August 8th, 2019
I love fly-fishing! In fact, I just got back from leading an outreach fly-fishing camp. So I’ve been thinking about lying to trout. Trout eat bugs, and those who tie flies for fly-fishing imitate bugs to fool trout. If a fisherman knows what the fish are eating, he can do a pretty good job of imitating what the trout wants using thread and some feathers. It’s a lie tied to a hook. I think that holds a lesson. The most dangerous lies are those, like our artificial fly, that seems to be truth.
All around us we are bombarded by news, fake news and opinion. Truth itself is under attack. We are a lot like that trout in a stream trying to decide what is worth engaging in, what is beneficial.
There are some trout, usually the older more educated ones, that are very cautious about what they eat. You can watch a big trout rise off the bottom of the stream and carefully look at and smell the possible food item floating in the drift. As often as not the wise old fish will not bite and instead return to his hide to wait for something more worthwhile to come by. Anglers call this behavior a “refusal”.
At this time in history where we are being bombarded with false information, it is important to be like the wise old trout and inspect carefully what it is we are being offered before we accept it. One key is to inspect what is offered in the light of scripture. The Bible has a long record of wise guidance. There are key principles there, one starts by honoring God. And we’re told to listen to counsel from others who are known to be living wisely.
I’d like to invite you to inspect the work of AT Catalyst to determine if it may be something you can bite on and become part of. Go to www.atcatalyst.org and read about what we do. It would be great if you could become part of the team providing real hope to disabled children and helping them function more normally in the communities they live in.
Phil Rispin
Visit us on Facebook