Merry Christmas!

Merry Christmas from my family to yours!

Thank you for being a part of my blog. 

See you soon!

10 Money Saving Ideas to Help With Christmas Gifts

Last year I polled my Facebook friends to see what they spent on their children for Christmas.  Let's just say I was shocked with the answers. And honestly I was shocked on both the high end and the low end. Some people only spent $25 per child while others spent nearly $1000 or more on each child.  Many others claimed to spend an amount some where in between. That of course assuming all were being truthful with their responses.

Obviously each family is different due to size, income, preferences and so on but I wanted to share a few ideas that will hopefully help your Christmas gift planning and buying be a little easier and also help save you some money.
 

*  Teach your children what Christmas is really about. Remind them we are celebrating the birth of Jesus and while I am sure our Lord doesn't mind that we give and receive gifts it's truly not about us.

*  Give each child 3 gifts.  3 gifts because this is the number of gifts we read about in the Bible that were brought to Jesus. 

*  Draw names.  And set a limit.

* Something you want, something you need, something to wear and something to read.  I can't remember where I heard or read this a few years back but I loved it.  A total of 4 gifts.  Simple and covers all the bases.
   

*  One of the best things we ever did when our boys were very young was start a Christmas club.  A Christmas club is basically a savings account that you put money in to all through out the year and you can't withdraw that money until fall time, usually a couple of months before Christmas.  You can do these at your local bank or credit union and if you are disciplined enough to not touch it you could do it yourself by either adding extra money to your checking or savings account or even an envelope at your house. Admittedly it's a little late to do this for this year but its the perfect time to start one for next year.

*  Consider homemade gifts. I personally love homemade crafty gifts and with the Internet and Pinterest there are so many adorable options.

*  Make a list for your children including things they want, things they need and things you would like for them to have. Arrange the list by cost from least to greatest and when family members or friends that buy for your children ask for ideas of what to get them go to your list. You can pick out an item in the appropriate price range to share with them. As a matter of fact I usually keep a running list all year long that we use for not only Christmas but Easter and birthdays as well. I add to, delete and change the list as needed.

*  Shop clearance and mark downs.

*  Shop online.  There are tons of great deals out there.

*  Shop black Friday?!?!?  (at your own risk)  Also, remember most everything that is on sale in the store you can also find in the comfort of your own home by shopping those same sales online. Not to mention that most time Black Friday sales extend beyond the time advertised anyway.  BUT people who love to shop on this day claim huge savings!

Simply put:  Make a budget.  Set limits.  Be reasonable. 

What do you usually spend per child?  Do you have any great ideas to help save money on Christmas Gifts? 

What's A Mom To Do About Santa?

Christmas is my favorite holiday of the year. I love baking lots of yummy delicious goodies and filling the house with the smells of so many wonderful foods. I love getting together with family and friends, going to look at lights, decorating the house and just enjoying time spent celebrating the birth of our Savior. 

From the time our boys were very young my husband and I felt strongly that we should not lead them to believe in the Santa of today.  You know the one - he's the plump jolly man wearing a red suit with a long white beard.  The man that visits the houses of good little boys and good little girls all over the world in one single night all on his own.  The Santa that lives at the North Pole with all the Elves that work in his toy factory.  (That whole thing is a bit creepy if you think about it, lol). 

We have taught them about the real St. Nicholas.  The real life man that lived long ago.  The man that even though he is gone, his story of love and selfless deeds live on.  Each year we read the same book a few days before Christmas telling of this man, this real life man that helped people in need. 

No, we have never encouraged the thought "Santa Clause ". Why, you may ask? It's simple.  He doesn't exist and he has nothing to do with my children getting or not getting gifts under the tree at Christmas.  Instead we have always taught our boys that every good gift we receive comes to us from God and Jesus.  That's the truth.  It's in the Bible.  James 1:17 Every good and perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of the heavenly lights, who does not change like shifting shadows.

Now, let me explain our reasoning.  We are doing our best to fulfill Proverbs 22:6 that says to train our children in the way they should go and when they are old they will not depart from these teachings.  We are teaching them about Jesus and His Heavenly Father God (who we can not see with our physical eye).  We have to use our faith to believe what the Bible says and that they are real.  Hebrews 11:3 By faith we understand that the universe was formed at God's command, so that what is seen was not made out of what was visible.

At the same time if we were teaching them that Santa (who we can see with our physical eye) is real but then one day down the road, when they get a little older they find out that we were not being truthful with them and that Santa isn't really the one that brought them all those gifts through out the years (and they will find out Santa is not real) then wouldn't it stand to reason that they would then have a reason to also believe that Jesus isn't real as well. 

I mean if we teach our children from a young age that two different people are real and then one day we admit that no, mommy and daddy told you a lie and one of those people isn't real what do you imagine it does to them.  Allowing our children to believe in the Santa of today may be harmless but for my children I never wanted to give them a reason not to believe in God and His Son Jesus.  And I never wanted to lie (that's what it is after all) to my kids either.

This is the choice we have made for our family and I in no way judge you for how you may have chosen to go about the whole "Santa" thing.  I still have a few decorations or ornaments that have Santa on them but we have always made sure that the focus is on Jesus (He is the Reason for the Season) and that my children know where our blessings come from.

What about you?  How does your family handle the whole Santa part of Christmas?

Why We Choose Not to Celebrate Halloween

Last year I did a 4 part series on why our family chooses not to celebrate Halloween.  I have combined the 4 part series here in this one post in case you didn't get a chance to read it before.  If you would like to read the original posts and the comments from last year, just click here.  I would love to hear your thoughts but please be nice even if you disagree with me.

This post is about why we don't celebrate Halloween.

I want to begin by saying I realize that this can tend to be a bit of a touchy subject to some and this is not a post putting you down if you do choose to celebrate. I am not judging or condemning anyone, this is what is good for our family and the decision we have made for us.

When I was a child Halloween was one of the two days a year that we got a large amount of candy in our house (Easter being the other). We would usually at last minute dress up in some cheap or homemade costume (believe me none of them were fancy or store bought) and my dad would load my brothers and me and sometimes a few cousins in the back of his truck and he would drive up the road only stopping at the houses of people we knew (we lived out in the country and knew most of our neighbors so there were a lot of stops) and we would get our bags filled with candy. We would always take time to stop at an older couples house that my family was friends with where they would not only give us candy but would serve us hot chocolate as well to help warm us up from the cold. Yes, I went trick or treating as a child and yes, I turned out alright. However, our world around us has changed drastically since I was a child where we knew most all of our neighbors and our family knew their family before them for generations back. It was a time of fun in the community. Growing up in a primarily non-Christian home we thought nothing more of Halloween than a day to dress up and get candy.

A Mommy Mess Up Over Donuts?!?!

A few years ago I decided that instead of just the basic birthday celebration for my kids (and husband too) that I would go a bit further.  Birthday Donuts.  Yep, birthday donuts - a treat that we don't buy very often so it was perfect.  The birthday boy gets a special donut on the morning of his birthday on our special "happy birthday" plate that I made a few years back at the pottery place in town complete with a candle for him to blow out as I sing "Happy Birthday" at the breakfast table.  Sounds great, huh?  Well it is and they really enjoy it - all except maybe for my singing.  I enjoy really making the birthday boy feel special on his special day. 

But what happens when I forget?  Oh yea, I forgot.  To be real honest (here comes my excuse, lol) last week was very busy.  I had a house to clean before company came over this past weekend, I had a cake to bake, birthday presents and supplies for a small family party to buy.  My oldest son had a total 5 soccer games spread out over 3 days and soccer practice like normal all the other days of the week/weekend and games to referee over the weekend.  My youngest son had soccer practice and soccer games.  We were planning for a sleepover and bonfire and coordinating how I was getting all the boys to their games on time and....  I forgot.  I meant to run and get the donuts on Saturday after the third soccer game was over but my head hurt and I needed to go home and oh yea, I forgot.  I forgot about the donuts.  I didn't mean to but I did.  

I forgot about the donuts until Sunday morning, the day of my baby boys actual birthday.  And not just any birthday, his 13th birthday.  The birthday where he officially turns into a teenager.  This momma was really hoping that he would just forget about this "family birthday tradition" at least this year.  We were in a rush as usual and trying to get out the door in time to get to church.  I quickly made him a small bottle of milk and grabbed a granola bar from the pantry.  When we all got in the van to head to church I reached behind me and handed him his milk and a granola bar and it was then that the look on his face told me quickly that he had not forgot.  Though he didn't say a word, the look on his face and in his eyes showed total disappointment.  I said nothing.  We went on to church.  The day went on.

Late in the evening when I was loving on my boy, I apologized to him.  I still didn't say anything to him about his breakfast and although we had a party with family and few friends on Friday evening I felt like I didn't do enough or make a big enough deal of his actual birthday.  It was then he looked me right in the eyes and pressed his nose against mine and said "you forgot my donuts".  This momma felt like a dog.  I then apologized for the donuts and explained that mommy had good intentions to get them but ultimately I forgot.  He was so forgiving and understanding and said "that's ok" which I was thankful for but I knew deep inside it bothered him.  I knew deep inside he was disappointed. 

So today, the day after his birthday I ran out and bought him a dozen glazed donuts and one special donut with sprinkles just for him.

They were more of an after school snack this time but I think he was happy, even if they were late. 

And to you dear mommy, even when you mess up or when things don't go exactly like you might have planned - forgive yourself and move on.  If given the opportunity do something else to help smooth things over, go for it but if you can't don't be so hard on yourself.  Our kids love us and even when they are disappointed they will forgive. 

Have you ever been in a place where you have disappointed your kiddos?

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Vacation Menu Planning

A few days before we left for our vacation I jotted down quickly on a piece of scrap paper a menu for the days we would be gone.  My mother laughed at me saying that I really wouldn't be on vacation if I was still having to cook.  Yes I would have enjoyed a "vacation from cooking" but we always do this.  When we go somewhere, anywhere even if it is a soccer game an hour a way I will pack up a cooler with sandwich stuff for our dinner. 

To make my menu as simple as possible - because after all it is vacation I used some of my ready made foods and I also made up some things before we left. 

For example:

Breakfast
I took along a package of pop tarts and a bag of cereal (we bought milk once we arrived) BUT I made up a double batch of my homemade biscuits and enough sausage patties to go along with the biscuits before I left.  I also pulled two loaves of Friendship bread out of my freezer.

Lunch
I have to admit because we tended to sleep a little later and were out driving and sightseeing so much we skipped lunch most days but I took along the fixings for ham and cheese sandwiches on the days we did eat lunch.

Dinner
From out of my freezer I took a bag of frozen spaghetti sauce, hotdog sauce,  and taco meat.  For spaghetti night all I had to do was warm up the sauce and make our pasta.  We had hotdogs a couple evenings (one over a camp fire) but all I had to do was warm up the hotdogs and sauce.  And on taco night I just warmed the meat and chopped my veggies.  We ate good food that filled us up and saved a lot of $$ in the process. 

It wasn't really all that hard either because of the prep work that I had done at home.

What about you?  Do you generally eat out while on vacation or do you cook?  If you cook do you take along already prepared foods?

National Day of Prayer 2013

What exactly is National Day of Prayer?

The National Day of Prayer is a special day set aside in our country where people gather together at churches, schools, courthouses, etc... and publicly pray. Our Country was founded by primarily Christian men and it was and has always been a Nation that is blessed by God. We are a Christian Nation, founded on a belief in THE ONE TRUE GOD. We are blessed to be able to call on the Name of Jesus in a Public Place without fear of retribution.

National Day of Prayer was established by Congress in 1952 and signed into Law by President Harry Truman but The Continental Congress had called for such a day going all the way back to 1775.  In 1988 President Ronald Reagan amended the law to make the National Day of Prayer the first Thursday in May.

The Honorable the Congress having recommended it to the United States to set apart Thursday the 6th of May next to be observed as a day of fasting, humiliation and prayer, to acknowledge the gracious interpositions of Providence; to deprecate [to pray or intreat that a present evil may be removed] deserved punishment for our Sins and Ingratitiude, to unitedly implore the Protection of Heaven; Success to our Arms and the Arms of our Ally: The Commander in Chief enjoins a religious observance of said day and directs the Chaplains to prepare discourses proper for the occasion; strictly forbidding all recreations and unnecessary labor.” —George Washington, First President of the United States[10][11] (Quote taken from Wikpedia)  

The National Day of Prayer task forces mission statement is this:

The mission of the National Day of Prayer Task Force is to mobilize prayer in America and to encourage personal repentance and righteousness in the culture.

This morning I drove my youngest son to school so that I could attend The National Day of Prayer event being held there.  What an honor and a privilege to be able to do such a thing.  I remind my kids often how blessed they are to be able to attend things like this or their Bible Clubs and Prayer Groups.  Not even in America are all schools ok with it.  We are blessed.

I urge you today to take time out to pray.  It doesn't matter if you live in the United States or not.  It also doesn't matter if you are able to attend a public event (although it will bless your heart if you can).  What does matter is that we take some time today and every day to talk with our Heavenly Father.  Take time to call upon the Name of Jesus and pray for our elected leaders, our military, our schools, communities and our children.

Do you attend any Public National Day of Prayer Events?

Merry Christmas!

Merry Christmas from my family to yours! 

 

 

See you after the first of the year.  Taking a break from blogging until then to spend time with my family. 

Pumpkin Carving Prayer and Bible Lesson

**  Read this story aloud to your children while cleaning out and carving a pumpkin.**

 

First, God picks you from the pumpkin patch and brings you in from the field. The Bible says He selects us out of the world. We are in the world, but no longer of the world.

 

He then washes all the “dirt” off the outside that we received from being around all the other pumpkins. All the outside influences of our former life must be cleaned up. Old things are passed away and all things are become new.

 

Then, He carefully removes all the “yucky stuff” called “sin” out from the inside. Look at this! Yuk! Sin will not have such internal power. He then changes us from the inside out by the Power of His Word. That’s why it is important to go the church and learn about God’s Word.

 

He carefully removes all those seeds of doubt, hate, greed, and fear. He replaces them with the seeds of faith, hope and love. After Jesus is invited inside, you begin to experience the changing power of God’s love in your life.

 

Then He carves a new smiling face. Our countenance is changed by the power of His presence in our life. We then become so grateful. It can even show on our face!

 

Now we are going to light this candle inside. Look! This pumpkin now reflects the light from inside out. So too, when Jesus, who is called the Son of Light, lives inside of us, He shines through our life for all to see. We can let His light reflect through us to reveal His presence. “Let your light so shine before men that they may be able to see your good works and glorify your Father, who is in heaven.”

 

So you see, we Christians are really like this pumpkin! We will never be the same with Jesus inside of us.

 

The Meaning of the Parable:

Just like us, all the pumpkins were different. But there was something the same about every one of them - that yucky, slimy pulp on the inside!

The yucky, slimy pulp is like the sin that's in us. Romans 3:23 says: "For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God." That's every single one of us. 

 

God has made a way that all our sin can be forgiven and washed away. God even says He'll cast them as far as the East is from the West. Romans 5:8 says: "While we were yet sinners, Christ died for us."

 

John 3:16 goes on to say: "For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whosoever believes in Him shall not perish, but have everlasting life."

 

After cleaning out that pumpkin, the Farmer gave the pumpkin a new face! The Bible says God can make us a new creation too.

2 Corinthians 5:17 says: "Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has gone, the new has come!"

 

Then came the really special part. The light was placed inside that pumpkin and it glowed for all to see!

2 Corinthians 4:6 says: "For God, who said, 'Let light shine out of darkness,' made his light shine in our hearts to give us the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Christ."

 

And Matthew 5:16 says: "In the same way, let your light shine before men, that they may see your good deeds and praise your Father in heaven."

 

So we can become like that pumpkin in the Christian object lesson - a glorious sight for others to see the love of Jesus!

or here is a shorter version

 

 

 

John 8:12 "When Jesus spoke again to the people, he said, "I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will never walk in darkness, but will have the light of life."

2 Corinthians 4:6 "For God, who said, "Let light shine out of darkness," made his light shine in our hearts to give us the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Christ."

Matthew 5:14-16 "You are the light of the world. A city on a hill cannot be hidden. Neither do people light a lamp and put it under a bowl. Instead they put it on its stand, and it gives light to everyone in the house. In the same way, let your light shine before men, that they may see your good deeds and praise your Father in heaven."

 

 

You can buy the book by Liz Curtis Higgs to read the entire story.
 

 

 



 

Why We Don't Celebrate Halloween - Part # 4

What we shouldn't do as Christians is to hide away in our houses with our doors locked and our lights off and pretend like this day isn't happening. 

Mark 16:15 Jesus says “Go into all the world and preach the Good News to everyone.

He didn't say hide when you disagree with what others are doing on this day.  :)

John 15:19
If you were of the world, the world would love its own. Yet because you are not of the world, but I chose you out of the world, therefore the world hates you.

We live in the world but as Christians we are not of the world so therefore we should not act like the world.  I believe that every Christian should pray and seek God about what is the right thing to do concerning Halloween for their family.  If you are not convicted in the same way I am, that is fine.  I have many Christian friends and family members that do participate in Halloween and I love them dearly.  I respect them and their decision and do not cast judgement on them.  

Like I said at the beginning of this series of posts - This is a decision we have made for our family.

Thanks for reading and sticking with me for this long post.

What about you?  Do you celebrate Halloween in the traditional way?  If not, what are some alternative things you do?   

Why We Don't Celebrate Halloween Part # 3

I have been known to dread the entire month of October because of one single day at the end of the month. I have even found myself saying how I hate this entire time of year. God is working on me with that because hating this time of year is the wrong attitude to have.  After all, this day like every other day belongs to the Lord. 

Psalm 118:24

This is the day the Lord has made.  We will rejoice and be glad in it.

Ok, so if we are not going to take our kids trick or treating or celebrate in the way the rest of the world is what are some things that we as Christians can do instead? 

• Participate in Church sponsored activities.  This was always a favorite for my boys when they were younger.  Fall Festivals, Trunk or Treats, etc.. are all fabulous alternatives and you can use it as a witnessing tool by inviting school friends or family that do not know Jesus as their personal Savior.

• Find a friend or family member that also uses alternative ways to celebrate this time of year and plan something with them and their kids.  God is so good.  For over 2 years I felt pretty much alone in my conviction about this until one day at my boys public school I was introduced to an awesome woman that loves the Lord like I do and we have since became great friends.  Upon getting to know her I found out that she also believes the way I do and in her home they do not celebrate Halloween either.  So I encourage you to pray and ask God to send you someone to be a support to you.  God had mercy on me and gave me someone because I wasn't smart enough to pray and ask him for help in this area.  :(

• Decorate for "Fall" and not Halloween.  We decorate with scarecrows, pumpkins, gourds, sunflowers, etc... but not with jack-o-lanterns, ghosts, witches, and black cats (unless you count my real black cat).  This also makes it easier on me because I can decorate from mid September all the way through Thanksgiving with basically the same decorations.  All I have to add is a few Turkeys and Pilgrims at Thanksgiving and we are good to go. 

 

• Allow your children to carve a pumpkin using the pumpkin prayer and lesson for Christians by Liz Curtis Higgs.  I will post this next week.

• Find something in your area like a pumpkin festival, apple festival or corn maze to participate in. 

• Hand out Candy on Trick or Treat night.  We live out in the country and do not get any "trick or treaters" but if you live in an area with lots of children going from door to do use this as a witness for Jesus.  Along with your candy, hand out tracks or an invitation to visit your church.  A friend of mine wraps her candy with new labels and the label is the track that invites them to church and to know Jesus.  

Remember we are supposed to be lights shining in the darkness. 

Matthew 5:14-16
Here’s another way to put it: You’re here to be light, bringing out the God-colors in the world. God is not a secret to be kept. We’re going public with this, as public as a city on a hill. If I make you light-bearers, you don’t think I’m going to hide you under a bucket, do you? I’m putting you on a light stand. Now that I’ve put you there on a hilltop, on a light stand—shine! Keep open house; be generous with your lives. By opening up to others, you’ll prompt people to open up with God, this generous Father in heaven.

Instead of letting this day or month get you down or make you want to hide, use it as an opportunity to tell your friends, neighbors and family about Jesus.  We ALWAYS have a reason to celebrate Him. 

I finish my post Here Tomorrow, I hope you'll join me again...

Click Here for Part 4

Why We Don't Celebrate Halloween - Part # 2

I knew that Halloween had evil origins but really didn't know much about them. What I knew was that the Holy Spirit was leading me and my kids away from this day of celebrating like the world.  I took my thoughts and convictions to my husband and after our conversation we decided together that this was what was the best for our family.

I am not going to write about the origins of Halloween in this post and depending on what you are reading they vary slightly.  I do encourage you to look up the origins of Halloween for yourself so that you can make the best informed decision for your family.  I will say that in my research of this day, I find nothing Christian about it.  Halloween is a sacred day to people who follow Wicca or Witchcraft (worship Satan). 

 

The Bible says that we, as Christians have been called out of darkness and that we should not participate in evil practices.   

 

1 Peter 2:9-10

But you are not like that, for you are a chosen people. You are royal priests, a holy nation, God’s very own possession. As a result, you can show others the goodness of God, for he called you out of the darkness into his wonderful light.  “Once you had no identity as a people; now you are God’s people.  Once you received no mercy;  now you have received God’s mercy.”

 

Colossians 1:13 

For he has rescued us from the kingdom of darkness and transferred us into the Kingdom of his dear Son,

 

Deuteronomy 18:9-11

“When you enter the land the Lord your God is giving you, be very careful not to imitate the detestable customs of the nations living there.  For example, never sacrifice your son or daughter as a burnt offering.  And do not let your people practice fortune-telling, or use sorcery, or interpret omens, or engage in witchcraft,  or cast spells, or function as mediums or psychics, or call forth the spirits of the dead.

 

1 Thessalonians 5:22

Abstain from every form of evil.

 

So, as you can see from the scriptures above the reason we do not celebrate is pretty simple.  However, not celebrating Halloween in the traditional way that the world does has been a hard road for us at times.  I have felt alone and isolated because of what we believe.   I have had to explain myself to teachers and staff at school many times as to why we do not allow our children to participate in school Halloween parties, dress up days, etc..  We have had to explain to our children's friends and parents of friends why our children can not go to the haunted house with the rest of their friends.  One thing we didn't say was that is was against our religion because in our house we try to focus more on a relationship with Jesus than having religion.  I explain that we are Christians and celebrating Halloween does not glorify Jesus and that it's origins are evil.  One of the reasons that my youngest son will tell people is "that we don't celebrate the devil's birthday"  LOL  He knows that it is not the devils birthday but for him as a child that was an easy way to explain it.  When writing this post I asked my kids for the reason we don't celebrate and I was very pleased with the answers they had to give.  They talked about how it was an evil holiday and had nothing to do with Jesus just to name a couple.   Sometimes this is understood by others and sometimes they think we are "just silly for not letting our kids participate in a harmless holiday". 

 

Continue reading here tomorrow when I talk about some alternatives to celebrating Halloween...

 

Click Here for Part 3



Why We Don't Celebrate Halloween - Part # 1

This post is about why we don't celebrate Halloween. 

I want to begin by saying I realize that this can tend to be a bit of a touchy subject to some and this is not a post putting you down if you do choose to celebrate.  I am not judging or condemning anyone, this is what is good for our family and the decision we have made for us. 

When I was a child Halloween was one of the two days a year that we got a large amount of candy in our house (Easter being the other).  We would usually at last minute dress up in some cheap or homemade costume (believe me none of them were fancy or store bought) and my dad would load my brothers and me and sometimes a few cousins in the back of his truck and he would drive up the road only stopping at the houses of people we knew (we lived out in the country and knew most of our neighbors so there were a lot of stops) and we would get our bags filled with candy.  We would always take time to stop at an older couples house that my family was friends with where they would not only give us candy but would serve us hot chocolate as well to help warm us up from the cold.  Yes, I went trick or treating as a child and yes, I turned out alright.  However, our world around us has changed drastically since I was a child where we knew most all of our neighbors and our family knew their family before them for generations back.  It was a time of fun in the community.  Growing up in a primarily non-Christian home we thought nothing more of Halloween than a day to dress up and get candy.

When my children were 3 and 5 years old I decided that I would take them for their first ever "Trick or Treating" experience.  This was the year my oldest had started kindergarten and of course there was a lot of hype in the classroom around this time of year as to what everyone was going to dress up as.  Before "real" school we had never been faced with this and honestly my boys didn't really even know what people did on Halloween.  Anyway, I dressed them up as cowboys because we had all the stuff in our toy box and closet to make this happen and off we went.  We made only a few stops at some family members homes that live close to us and they ended up with a huge amount of loot. 

 

 

The next year when Fall arrived and Halloween was drawing near I had a strong conviction in my heart that we were not supposed to be a part of what the world was doing on that day. 

 

Continue reading here tomorrow...

 

Click here for Part 2