Tonight was JBC’s annual “Trunk or Treat” event. We had a bunch of kids and parents come to the back parking lot where there were about forty trunks, cars, or pickups, or, in my case, a boat decorated with some kind of theme with bags of candy to hand out to those who came. Parents and kids wander around through the “trunks,” “trick or treating,” and collecting candy. There are also free hot dogs, chips, and chocolate in the gym, a bouncy house, and several other activities. It didn’t rain during the main run between 6:00 and 8:00 pm, but it was cold. As I said, there were a lot of people who came through, and we handed out tons of candy. It was a lot of fun interacting with all the people and kids. The first “Trunk or Treat” was held in Center Point, Alabama, in 1994. Nobody I could find knows the motive behind the first one, but now thousands of churches all over the United States hold one of these events. There are also some schools holding them, both Christian and secular, and I read of a car dealership that had one, obviously as an advertising gimmick to get people to see their cars up close.

There are many Christians who think it is terrible for churches to associate with Halloween in any way. With the history of Halloween and its association with demons and witchcraft, I can certainly understand their concerns. But I think it is good to take what is terrible and convert it so that it is a tool of the Lord. I heard the testimony of a former drug Lord in Argentina who was extremely demon-possessed as a result of demon worship and drugs. He was wounded in a shootout with the police, and during his six-month recovery time, he became a disciple of Jesus Christ. What once belonged to satan now belonged to God.

As I passed out candy to kids tonight, I could not help but think that someday, many of these kids would end up in church because of the fun they had tonight. In evangelism, there are many good strategies, methods, and tools that we can invent and use to attract people to Jesus.