Thinking about what you do without thinking

"according to the tradition of men"

Colossians 2:8

I was witness to an argument the other day.   About Halloween.  It can be a tricky topic for Christians.  Some think it's no big deal, and go along with the traditions "in the spirit of the holiday".  Others take part in the "clean" parts, without getting too close to the "evil" parts.  For instance, they let their children dress up to go trick-or-treating, but not in costumes that are scary, evil or offensive.  The third group is those who refuse to participate in any part of it. 

I know people in each one of these groups, and to be honest, everyone I know manages to participate (or not participate) in Halloween to the extent they desire (or don't desire), without ever expressing judgement on those who see things differently. 

But not in this instance.  I didn't know most of the people in this conversation, and it went from people not agreeing with each other, to people in a disagreement.  A voices-raised, judging-others disagreement. 

Mostly, I just stayed out of the fray.  Once I said something humorous to try to keep the attitude upbeat, but then I stayed quiet. 

Although I wished they hadn't been unkind to one another, I think it was a good conversation to have.  I think it's a good thing for anyone with a firmly-held opinion to ask themselves why they think what they think, and why they do what they do.  Trick-or-treating is not mentioned in the Bible.  Neither is dressing up in costumes.  Neither are a lot of other things we come across in life.  So we need to think and pray about everything ~ well, nearly everything ~ that we do. 

I have a friend who went to Israel several years ago, and shared with me a lot of what she learned on that trip.  And one of the things that stuck with me was about the temple.  The steps to the temple were excavated several years ago, and you can now walk up those steps.  But what's interesting is, that the steps are not uniform in their dimensions.  They alternate in height and depth, the result of which is that you cannot walk up those steps mindlessly.  You have to think, and look, and pay attention.  Your mind cannot be on what's for dinner, or whether you should have gotten that outfit while it was on sale. 

I think more of life should be like that.  I think living a Christian life should be like that.  Socrates once said, "A life unexamined is not worth living."  I like that.  I like the reminder of examining my life, through the lens of Scripture, to be sure I'm living as He would have me.  

Halloween is full of traditions, as is Christmas, and other holidays, and maybe even our breakfast routine, or our Friday nights.  But traditions can quickly become something we do just because it's something we've always done.

I've been reminded ~ again ~ to take a good hard look at the mindless decision I make, and maybe use a little prayer and wisdom instead.

~ "Whatever you do, do all to the glory of God" ~

1 Corinthians 10:31