A red herring is the description of a smoked fish that turns red and becomes very smelly during the process.  The red herring was used to divert the attention of hunting dogs from the scent of an animal to the strong smell of the fish.  It was meant to lead them away from the job at hand.  When something is referred to as a red herring, it’s usually something specifically designed to set people off track and almost always consists of something very fishy.

As we watch the media unfold, day after day, we can’t help but wonder how much of what is out there bears any truth at all.  It seems to me that the only benefit to such false information or fake news, is to take the attention away from the work at hand and the important things we should be focusing on.

We, as a nation, have been accustomed to believing everything we read in the paper, on the internet or television.  We’ve even turned our minds to the tabloids for the latest dirt.  It seems we can’t avoid any of it, because it stares us in the face on a daily basis.

Having lived through scandal after scandal proceeding from Washington has brought a sense of skepticism towards anyone involved in politics. It isn’t new, just more of it is available to us.  What do we believe?  What do we question?  What does God have to say about it?

2 Peter 3:17-18  “You therefore, beloved, knowing this beforehand, take care that you are not carried away with the error of lawless people and lose your own stability. But grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. To him be the glory both now and to the day of eternity. Amen.”

We need to be discerning in all things.  We should not be quick to judge others.  We shouldn’t be carried away by the voice of those who wish to win more than anything.  We should not waste our time on all this dissidence, but search for the truth and that truth is found only in the Word of God.  This is where He lives, where He speaks to us, where He answers our questions and where we find peace of mind and heart.