Headlines

“Extra! Extra! Read all about it!” You can almost hear the newsies shouting above the bustling crowd. The newspapers have a story to tell, and they’re counting on your curiosity to turn a profit.

Whether you read newspapers, listen to the radio, watch TV, or browse the internet, we still are bombarded with headlines of the latest sensational events. And with the creation of 24/7 news sources, we now have this information available to us literally all. the. time.

Although we don’t like to admit it, the headlines betray the bias of the one who writes them, and they change the way readers perceive the situation.

As an illustration of this point, my husband often shares about a foot race that was held between a Russian and an American. The results were published in the major newspapers of both countries. The U.S. publication stated: “American Wins.” The Russian’s headline read: “Russian Runner Finishes in the Top Two; American, Next to Last.”

Funny, but oh-so-revealing of our perspectives, prejudices, and biases.

Satan has plenty of stories that he wants you to believe. And he’s a master at twisting the facts and hiding the truth, so that even veteran Christians can be deceived. He wants you to doubt God’s goodness and question His purposes. Ultimately, the Enemy wants you to be an ineffective Christian so that you don’t take any more of his followers away from him.

And all too often, Satan doesn’t even have to try to deceive us. We are good at telling ourselves lies. We focus on the things we see, experience, and feel, rather than on the solid truths of God’s Word.

For example, the last two weeks have been crazy in my world. Not only did we prepare to travel internationally for an unknown period of time, we were forced to move out of our house just before leaving on that trip. We tried to find another place to move, but never did. And even storage units were difficult to come by. We eventually secured a container, like a train car, to hold our belongings. It’s just a really big box sitting in the desert of Arizona, with no ventilation or shade. Not exactly ideal.

And then, when we finally arrived at the border, we were denied access to that country. Four times. Again, not exactly ideal for anyone, but especially not for a homeless family. The first headline that Satan threw at me that day was:

“God Forsakes His Children.”

And it didn’t take a lot of imagination to flesh that out. Here we were, stranded at an international border crossing, being loudly berated for even trying to cross the border (though we did so legally), with no place to go, our special needs daughter with us, and a young adult friend in the car, too. Surely her parents would not be very happy with us for putting her through such an ordeal!

But the Holy Spirit wouldn’t let me dwell on that thought for long. He replaced that awful lie with His eternal truth:

“I will never, no never, no NEVER leave you nor forsake you.” (The original language, I’m told, has that triple emphasis on the “never.” Isn’t that amazing?)

And then I began contemplating more of our story. We were safe and together. We did not get fined or arrested. Our new-to-us car was paid for, had a full tank of gas, and provided a very comfortable ride. The Lord allowed us to cross paths with other believers who prayed with us and for us, and who met a very urgent need. We had enough money for food and a hotel. We had phones that allowed us to get in touch with those who could advise us on the best course of action. And the best part of it all was the Scriptures that kept running through my mind: Psalm 91, Psalm 37, Proverbs 3:5-6, Hebrews 13:5-6, and more.

It’s not that life suddenly became a bed of roses and all obstacles disappeared, all plans went smoothly. Not at all! But instead, the Holy Spirit enabled me to focus on His truths and to see things from His perspective. The others with me assisted by speaking God’s truths out loud. We reviewed them together often that day and week.

Do you see how your perspective or focus can change the headline? Which view will you take in your particular trial?

• “Diagnosis Devastates Family” or “New Opportunities to Trust the Lord” (Rom. 8:28-29)

• “Financial Pressures Create Tensions on the Home Front” or “Outward Struggles Result in Greater Dependence on God” (Phil. 4:19)

• “Lost and Lonely” or “There is a Friend Who Sticks Closer Than a Brother” (Prov. 18:24)

• “Nobody Cares” or “He Cares for You” (I Pet. 5:7)

• “I Can’t Go On Another Day” or “Rest for the Weary” (Matt. 11:28-30)

• “More Than I Can Bear” or “Grace Sufficient” (II Cor. 12:9)

Satan relentlessly feeds us these lies, just as the media constantly hurls headlines our way. Dig deep into God’s Word to combat the enemy and rest in what He has promised.

Because I am a writer, I love this idea of creating headlines for our days - both good and bad. But I want to do so from the resources that He provides in His Word. I want to see my life the way He views it. His goal for me is to be “conformed to the image of His Son” (Rom. 8:29) and to bring Him glory in everything (Rev. 4:11). And each trial, difficulty, joy, or delight that He brings into my life is designed to accomplish that end. I challenge you to re-write your life’s headlines - not from your own heart, but from His Word.