Fact Checker

I love the internet. I love its availability, its flow, its flux and its eye appeal. "Eye candy" is what my Dad calls it. I am a visual person and the internet fits me. Why lug out the phone book when I can look it up online? Why write a check and mail in my bill payments when I can point and click and never leave my kitchen counter? Why slog your way into town when I can buy the perfect Christmas gift and in a few moments have it wrapped and sent directly to you? At least I know then that it might actually get to you before the day of celebration, instead of sitting in my bedroom waiting until I actually don real pants and head to town! I love the internet.

I love the information you can gather in a fairly short period of time on the internet too. Being careful is key in this venue, however, as so much is manipulatable on the internet there is a bunch of false information out there. Basically, if you have a modicum of computer skill and the time, you can put just about anything you want on the internet. For truth seekers and research students, that can be quite a pitfall... Just ask my kids about Wikipedia and they will let you know it is not recommended reading for any school required report.

To combat bad emails and erroneous information floating about the World Wide Web, fact checking sites like Snopes and TruthOrFiction.com have sprung up to try to combat gullible souls from crowding their minds and our in-boxes with junk.

This post was going to be about bumblebees and how they are aerodynamically not capable of flight and yet how all things are possible with God... After some quick checking on the internet I discovered that this is a well disputed fable started in Germany, blah, blah, blah... And there went my blog post - Or so I thought.

God had another idea. And so here we are in fact checking land...

While all things are possible with God, He does want His children to be fact checkers. He wants us to be smart about what we repeat, what we put into our minds as the truth and about who we listen to. God has another site He'd like us to use in our fact checking arsenal: the Bible.

"Hold on!" I hear you cry... "That's a BIG book and I don't know how to find stuff in it!" Lest you throw in the towel, I have some great news for you technophiles out there! There are quite a few FREE on line Bibles out there and they are very well represented. There are sites that have multiple versions of the Bible that allow you to look at many different ways God speaks to us in different vernacular. And for those who aren't readily versed in how to look up items in a biblical concordance, there are handy little search bars! Yup, just like Google, you put what you are looking for into that search bar and viola! Up it comes in a variety of ways, depending on the online service you are using... Being a well read Christian has just gotten a lot easier as well as very 21st century!

So now how do you and I use this new found media format to conquer our inner Bag Ladies and their tendency to veer off course? Well, let's look at some very simple facts about how the enemy attacks us.

First, he is a liar. The Enemy will lie to you outright about what is expected of you, what is acceptable, who you really are and what is possible. When you are tempted to doubt something you thought was the truth, look it up! Has he whispered in your ear that you aren't really God's child, check it out... Galatians 3:26 says "So in Christ Jesus you are all children of God through faith."

Second, he is a master manipulator. Satan loves to manipulate truth so that you are utterly confused. He is very good at it and can often leave you so confused that you don't know up from down. When the enemy whispers to you that all paths lead to God and who are you to judge another person, check it out... "Jesus answered, "I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me. If you really know me, you will know my Father as well. From now on, you do know him and have seen him." John 14:6-7

Thirdly, Satan loves to guilt and shame you into making decisions that you normally wouldn't make. Shame is a notorious culprit in many a heart torn apart, believing the lie that we are unlovable. When he laughs in your ear and tells you that you are not worthy of God's love, laugh back at him and tell him to look it up! "Jesus straightened up and asked her, "Woman, where are they? Has no one condemned you?" "No one, sir," she said. "Then neither do I condemn you," Jesus declared. "Go now and leave your life of sin."" John 8:10-11

It is sad, frustrating and unfortunately true that Satan only has so many tricks he can use to sway us, but the saddest thing of all is that they are all he needs. He doesn't develop more intricate and difficult ways to coax us away from the Father because, frankly, he doesn't have to - we still fall for the same old, same old every time! It is about time we start using some of his same techniques on his own lies... Become a fact checker! Don't believe him just because he says so. Send him one of those slightly embarrassing emails that say, "You might want to check this out..." and point him right back to the Word of God. He has to listen and he will slink away defeated - for a while. When he does, smile to yourself and rest in knowing you have the Word at your disposal to combat him, in whatever form and vernacular that speaks to you.

"Put on the full armor of God, so that you can take your stand against the devil's schemes," and "Take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God." Ephesians 6:11, 17.