Red Herring

(Revised October 2015)

So many beliefs we cling to are based on bias perceptions, comfortable personal beliefs, and erroneous interpretations.  I recently became aware of a red herring in my life.  Believing one of my prescribed medications was no longer having its desired effect, I began researching the medication's history, side effects and the dangers of its long term use.  To my astonishment, I learned that many of the medication's adverse side effects, which are compounded when toxic levels are reached, are the same as the symptoms of multiple sclerosis.  Due to the medication’s side effects and health risks, and physical signs indicating my body had reached toxic levels, I decided to wean myself off of the medication.  Now I have to ask myself; which debilitating physical reaction is a result of MS and which are reactions caused by the medication?  The true battle is with MS but I had been distracted from my battle with MS by the adverse effects of the medication.

When we follow a red herring we lose our focus.  I recently saw an example of following a spiritual red herring in a story I had received via an email forward and which I want to share with you (for confirmation of this event visit. http://www.snopes.com/politics/religion/practice).

A disgruntled viewer recently wrote the following to the ABC television network.

From:  Coach Neugent

To:      ABC Network

My name is James Nugent.  I wrote to ABC (on-line) concerning a program called 'THE PRACTICE.'  In last night’s episode, one of the lawyer's mothers decided she is gay and wanted her son to go to court and help her get a marriage license so she could marry her “partner.”  I sent the following letter to ABC yesterday and really did not expect a reply, but I did get one.

My original message was:

“ABC is obsessed with the subject of homosexuality. I will no longer watch any of your attempts to convince the world that homosexuality is OK.  THE PRACTICE can be a fairly good show, but last night's program was so typical of your agenda.  You picked the 'dufus' of the office to be the one who was against the idea of his mother being gay, and made him look like a whiner because he had convictions. This type of mentality calls people like me a 'gay basher.'

Read the first chapter of Romans (that's in the Bible); and see what the apostle Paul had to say about it.  He, God and Jesus were all 'gay bashers'. What if she'd fallen in love with her cocker spaniel? Is that an alternative life style? (By the way, the Bible speaks against that, too.)”

-- Coach Neugent

Here is the reply that Coach Neugent received via the ABC on-line webmaster:

How about getting your nose out of the Bible (which is ONLY a book of stories compiled by MANY different writers hundreds of years ago) and read the declaration of independence (what our nation is built on), where it says ' All Men are Created equal,' and try treating them that way for a change!

Or better yet, try thinking for yourself and stop using an archaic book of stories as your lame crutch for your existence. You are in the minority in this country, and your boycott will not affect us at ABC or our freedom of statement. 

Coach Neugent’s second response to ABC:

“Thanks for your reply. From your harsh reply, evidently I hit a nerve.  I will share it with all with whom I come in contact.  Hopefully, the Arkansas Democrat Newspaper will include it in one of their columns and I will be praying for you.”

Signed Coach Neugent

Note: Wouldn't Satan just love it if people stopped using the Bible for a crutch?”

According to the investigative website “Snoops” the responses to Coach Neugent from ABC did not come from an authorized ABC official but were “the product of an overzealous employee overstepping his authority.”.. To review a full report of this event, visit http://www.snopes.com/politics/religion/practice

My response to the forward:

Dear Coach Neugent,

I am a wife, a mother, a grandmother and, most importantly, a follower of Jesus Christ.  I have been a Christian for over forty years and during that time I have studied the Bible and have deepened my spiritual intimacy with Christ.  It may seem ironic but I have found that the more I learn from the Scriptures and increase my spiritual intimacy with God, the more I realize there is much more to learn and to understand.  I do know that God is perfect and infallible.  God’s word is also infallible but our understanding and interpretation of His word is not.  We have to guard our hearts and minds against legalistic and self-righteous mindsets as we interpret God’s word or we risk becoming like the Pharisees and Sadducees of Jesus’ time; spiritually dead, self-righteous, arrogant, unmerciful and unloving.  I invite you to watch a video at www.youtube.com/watch?v=ezQjNJUSraY.  It is not my intent to sway your opinion, but to encourage you to seek an open dialogue with Christ on the subject of homosexuality.

The spiritual battle between God and Satan (good and evil) has eternal consequences for every individual.  In order to avoid spiritual death when we die physically, we must be united with the spirit of God.  As spiritually imperfect beings we cannot bridge the gap that separates us from the spiritually perfect God (“All have sinned and fall short of the glory of God (Rom 3:23)”).  Only Jesus can spiritually perfect us and spiritually unite us with God.  Once our spirits are united with God, His Holy Spirit can then instruct and guide us.  In order for a sanctification relationship to begin, however, an introduction between the unbeliever and Jesus must be made.  As Jesus’ ambassadors it is our mission to introduce others to the Savior who loves and values them (John 3:16 & 17).  It is not our mission to fix the world nor is it our mission to force unsolicited advice or beliefs on others and it is definitely not our mission to critique and judge another person’s life journey.

Jesus gave us two commands: love God and love others.  Nowhere within your letter to ABC was the love of Christ spoken.  You used Scripture to accuse and belittle, not to edify and encourage.  Christ is not a “gay basher”, or any type of basher, and anyone who believes, or implies through words or actions that He is does not know Him (1 John 2:3-6)!  Social and Biblical debates continue to act as red herrings to distract us all from the real war that rages around us (Ephesians 6:12).  Satan uses our own biases, ignorance, insecurities and pride to stir up hatred, suspicion and strife between us.  He plays us against each other when he stirs up our passions about issues that have no eternal consequences.

Whether or not the last day for the world is imminent, remember that every day is the last day for someone.  What if it had been the last day for the writer of the ABC response?  Would you really want your letter to be the last words he heard from you?  We should never lose focus of our true mission which is to love others and what better way to love someone than to introduce them to a loving God?  We need to remain focused on the true battle.  We need to guard our hearts and our minds from the distractions of the enemy (Satan) and pray that the Lord will grant us the wisdom to recognize those distractions for the red herrings they are.

 .

The Enemy

 

(Revised October 2015)

 

In December 2012, we lost a fellow soldier and comrade-in-arms.  For those of us who knew and loved him, his loss shook and frightened us to the depths of our souls.   The blunt and unmerciful reality of his death reminded me of how fragile and vulnerable we can become.

 

The death of our friend also reminded me that all of us are engaged in a war whose casualty number rivals the casualty number from all the world’s wars combined.  Our enemy in this war is more ruthless, evil and power hungry than any past or present aggressor and his sole purpose and passion is our total destruction.  And yet, despite our losses, the world refuses to even accept this enemy’s existence.  The world’s ignorance and denial of his existence allows him to “prowl around like a roaring lion, looking for someone to devour.”

 

“For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms.”  Working through the thoughts and minds of mankind, the enemy has killed millions not only with weapons of war and through evil and selfish deeds, but also through our own personal weaknesses.  As a master manipulator and liar, he excels in convincing a person, even a child of God, that he or she has no value or any hope for a bright future.  Our friend fell prey to the enemy’s schemes and died of hopelessness.  His earthly life, which was of great value to God, to himself and to his family and friends, was tragically cut short.

 

It is when we are at our lowest, when life has become overwhelming or seems to have lost meaning, that the enemy will whisper his lies into our ears.  Please remember that even though you may find yourself isolated or emotionally detached, you are not alone.  There are many you can call on for help.  As comrades in arms we not only have the honor of helping others back to their feet but we should also be willing to reach out and grab the hand of a fellow soldier in order to drag ourselves out of the abyss of depression.  Chronic hopelessness can be as lethal as any terminal disease and should be addressed at the first sign of it.  By sharing my highs and lows with a physical disability, it is my desire that through my transparency you will feel less lonely in your struggles.  Together we can heal and stand strong against the enemy.

Cliffhanger

 

(Revised September 2015)

 

Most of us who suffer from illness will ask God to cure us.  His answer is not often an immediate cure.  We are partners with God and He expects us to do our part.  As the treatment of interferon injections have been unsuccessful in halting the progression of my MS, my doctor and I decided to start a more aggressive treatment.  The new treatment carries a higher health risk but between the initial patient candidate screening and the continual monitoring for adverse reactions, I feel that the health risks have been minimized.  In addition to the more aggressive MS treatment, I began another new medication that my doctor had hoped would strengthen my legs.  Unfortunately, though successful in slightly improving my leg strength, the side effects I experienced have caused me to discontinue its use.

Due to my growing number of physical limitations and the demands of summer projects and family schedules, with the exception of one short ride in a round pen on a friend’s old mare, I did not ride this summer.  In addition, my visits with the horses in their stalls had to be short due to the summer heat.  I have asked God to take the cross of MS from me.  I wish I could be braver and stoic about my illness, but I am struggling with what my loss of independence and physical capabilities are costing me and my family.  Lately, while talking to God about my current state, I asked when my affliction would be gone, and God told me, “Soon.”

God uses the cliffhangers in our lives as a means to strengthen our faith in Him.  Whatever the final outcome, it is His presence, His power, and His faithfulness that will be glorified.  Through the answer God gave me, I was reminded of the promise God made to Abraham.  God promised Abraham that, through his wife Sara, Abraham would become the father of nations.  When Abraham and Sara had reached their elderly years without producing the promised child, they began doubting God’s promise.  It wasn’t until it was humanly impossible for Abraham and Sara to conceive that God intervened with a miracle and blessed the couple with a child and from that child came descendants “more numerous than the stars.”