The Death of Discernment

The Battle

We are a nation in mourning. I don’t know if we have fully recognized that yet. But our nation has suffered a great loss. A nation suffers because of their leaders. Proverbs 29:2 informs us, “When the righteous are in authority, the people rejoice: but when the wicked beareth rule, the people mourn.” 

I believe the outcome of the General Election in November has already brought mourning and grief upon our nation. We have been spiraling downward for a while now. Personally I believe (and I know there are those that will disagree) that we received a bit of a reprieve under Donald J Trump. So much good was done under his administration. I won’t address that here. I want this post to be about something that I believe is adding to our duress, if not the cause of it.

I think those in my “tribe” – conservative Christian – are entirely familiar with bias in the media. It has been blatant for years. And we have tried hard to expose it and encourage others not to succumb to what mainstream media sells. No doubt it has been a battle and an extremely difficult one at that. The biased media is a direct cause of much of what is occurring in our nation.

But there is also another battle among conservatives that has been brewing and strongly heating up, especially in this past year. It is a smaller picture of the massive version this subject entails, but it has been something that is concerning to me for some time. This is a battle that should be easily preventable, but it surely does not seem to be. And that is the battle of fraudulent videos and conspiracy theories running a muck.

I have tried to warn about this deceit for years on this blog. Honestly, it has been difficult for me to understand how easily the deception has been received among conservative Christians. As I have said before in my posts, I think that is due to the fact we are a trusting bunch. We don’t want to distrust or be negative toward someone’s story. We want to give a chance for dialogue and to make our points, as well. Those are good traits!! That comes out of a nature that is walking close with our God. We want to trust and we above all things want to be a good example of our Lord. We are kind and we accept. But the truth is, those fine traits have been abused and taken advantage of….this has probably occurred forever, but especially of late. The truth is, using our good traits against us is a form of persecution.

I can remember 20 years or more ago, when the multi-level marketing trend was so popular, that many of the founders claimed to be Christian. They may well have been Christians, we are an innovative bunch. But it became so common one had to finally ask, “What’s going on here?” The truth is, Christians are also loyal and out of the goodness of our hearts, we want to support those brothers and sisters in Christ. I fear the Christian name was used. The harder things get for us in this world, the more we want to support those who are like-minded. Because the discrimination is also becoming very real. So while loyalty is another good trait, it can also kind of make us “suckers”.

It is no surprise to me, that of course groups like these target Christians. We have long been sought out from people selling products and books and even knowledge. But now there is even a more sinister element. They are not just after us for our money, they are after our minds. And they are targeting an important tool we use to do it, - our politics.

I decided I wanted to address this situation in a blog post. Not that I know so much, or have a more clear mind regarding this than another, but I just wanted to share some things I learned as a child from a dad who was incredibly discerning; probably more gifted in that area than any one I know. I was raised to be discerning. I was raised to walk circumspectly. And out of his nature, I learned to be a bit leery about any number of things.

The Bible tells us that we should walk circumspectly. We are not to easily trust, but to understand what the will of God is. If He tells us to do that, He obviously will give us the ability to do it.

Ephesians 5: 15-17  - See then that ye walk circumspectly, not as fools, but as wise, Redeeming the time, because the days are evil. Wherefore be ye not unwise, but understanding what the will of the Lord is.

Powerful verse in my opinion. He also tells us in James that we can ask for wisdom and God will give wisdom to us. James 1: 5 says:

If any of you lack wisdom, let him ask of God, that giveth to all men liberally, and upbraideth not; and it shall be given him.

Wisdom is God-centered discernment. It is really that simple. And it is available to anyone who asks.

Hebrews 5:14 says: “But strong meat belongeth to them that are of full age, even those who by reason of use have their senses exercised to discern both good and evil.”

Think about that verse for a moment. We Christians know that the term “strong meat” is used in conjunction to the Christian who needs milk…a baby Christian. A mature Christian is ready for meat. But the rest of this verse makes a very interesting point, too. “Who by reason of use, have their senses exercised to discern both good and evil.” In other words, the more you use your senses, the more adept you will become at discerning good and evil. It is a matter of practice, in the exact same way a singer must use her vocal chords and stay in practice even though they are gifted with a beautiful voice. Or the way a public speaker gets better by training and practicing; then finally the more often they speak to people the easier it becomes for them. It all takes practice. So does discernment. We discern in many ways, with our eyes and ears being open, with understanding of Scripture as we delve into the Word of God, then writing it on our hearts. And with a heart that is ready and steadfast we gain understanding.

Discernment isn’t mysterious, it isn’t solely supernatural, other than it is of course God that gives all wisdom and discernment. But it is also something that needs to be perfected by reason of use. The more you use it the better you get. I do think some are gifted with greater discernment, as my dad was, than others. But it is also something that is available to us all. God didn’t leave us alone to struggle and guess. Yes, he guides us with His Word, with the Holy Spirit AND by reason of use i.e. practice. As is true with any of our gifts, the more we utilize them, the better we get at them. If discernment is a gift, and it is… it needs to be utilized, not squashed.

Identifying Deception

So with that in mind, I think I just want to write about a few things that might help us all be a bit better about discerning what we should and what we should not believe.

The first thing that I believe to be required is prayer. Of course we should pray every time we read the Bible that the message will be clear to us. Certainly we are instructed in Acts to be Bereans. We know as Christians, we are to test what we are being taught and verify it against Scripture. Acts 17:11 tells us:

These were more noble [Bereans] than those in Thessalonica, in that they received the word with all readiness of mind, and searched the scriptures daily, whether those things were so.

This is so important to use in our Bible study, but personally, I think we should also pray when we are being given a message from the world as well. I find it interesting a lot of the fake videos making the rounds today, often use our faith to make their point more believable and to garner the support of Christians who have failed to remember to discern. 

We should be using discernment when we are watching the news, or television and movies. We absolutely should be careful with anything that could subject us to something that might change our viewpoint. We should practice using discernment when in school and other classes where we learn. I used to tell my son, when I was homeschooling him, to listen to a little warning buzzer in his head. If something doesn’t seem right, it probably isn’t. Or it at least requires investigation. Pray first, asking for God to reveal truth. God isn’t going to leave us alone and without the ability to distinguish right from wrong. Listen for that warning buzzer.

Right from the get-go we should have our mind set, so that we will not automatically believe everything we see, read or watch. We need to check and search facts and be willing to not simply be a sponge soaking up garbage, but rather be a vessel that separates, cleans and strains.

A false narrative always, always includes an element of truth. ALWAYS! As in any lie, there has to be some truth to it to get anyone to buy into it. People have to recognize something they already know and believe before they can be swayed. An element of truth is used as a hook. It is a “We all KNOW this, let me expound”, kind of thing. Truthfully, for Christians, it seems if someone adds a little Christianeze to their message and some Scripture, we often will buy it hook, line and sinker.

But along with an element of truth, with this new deception there always seems to be something so outlandish, one wonders why in the world ANYONE would believe it. I don’t know why those who seek to deceive, do this. You would think it would tip their hand to the fraudulent nature of what they are espousing, but yet they include something radical anyway. I think this is done a little bit out of their arrogance. They are having fun at our expense and probably laughing about it. They want to make us look like fools. “Look at these guys”, they probably mock, “We can get them to believe anything!” This is also a form of persecution. Look for the outlandish, and don’t be afraid to question it.

Especially since this whole pandemic has started, I have seen a number of videos that Christians have been sucked into. The conspiracy videos seem to go in spurts. I haven’t figured out the rhyme or reason yet. These videos are definitely a distraction. They take our mind off prayer, off looking to Jesus, and they disrupt our normal thoughts, expectations and long held beliefs. I think part of the reason we succumb to the narrative is they make us feel like we are unified with others; and that we have something important in common with someone like-minded. They often make us feel like we want to be the first to alert others of the news, giving us a sense of being needed and maybe even like we are important. (Maybe we have failed to remember, we are already important in God’s eyes!) But buying into the outlandish seems to make us feel accepted. We almost seem to like being stirred up to frenzy.

Along with all of what I have mentioned thus far, these conspiracies that deceive our hearts and minds can also possibly even make some act dangerously. The conspiracies fulfill what may be the conspirators agenda – “to stir the masses” as noted Communists have said. And then those deceiving get something else important out of it too. A bonus. They make Christians and conservatives look like we are not credible at all and no one will believe anything else we say either. That is extremely sad when it includes our faith – the thing for which we should be standing strongest. It hurts our chance to successfully share the Gospel. Who is going to believe us, if we are the ones that so easily believe and spread the outlandish.

I want to identify a few more things I have noticed in many of the videos that are circulating now.

One major clue is in whoever shares the video. If it comes with a message that says, "Hurry up and watch this video before they take it down", you had better be wary. It will generally offer lots of credentials of the speaker, but often times without a connection to what they are teaching. There will be an urgency presented. Something that just can't wait. They have an enemy who will not allow it to be seen for long.

It seems these videos often use a narrator with an accent. I believe they have determined that using a soft, pleasant voice is important to utilize, as this is easier to listen to and therefore convince. Perhaps someone with an accent looks more intelligent than the average Joe. This gives them an aura of exceptionalism and intelligence.

The videos I have seen going around of late will falsify logos, making it look like it comes from a legitimate news source. In today’s technology, this is something extremely easy to do. Almost anyone can do it. I think I probably could too. Mostly it just takes the right software, and a little knowledge.

There is often times no author, or identification of the speaker – no one taking credit. Most often, there is not even a logo of the creator of the video. Those that are becoming more popular may start to include something that identifies them. I think this comes out of a bit of arrogance and pride too. Mikki Willis, (Think “Plandemic”) certainly wasn’t hesitant to include his name and business. Later, after he had gained sufficient notoriety he would pop into a video or two, just to show his face with a minimal comment. This, in order to lend credibility to the latest video, so the viewer who previously trusted him, will trust this one, as well. Personally, he is one I don’t think any of us should trust.

In regard to on-line articles or printed news sources, one thing I have always warned about is that they always seem to use words that are non-committal; words that are not definitive but that lead the reader to believe it is fact. They will give information almost as if it is fact, but it is carefully laced with words such as “possibly” or a phrase like “It is thought to be…” It really does take a careful reading to not be sucked into the fact that they are NOT giving you facts. I believe this is intentional to avoid lawsuits or if someone questions them, or exposes them, they are then prepared to say, “No where did I claim this as fact.” But they certainly have misled the reader in order to sell their product – whatever that might be.

Another common trait we see in these articles and videos is they almost always have an antigovernment element. Portraying the government as the enemy instead of a source of uniting and protecting our citizens is not a healthy way to address our nation’s problems. The antigovernment rhetoric we see is reminiscent of the destruction caused by the counter-culture of the 1960’s. It has been my experience out of all the traits I have mentioned so far, this is the one that is most consistently used and it should be a huge red flag. There is no reason to run down the government of the United States of America. That is not to say that flaws cannot be addressed. But to assume the government is evil, is flat out dangerous. Our government is a tool and nothing more. And it is the best in the world, because it was founded on Biblical principals. Be careful to too readily go down that path.

The General Election of November 3, 2020

What I also want to address in this post, (although I do understand it may be getting a bit convoluted - I will bring it together) is the onslaught of information being disseminated about this election cycle and in regard to President Trump’s loss. The information and misinformation is massive out there right now and the false narratives cannot be allowed to stand.

When it comes to the more recent political narratives circulating at this time, one of the cues we should also watch for is if they are attacking the party they are supposed to be supporting. If they are talking more about the mistakes that your party made, rather then the opposing party, they should be highly suspect. Lin Wood, actually did this and this was one of my first cues that he was NOT on our side. His words and position was actually in line with the antigovernment rhetoric that I previously mentioned. I honestly think that any discussion of party clean up, should not be at election time. It should be internal and among ourselves not blasted across the airwaves. It is a bit like airing dirty laundry when company is coming and it causes a lack of unity. The only time party discussion should be allowed like that is during the primaries. That is the time to weed out. Not during a general election. Sure enough, it wasn’t long before Lin Wood was exposed as a long time Democrat and an Obama donor. Now granted, people change; he could have changed parties and wanted to support Trump. However, his actions didn’t match his words. He tipped his hand early on, but people didn’t want to believe it. I think good people wanted to believe him because of some of the success he had in his defense of Nicholas Sandman - the college student recently mocked in media for smiling at a Native American man. As well, there were a couple other beneficial things Wood had accomplished recently. But maybe it was only about the money that he did these things. Maybe he felt bad for the kid. Whatever it was, he used his notoriety to gain ground for an agenda that was not the President’s.

On another note, there are many pastors, and prophets who have prophesied and believed that President Trump would receive another 4 year term. Now I do not mean to lump them into the conspiracy theories or the false narratives. But, I feel the need to address it, because so much of it has ended up being connected, whether intentionally or not.

There have been some pastors and speakers that seem to feel the need to offer false hope in regard to what has happened in this election cycle. I know they are well meaning. I believe they are anyway. I guess they could only have a motive to draw attention to themselves. But my concern is as you listen, they offer no facts. They offer no solution. They only stir us to believe something is in the works. That we just need to be patient. That there are good things happening, but they cannot tell us what it is. This is NOT helpful. If one is going to make a video to offer hope, they had better offer something more than positive verbiage. People need something factual. Otherwise, it is merely a false hope. That is NOT constructive. It merely feeds the conspiracy theories. It makes them real. It keeps them alive. And it keeps people from making other plans, or putting their focus where it should be. Now I don’t believe this false hope is a part of a conspiracy. I truly believe it is simply and truly the desire of many people. But they are not being clear minded about this. They are not considering that to not accept things as they obviously are, might very well be taking us down the conspiracy trail. And on the other hand, neither do I believe those who are behind the conspiracy narratives are the ones that orchestrated the false hope, but they are certainly using it to their advantage. Ephesians 5:6 tells us:

“Let no one deceive you with empty words, for because of these things the wrath of God comes upon the sons of disobedience.”

There are several Christian speakers who have prophesied a different outcome for this election than what actually happened. I think we have to ask ourselves, where is our hope? In the prophets? In man? Where are our eyes and heart and from what are we being distracted? I do not mean to be judgmental or to crush positive anticipation, OR attack prophets if they are genuine. But I see futility here, and wasted energy. There is a time to look at reality and change direction. Get a new focus. Find out where God is directing you next. There IS a new job to do.

Thus says the Lord of hosts,
“Do not listen to the words of the prophets who are prophesying to you.
They are leading you into futility;
They speak a vision of their own imagination,
Not from the mouth of the Lord. ~ Jeremiah 23:16

I know some of the “prophets” have come to this realization. I have seen their apologies. Some have not, or perhaps are simply unwilling to admit it. Most refuse to admit they just very well may have been in error. It is my opinion, it is time to move on, to be listening to the Lord and find out what direction He is taking us next.

How Did We Get Here and What’s Next?

I have fought as hard as I know how, to help preserve our nation and Constitution. I am a FIRM believer our nation, BECAUSE of our Constitution, is the best way to preserve religious freedom. I felt it was my ministry and I wanted to be obedient to the Lord to speak out where I could.

We all know not everyone has the same ministry. What God has told me to do, does not mean that it is for anyone else to do. Everyone has their own gifts and purposes. Each of us are equipped for entirely individual ministries. I am sorry if I ever made anyone feel they were to do what I am to do. I hate when someone does that to me. I only believe we need to support one another in each of our gifts. I believe we are not to minimize or judge what another is doing, because we may not see it as “spiritual”. We are to lift one another up and to encourage one another. We need that support now more than ever. In this time of duress and confusion in our nation, I think it is a time to stick together. Maybe we need to influence one another and lift one another up just a bit more often. We need to be willing to point each other in the right direction when we get off track. We need to keep our eyes on Jesus and not be distracted.

It is also a time that we need to be highly suspect of what we see and hear, because the days are indeed evil. Remembering, as I said earlier, Ephesians 5:15-16 “See then that ye walk circumspectly, not as fools, but as wise, Redeeming the time, because the days are evil.”

I think we can all agree that we are certainly in evil days. We are almost like a ship who has lost its bearing. We need to redeem the time i.e. to remain active, and to right the ship.

I question and often wonder what it is that has caused us this lack of discernment in our nation? I have certainly seen it for a while now. Is this something that has always been prevalent among Christians? Have we always been so gullible? I think in order to answer that question, we need to answer the question of what has caused this apparent death of discernment, in the first place.

Certainly the opportunity to deceive is far greater than it has ever been before. With the onslaught of multiple media and social media outlets, we have a 24/7 barrage of information that is accessible to us.

Without a doubt the media is to blame for the lies and distortions they have become so comfortable at selling. Further, we have raised a citizenry that believe news media can be trusted. "If it is in the news, it must be true." We have failed to teach a generation to question, to think critically and that a lack of trust isn't necessarily always a bad thing.

As well, and even more importantly, we have kicked God out of the schools and public square. We have banned a preference to the faith our nation was founded upon, in the name of kindness and respect for other faiths. But in truth, we do not need to lose our identity and OUR faith, in order to show respect for other faiths. That was never our Founders' intent. It is BECAUSE of our Christian faith that we did not become a nation that expects everyone to share the same beliefs. We certainly do not have to defer our faith to another.

We have lost our true north and we have become rebellious. We want it our own way. We have watered down our faith in the name of love; and things that once were never acceptable are now the norm. We distort and change the Word of God that directs us in truth and softened it to indulge sin.

Ezekiel 12:2 tells us: “Son of man, you live in the midst of the rebellious house, who have eyes to see but do not see, ears to hear but do not hear; for they are a rebellious house.

Finally, we have been given a clue as to why this might be happening from Saul Alinsky in his book, Rules for Radicals. Alinsky was a radical community organizer, and a political activist during the 1960's and 1970's. He stated as one of his "rules" that, "We must believe that it is the darkest before the dawn of a beautiful new world. We will see it when we believe it.”

Fast forward to this election season and we have heard Joe Biden warn us “We are in for a dark, dark winter.” The left wants us to believe that. This thought is simply setting us up for change that is coming by following Alinsky’s rules. Our society must believe it is a very dark period before we will desire the change. It is then that they are able to insert their agenda into the void. We must believe our nation needs change, before the void can be filled. Someone has been successful in getting at least half of our citizenry in believing that.

Acts 28:27 is a message Paul quoted from Isaiah about Israel:

For the heart of this people has become dull,
And with their ears they scarcely hear,
And they have closed their eyes;
Otherwise they might see with their eyes,
And hear with their ears,
And understand with their heart and return,
And I would heal them.”

Therefore I want you to know that God's salvation has been sent to the Gentiles and they will listen!

Well, I hate to be negative, but I am not sure we are listening real well any longer.

What’s next? I don’t know. I think we have closed the window of opportunity to preserve our freedoms. That “reprieve” we were so graciously given to buy us some time? Well we have closed that door.

Of course DJT wasn’t our savior! No one said he was! I get disgusted by that constant accusation that his supporters thought he was. He was merely a flawed man appointed to help preserve our faith. He gave us a reprieve. I kinda think we squandered it.

There has been a death in our nation. We have lost our focus in part through a lack of discernment. Our nation is at the edge of a precipice, and we are instead talking about the outlandish - some even mocking a call to repentance. I would recommend another careful reading of Luke 21.

“Be always on the watch.” (verse 36) Keep looking up. Our Redemption draweth nigh.

“And when these things begin to come to pass, then look up, and lift up your heads; for your redemption draweth nigh.” Luke 21:28

Onward.