Halloween

Things That Go Bump in the Night Are Halloween happenings, trick, treat or truth? Learn about the origins of Halloween; what do the decorations, jack-o-lanterns, trick or treating really represent. What is the alternative? DTW#4008-T  $12.00 US (pack of 100)   READ THE TRACT BELOW:   Halloween?         Did you know the origins of Halloween go back thousands of years? It is believed to have begun with the early Druids and Celts. Better known as Samhain, Halloween is the most important of the four yearly Pagan festivals of Sabbats. (pagan means UN-Christian)                   In 835 A.D., the church attempted to replace the pagan festival with Christian practices by moving All Saints Day from May to November 1, by designating October 31 as All Saints Eve.   However, this particular attempt failed and the age-old practices of Samhain are still flourishing. Today, Halloween is celebrated by Satanists, witches and wiccans. Ritualistic sacrifices (murders) of humans and animals on this day are well documented by police departments across the country.   It is the day when the veil between the living and the dead is considered the thinnest and the dead are called forth. It’s a celebration of death, and Samhain is believed to be some type of figure associated with the ‘Lord of the Dead’. Halloween is a day that glorifies Satan and all that is evil, and every element of the Halloween tradition has roots in these pagan practices. Please read on and you will see the TRUTH in “Trick or Treat”.   What Do They Represent?   Costumes: Samhain was a night of demonic revelry and the only way frightened people could protect themselves was to masquerade as one of the demons to remain unnoticed in order to avoid death or ritualistic abuse.   Jack-o-Lantern: Evolved from carved turnips, a dark tale of a soul lost between heaven and hell. They were placed in front of homes to show support for demonic activities. It was also to prevent the demons or those who participated from entering and carrying off a family member.   Trick or Treat: The dead who were called out of their graves would wander around trying to find their former homes. Frightened villagers tried to appease these spirits by offering them gifts of fruit and nuts. If the spirits weren’t pleased, it was thought that they would kill their flocks or damage their homes.   Bobbing for apples: A pagan practice intended to increase sexual fertility.   Halloween decorations: Tombstones, skull-crossbones, ghosts, mummies and graveyards etc. all originates from Halloween’s emphasis on death.   Is there an alternative to Halloween?   YES, Jesus Christ is. “For God so loved the world; that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish, but have eternal life. For God did not send the Son into the world to judge the world, but that the world should be saved through Him”.  John 3:16-17   “If therefore the Son shall make you free, you shall be free indeed”. John 8:36   Do not be unequally yoked together with unbelievers. For what fellowship has righteousness with lawlessness? And what communion has light with darkness? And what accord has Christ with Belial? Or what part has a believer with an unbeliever?  2 Corinthians 6: 14-15.   Now that you’ve read a bit about Halloween and the alternative to the wickedness, do you still want to say I’m young yet and besides Halloween is for kids. I’m not a kid.   Don’t let the holiday fool you. If you are attending a Halloween party at your work, or any other organized entity you are celebrating the pagan holiday.  What is more important to you, your life or the peer pressure? We need to wake up! Satan comes around subtly deceiving and conniving, he’s after your very soul. Let him have his way with you and you choose hell and eternal damnation. To seek after the pleasures of this world is to deny Christ. Each time you know to do right and do it not it is sin. It is a compromise that hurts Jesus.   If you have never received Jesus into your heart, you need to know that He loves you like no other, without measure. He gave His life for you so that you may live. He wants to help you in everything. He wants to be closer than your mother, father, sister, brother or friend. Let Him.   If you have asked Jesus into your heart, but have compromised your beliefs by bowing to peer pressure and have said; I’ll get right, I’ll get ready, I still have time   Guess what! TIME’S UP! If you’re holding this tract in your hand, it is not an accident. The time is NOW. Pray this prayer with all the others willing to CHOOSE LIFE!   Lord Jesus, I know that I am a sinner and I come asking you to come into my heart. I believe that you are the Son of God; that you died on the cross for me. You rose again and are seated at the right hand of the Father, waiting to help me. I’m sorry I’ve compromised my life. I give you my heart, I give you my life from this day forward I will follow you. Write my name in the Lambs book of life for I choose life, I choose you.   Welcome to the family! For a free New Believer’s packet, contact us at:

True Freedom is Found Only in Surrender

What is freedom? Is it our legal rights? Is it being able to do what we want, when we want? True freedom may surprise you, for it is total surrender.   DTW # 4009-T  $12.00 US (pack of 100)   Read the tract below:   In the United States every July we celebrate the birth of this great nation. More than two hundred years ago our founders declared, fought, and won their freedom from the oppression of a foreign king.   However, Christians here and around the world still serve another King: God, the Creator and Ruler of all nations. It is only in Him and his kingdom that true freedom is found. But, his kingdom is not of this world, and his freedom does not come like the freedom of this world. His freedom comes only by surrender, and his is the only freedom that ultimately really matters.   God's freedom is freedom from the oppression of sin. In the Bible, Jesus, God's Son, says, “I tell you the truth, everyone who sins is a slave to [oppressed by] sin.” And, everyone sins. The Prophet Isaiah writes, “We all, like sheep, have gone astray, each of us has turned to his own way.” The Apostle Paul says in Romans, “All have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.”   Yet, sin is one of those words that we find hard to honestly apply to our own lives. It is easy to fool ourselves into believing that deep down we are basically good at heart and are not sinners by nature. When we do this we are deluding ourselves. In the Bible, the Apostle John writes, “If we claim to be without sin, we deceive ourselves and the truth is not in us.” By denying our sinful nature we risk committing the only unforgivable sin: continued refusal to believe God's truth and to surrender our wills to Him.   It is difficult to surrender! The world conditions us to be tough and self-reliant. We seek to satisfy our own self-will apart from God's will. We make our own “gods” of worldly pursuits, pleasures, and relationships. The living God, our Creator, is ignored.   But, God is constantly calling to each of us to see the truth. God seeks to bring us to a point where we realize that our own self-reliance is meaningless apart from Him. At that point we discover the only real way to live in freedom is through repentance and surrender to God. He brings our wills into harmony with his. Jesus says that when this happens, “You will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.”   Our freedom from sin is made possible through Jesus' death on the cross. He took our penalty for sin upon himself so that we could be forgiven. Jesus Christ died and was resurrected so that we could have life “and have it to the full.”   True freedom provides rest for the soul. These are also the words of Jesus: “Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for   I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls.”   When we surrender we no longer need to struggle trying to do life our own way. We are released from self-will and the power of sin! We are freed to live life God's way and to become exactly who He created us to be. That is why salvation through Jesus Christ is called being “born again.” God forgives and erases our sin and lets us start life all over. He sends his Holy Spirit to live in us and we become new creations in Christ.   If you do not already have this life of freedom, peace, and joy, you can have it right now. Just surrender your will to Jesus Christ and celebrate your Eternal Independence Day. You will be set free indeed!   Father in heaven, I confess that I am a sinner. I know that you sent your Son, Jesus, to die for my sins and to free me from my bondage. I now surrender and ask you to forgive me and accept me into your eternally free kingdom. Amen.     Scriptural quotations: Jn. 8:34; Is. 53:6; Ro. 3:23; 1 Jn. 1:8; Jn. 8:31; 10:10; Mt. 11:28-29; Jn. 3:3 (New International Version - NIV). See also: Ps. 47:7-9; Jn. 18:36; Is. 59:1-2; Mt. 12:30-32; Pr. 14:12; Dt. 5:7-10; Mt. 6:19-21; 4:17; Eph. 1:7-8; Heb. 9:27-28; Jer. 29:11; 2 Cor. 5:17; 2 Cor. 3:17; Jn. 14:27; 15:11.