Momentum For Monday, October 30th 2023

"There is no fear in love [dread does not exist]. But perfect (complete, full-grown) love drives out fear, because fear involves [the expectation of divine] punishment, so the one who is afraid [of God’s judgment] is not perfected in love [has not grown into a sufficient understanding of God’s love].
1 John 4:18 AMP"

My perspective on our behaviors and attitudes is that it usually is done in one of two ways-- fear or love. In fact, I believe hate is not the opposite of love, fear is. So in my life, I ask God to continually help me to operate in love since I've struggled with fear so much previously.

One of the things I used to love was Halloween. I grew up watching all the horror movies and doing the haunted houses. I even really got into tarot cards and the Ouja boards. It wasn’t really frightening or sacrilegious to me. I didn’t get saved until my late teens so my thoughts of Halloween were nothing spiritual. My thought process was basically that I equated frightening with fun. In fact, years after I was saved, I still didn’t change my stance on Halloween. I still loved it with every festivity of the season. You could show me all the Scripture in the world about evil and mediums that proved your point and I would actually agree with you, but I just enjoyed that other crap way more.

Then I started to grasp something as I grew in my relationship with Christ- any source of fear I openly and willingly allow in my life will always impact my spiritual battle of my mental health. All depression or whatever mental/emotional issue some how always circles back to unhealthy fear. I could (and did) tell myself all day that none of that Halloween horror crap frightens me, but the spirit behind Halloween is rooted in fear and anywhere I entertain it, I give permission in my life.

So am I telling you that your love of all things spooky connects to your mental health? Yes. But I’m not here to invoke another religious rule in your life. The Holy Spirit convicted me of how I was effecting my soul. I’m just telling you the lessons I’ve learned so that maybe you become a little happier and more free in your walk with God. You see, now I hate fear (meaning the unhealthy twisted kind, and not the fear Scripture speaks of that promotes respect and reverence towards God) . Like, HATE it. And I hate what it does to myself and others.

I still love Halloween season, I just love it differently. No freaky movies or haunted houses for me, thank you. My mind and heart are way more valuable than some cheap thrill. And I am better for it, I’ve seen drastic improvement from guarding myself in this area. That small bit of wisdom I willingly implemented in my life has reaped so much more peace for me. And I don’t miss that junk either. But you sure will still find me picking apples, enjoying a bonfire, and handing out candy- happy fall y’all.

So you have not received a spirit that makes you fearful slaves. Instead, you received God’s Spirit when he adopted you as his own children. Now we call him, “Abba, Father.”

(Romans 8:15)