Sunday, June 14, 2015

Fearmongering is Not God's Will

Hannah and I are avid myth-debunkers. We love to fact-check and think critically in regards to things we see or hear online, or in real life for that matter. Though we usually take urban legends and sensationalist internet tripe with a grain of salt, it's become a concern of mine that Christians have become associated with the rapid spread of misinformation. This simply should not be.

1 Corinthians 14 tells us that God is not the author of confusion -- he does not rejoice in disorder. Furthermore, we know that He desires for His people to have a spirit of courage, not fear and paranoia. Unfounded anxiety is not a fruit of the Spirit. The Great Commission is one that orders us to go forth and spread the good news, not to propagate the bad news. If you are a Christian, your calling in life is to be a beacon of hope, not a dispensary of fear. It's time that we check our hearts on this matter.

Perhaps some of this comes down to practicality. It's so easy to read an alarming news article and click the "share" button without vetting the source. This is a matter of discernment -- is it the Spirit inside of you that's alarmed or your flesh and it's tendency towards timidity? I believe that many of us, if we're honest, are motivated by our flesh when we partake in the rumor mill whether online or in-person. Let's embrace a higher way of thinking.

Politics can be a powder keg of controversy for our community, but if you feel passionate regarding our nation's governance, channel it into a positive form that is founded upon facts, not fear. Activism does not begin with reading the National Enquirer. The dangers of the present moment are clearly laid out before us. There's no need to cull the shadows and the muck to find something to be alarmed about.

So Christians, this is my challenge -- check your sources, think critically, and pause before sharing your latest rumor about Obama or the New World Order. In the Kingdom of God, there is much work to be done, and we must steward our time and our energy wisely.