ON A TRUTH HUNT

 There was a sweet game my daughter played while in kindergarten at Montessori school.  "Going on a Bear Hunt"

A lot of my memories are hidden in the recesses of my mind.  This one is still front and center.  

Hunting is a huge sport here in Louisiana.  We have an abundance of wildlife from which to choose what you might like to hunt.  Many families only eat game as their meat.  If you do not count the cost of all the necessary hunting equipment involved, it becomes a cheap alternative to store bought meat.  If you count all the equipment, it may be more expensive than the most costly truffles. 

I have a great friend who is quite the hunter.  She gives me great entertainment with the stories of how the big buck taunts her, knowing when it is legal to shoot and when he is safe.  She also likes to hunt fish and is willing to share her bounty.  

We can all be hunters of one kind or another.  Some people hunt for entertainment and trips, some for art or books, some for beautiful plants, and on and on.  One thing is for certain hunting is an active activity.  You cannot sit on your rear (except in the deer stand and then you still had to get there and climb that ladder), and hunt.  It requires action.

Today's devotional was spot on when it comes to hunting.  The author spoke of the "post-truth" era.  "In a 'post-truth' era, objective facts appear less influential than appeals to emotion.  God hates lies and deception"  OH MY, he is stepping on the toes of so many.  When did we stop thinking for ourselves and seeking truth?  When did it become acceptable of take the word of some pundit as truth?  Are we willing to settle for what someone else tells us because they have held themselves out as an expert and tickled our ears?  

The Good Book is filled with accounts of how God hates lies.  We all know who the greatest deceiver is.  Why would we take his words as truth?  Because based upon our feelings, that is what we want the truth to be.  We turn our back on seeking the truth and instead accept what another feeds us.  

The author begins with David's words in the Psalms

"People all lie to their neighbors;

the flattering lips speak with deception."

Psalm 12:2

He then quotes Jesus

"These people honor me with their lips, 

but their hearts are far from me."

Matthew 15:8

He then circles back to the story of Joseph which we are reading and tells us Joseph's brothers knew in their hearts they could not deceive God.

"We are paying for what we did to our brother."

Genesis 42:21

He ends this passage with this, "God wants you to be honest with Him.  He likes candor. "

What in the world does this have to do with hunting?  I pray we all will become Truth Hunters.  I hope we can look beyond our feelings of what we think truth should be and seek to know the real truth.  The truth which is only found in God.