief that we were doing it again as his daughter had been talking about it since they left home over an hour before.
In the beginning of the book of John, in the Message bible it says, ‘The Word became flesh and blood and moved into the neighbourhood.’ The Word is in me and I am in Him and so, I am to His flesh and blood in this neighbourhood. This is how I try and be that on this night. I want to make the most of this opportunity, everyone is out and I want to be right there with them.
Most families love Halloween, it stirs the imagination of children and engages the hearts of parents. Watch your neighbourhood closely this Halloween. Listen to the laughter, take a look at the generosity. Taste the sugar and the energy. See the joy in children’s eyes and notice the parents and see how they connect with other families. This is a great night! Enjoy it! And watch out for Jesus, dressed as a princess or a ghost or a superhero and enjoy Him in the presence of all the children.
Oh, and also, enjoy the teens, if they are still trick or treating celebrate the joy of it with them too.