Whose Report Will You Believe?
Being a news junkie can get you into trouble. By now, we all know the term, “fake news.” It’s easy to see how anyone could be convinced of just about anything. Surfing news feeds or morning tv news channels will give you different accounts, all under the label of “news”. Some content may be the same, but the perspective from which the stories are covered tell a different story.
This phenomenon isn’t new. Perspective brings in opinion, and opinions aren’t just fact or knowledge based. Opinions bring in beliefs and emotions. There’s always a set of observable objective facts, but even facts can be distorted. A statistician once said that the numbers don’t lie, but you can make the numbers say anything you want them to say. Perspective makes a difference.
When the children of Israel were on the journey to the promised land, twelve spies were sent into the land (Numbers 13:1-33). They brought back two very different reports. Ten spies concentrated on the enemy and told their leaders that they were like grasshoppers next to them. Two spies, Joshua and Caleb, concentrated on the power of God to help them defeat the enemy (Numbers 14:1-10). They told Moses that the land could be taken by the Israelites. Same event, different perspectives.
Sadly, the Israelites chose the report based in unbelief. They spent a devastating 40 more years in the wilderness, and those whose perspectives were of unbelief died instead of entering the Promised Land. Those who believed in God to deliver the land to them lived to enter the land and inhabit it.
Don’t let the news of the day lead you to despair and unbelief. Believe in the almighty God who is able to deliver you. Know that your fate, both in this life and the life hereafter, isn’t determined by the news media. Nor is it determined by others’ opinions and perspectives. Your current situation and your eternal fate rests in your belief in God and who HE is.
Whose report will you believe today?
– TH –