There are so many stories flying around in the news media and the email-o-sphere that it is difficult to know what is real and what is fake. So many people are willing to pass on a wild-eyed story just because they want to believe it rather than because it is factual. As followers of Christ, we are supposed to have Holy Spirit discernment and we are to walk circumspectly. This means that we should be leading in truth rather than adding to lies. Think about what you are reading. Ask yourself questions. Think about the impact of passing along something that is most likely untrue and its impact on how you represent the Lord as an ambassador. Your leadership is needed during these times of turmoil in our country.
The election integrity issue is one such example. Many people fervently believe that President Trump had ordered the government to put watermarks on ballots so he could have a massive sting operation to arrest those who fomented election fraud, or that he had the US military raid a private company in Germany to seize a server that could prove election fraud. Neither of these stories can be verified as this column is written. Ballots are not federal jurisdiction. A military raid in an ally’s country without prior approval of that country would be unthinkable. These would be draconian tactics that violate law and process. What if a leftist president used jackboot tactics against you without due process? This is why we have laws and a legal process so that the heavy hand of the federal government cannot abuse its citizens.
In the case of the election, we are all concerned about the integrity of the election process. Hopefully, President Trump’s efforts will expose the weaknesses in the system, how fraud is exploited, and who is behind it. We simply must restore confidence in the system otherwise the foundation of our Constitutional Republic is endangered. These efforts focus on three main areas: 1) electronic voter fraud, 2) illegal mail-in ballots, and 3) illegal voting by the dead and the ineligible. Forensic investigations, recounts, legal challenges and the court system—are all parts of the established legal process that is being followed to hold accountability. President Trump is pursuing these things with the highest intensity.
Ecclesiastes refers often to chasing the wind. We must be careful to not be chasing the wind with what we want to believe even though it is untrue. Christians are in the world but are not supposed to be of the world. How does it speak to our character to pass on lies as truth, just as those do who we criticize for the very same thing? Righteous lies are still lies. Likewise, as James 5:16 says, “The effective, fervent prayer of a righteous man avails much.” Our prayers and efforts need to be focused and intentional because our nation is in an extraordinarily perilous time. Pray for the truth to prevail; that these things done in the darkness
