Challenging the narrative and forgiving the transgressors

By Elizabeth Prata

I copied and pasted a screen shot of the Center for Disease Control data on deaths from covid alone, without comorbidities. I restated the facts in the page and linked to the source. This is good journalism. There was no interpretation, no hyperbole, no opinion. Just the facts.

Initially, friendly people were shocked at what the data showed. It challenged the narrative that covid is a huge killer and the narrative that it’s a threat around every corner. They thanked me and simply retweeted the post. Some people went ahead and investigated further, going to the link. I loved that. It’s what journalism is for, to present unvarnished information so people can make good decisions, and cite the source in case they want to delve further.

Then after about an hour or so, the naysayers got a-hold of the tweet and the onslaught began.

I’ve been used to push-back, but the things that were tweeted or emailed to me represented an entirely different level of vile. I will not repeat them, just trust me when I say the indecent replies were on a cruelty level akin to the tenth circle of hell.

I received thousands and thousands of replies, many of which were abhorrent. I mean vile beyond imagining. Remember, the tweet was simply a screen shot and some facts.

The statistics on that one tweet are astounding, within 8 hours it had gotten almost 300,000 engagements.

That’s a lot.

The onslaught continued but I tuned out, saving my sanity and for more edifying things. I’d forgotten that Twitter now has a mechanism to filter replies. If I’d remembered before tweeting it I could have clicked on the button that said only people I follow can reply, but it was too little too late. I kept the Tweet up because it is important information and it should be in the public square.

The episode was also instructive in a larger sense. So what’s instructive about tsunamis of despicable behavior and speech?

I write essays here at my blog The End Time on prophecy, discernment, and encouragement. Two-thirds of my ministry often sparks onslaughts. Prophecy triggers people. Discernment triggers people. Especially discernment. In discernment, whenever I post that so-and-so teacher is false, there is inevitably a tsunami of push-back refuting the plain, biblical facts.

I’ve developed a thick skin, having been an investigative journalist in a small town owned by the Democrats. I cut my teeth on controversy. So it doesn’t faze me when it happens, and I want to learn from every experience, including adverse reactions to facts. Inevitably, I ask, “Why?”

What I have learned through riding these occasional but always surprising waves of aggressive reactions to biblical things, is that the harder and faster and fiercer the push-back, the deeper that satan has his claws into that person or into that philosophy. The worse the aggressive reaction, the more that satan is protecting his own.

It might sound weird to speak of satan in these science-y days, but never forget that for a God-allowed period, satan is the god of this world. Three times in the Gospel of John Jesus refers to satan as the “ruler of this world” (John 12:31, 14:30, 16:11) and in 2 Corinthians 4:4 Paul refers to satan as the god of this age. He has his own philosophies and strongholds and he doesn’t like them to be challenged.

Here’s a metaphor. In the days before laws were made about picking up doggie poo, when you walked along the sidewalk and saw a fresh steamy pile, you’d also see a horde of flies crawling all over it. If you poked the pile, the flies would arise and fly chaotically around.

Vivid scene, but that is what happens when you poke one of satan’s dearly held fortresses. The higher the activity of the flies indicates the depth of satan’s devotion to it.

the ruler of the power of the air, the spirit who is now at work in the sons of disobedience (Ephesians 2:2)

Every tweet, every email represents a soul behind the words. Our fight is not against these poor, anguished, deluded souls spewing vile things or perpetrating vile deeds in public. They need Jesus, as I once did. Hate hidden in the heart isn’t even suppressed any more these days but allowed to foam and increase and flood the public square. They do these things because they are under satan’s clutches, clinging to strongholds and deceiving philosophies and empty promises. They need release.

For the weapons of our warfare are not of the flesh but have divine power to destroy strongholds. (2 Corinthians 10:4).

The worldview war is mounting- fast! I feel for the unsaved, as the satanic worldview is being fiercely protected, the unsaved are being well used, thus, their spiritual anguish is high. But as difficult as it is, as righteous as it is to hate satan, we need to stay salt and light for the deceived souls. We need to pump out truth, grace, and Bible, Bible, Bible.

The darker the world gets, and it IS getting very dark here in America, the lighter we need to be. It’s hard, but fortunately we have the strength of His Holy Spirit to aid us in this important work. Keep going, sisters, keep going. One step after another.

and that repentance for forgiveness of sins would be proclaimed in His name to all the nations, beginning from Jerusalem. (Luke 24:47)