[ in-foh-dem-ik ] INFODEMIC: WMD of 2020

[ in-foh-dem-ik ] INFODEMIC: WMD of 2020
Monday, December 14, 2020 by Leona Choy

Media malpractice is not new, but it has escalated this past year riding piggy-back on the Corona virus. The pandemic crisis has been pounced upon by the media misinformation folks as a useful tool for the control of the populace. It has become a WMD—Weapon of Mass Destruction. In this discussion I call it a psychological Weapon of Masked Deception. The trajectory is the same.

Each year the English language dictionary adds new words which have leaped into common use or have acquired a new meaning. INFODEMIC is one of those words. Combining the word info- with epidemic, we have a dire description of the fake news and disinformation that engulfs us like a smoke screen.

We are forewarned that the biblical “end times” will be characterized by deception. “But evil men and seducers shall wax worse and worse, deceiving, and being deceived” (2Tim. 3:13). 2020 is a prime example.

INFODEMIC is defined as “a massive amount of widely and rapidly circulating information about a particular crisis or controversial issue, consisting of a confusing combination of fact, falsehood, rumor, and opinion.” It has been intentional political gossip on steroids highly contagious because we live in an age of accelerated, instant technology for communication. We are bombarded with information designed to influence us, to brainwash us. That leaves us with the need to sort out what to believe or reject. Multiple voices either shout at us or whisper seductively into our ears.

What does deceive mean? To cause someone to believe something that is not true, typically in order to gain some personal advantage, to trick someone. Synonyms give some shades of meaning: beguile stresses the use of charm and persuasion in deceiving; delude implies deceiving so thoroughly as to obscure the truth. To be mislead implies deliberately leading astray. In more colloquial expressions it is to “be taken for a ride, led down the garden path, sent on a wild goose chase, be given the runaround.” In the simplest of terms, to deceive is to lie. All of the above are implied by the word INFODEMIC.

The Word of God gives us a heads up that especially “in the last days” the followers of Jesus would be deliberate objects of snow jobs of falsehood and intrigue meant to pull us away from our steadfast faith, stifle our witness, extinguish our light and cancel out our saltiness. We are warned not to be like naive children “tossed to and fro, and carried about with every wind of doctrine, by the sleight of men, and cunning craftiness, whereby they lie in wait to deceive” (Eph 4:14), A modern version amplifies it, “forever changing our minds about what we believe because someone has told us something different or has cleverly lied to us and made the lie sound like the truth.”

Make no mistake, the not-so-hidden agenda of the forces of darkness in our society is first to silence us with masks and behavior mandates, isolate us from the public square, restrain the strength of our assembling together, eventually to render us “nonessential” and annihilate us. No one is exempt from their efforts. They are out to deceive “even the very elect.” (Matthew 24:24)

Just who are “they” who are behind this INFODEMIC deception? The most visible actors in this stealth drama are primarily the media whose bread and butter depends on digging up “facts” that could be manipulated to be favorable to their handlers. They are politically-tainted paparazzi who act as if they “have a permit to carry a concealed [psychological] weapon” to freely carry on a systematic deception.

Unless we have a clean Christian filter for our ears and guard what we allow ourselves to see on TV, we are sucked into their vortex. By not reporting fairly and fully the facts of an issue, the media decides which issues to puff and which issues to play down or quash. They determine what is black and white, true or false, which stories to cover, which to cover up. It is propaganda pure and simple.

To help us swallow unusually large capsules of deception and psychotic delusion, our mouths have literally been masked against any objections. The mass of population, we who inhabit America the Beautiful, are being subjected to a snow job of disinformation pushed upon us by “unnamed sources.” We are not allowed to question “alleged facts” because they are playing a head game in which liness between true and false are indistinguishable. We are expected to accept media pronouncements at face value.

In the pretense of advancing the common good and to be protected, we are held hostage as if we were kidnapped and gagged. Let's not be deceived: this is not a happenstance made up as they go along. It's a systematic deception and well-planned political control strategy to pave the way for a silent takeover.

Behind the media, off in back stage, are the powerful secret ones, hidden but in plain view, if we have spiritual night vision goggles to peer into the darkness where they are concealed. “They” are the muscular ones behind the media who pull the strings, who dictate the national and global agendas. They are the ones who wear the ultimate mask, wear a cloak and carry a lethal dagger.

And behind these world power-manipulators? The evil one himself, the devil with minions of evil spirits at his command, the prince of this world, (John 16:11) to whom is given at this stage in Almighty God's master plan, the kingdoms of earth which he offered Jesus at His temptation. Is not His agenda to control the nations of the world before Jesus returns and power is snatched out of his dirty hands?

At the most personal level “they” are us. When we fall for the lies and pass on hearsay, swallow the rumors, believe the propaganda, the scuttlebutt, without doing our own research or checking sources, we may be self-deceived. Our hearts too are deceitful and we are prone to be gullible, unless we are clad in the full armor God provides.

The devil is behind the curtain of all levels of deception. He is constantly in our face, “the accuser of the brethren.” He is pursuing us and we can't outrun him. Jesus has our backs. If He had not won the victory for us by His death and resurrection, we would be among the casualties on the battlefield of our minds.

The evil one is also using his wiles to confuse Jesus' followers through prophetic words spoken by those so gifted. Let us earnestly pray for and eagerly welcome the genuine and be aware of the counterfeit—even innocent mistaken pronouncements. We can expect the authentic to be increasingly evident because we are in the end times and Joel 2 is in high action including the prophetic coming from men and women, young and old, at all levels of society.

Matt. 24:24 in the MSG gives us pause: “If anyone tries to flag you down, calling out, ‘Here’s the Messiah!’ or points, ‘There he is!’ don’t fall for it. Fake Messiahs and lying preachers are going to pop up everywhere. Their impressive credentials and dazzling performances will pull the wool over the eyes [deceive] even those who ought to know better. But I [Jesus] have given you fair warning.” To publicly declare prophetic words as from God is a serious act of obedience to be offered with humility, recognizing that the interpretation of the details and the time and manner of fulfillment may not be immediately understood..

We get it, Lord. In these days of INFODEMIC when many trumpets are blaring uncertain sounds [unclear, indistinct, unrecognizable, garbled, out of tune, even deceptive], (I Cor. 14:8) please give us the Holy Spirit's discernment to recognize what is of the flesh or of the Spirit or of the evil one so we can recognize the certain sound of the last trumpet heralding Your return!

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Comments

Elaine From Minnesota At 12/16/2020 11:52:01 AM

What you wrote was so perfectly true. I’ve been praying for God to expose all the corruption involving the media and the election. He has promised to never leave us or forsake us and with the upcoming administration, I am grasping onto that promise tightly! Thank you for this blog. . .

Reply by: Leona Choy

It isn't over yet--there are more alligators in the "swamp" to be exposed. God is at work and doesn't need court hearings to accomplish His purpose. Look for God's surprises yet in the next few weeks. Let's praise and trust God--whatever!

Val Gilardi Root From Cumberland, Md At 12/15/2020 5:39:53 PM

Wow! Maybe early on it is ok to be spoon fed from our mothers, but now, too many are opening wide instead of rightly dividing the things of truth. Deception happens right in the comfort of our own living rooms lest we be unaware. Great piece!

Reply by: Leona Choy

In your separate email you brought up vital points which I plan to address in an upcoming post. You are not deceived. You are thinking straight and the Lord can count on you. Watch Him work in surprising ways in the first weeks of the New Year.

BettyVonn Snspp From Stephens City At 12/15/2020 4:46:06 PM

Excellent summation of the sorry state in which we find ourselves. Your courage in speaking out is so refreshing. My heart breaks for the “blind sheep “ who cannot - or will not - discern The truth. Thank you for sharing this.

Reply by: Leona Choy

Yes, Betty, you know the Truth and you are not deceived. Have courage to speak up in love and wisdom when you are confronted with those who don't seem to see clearly. God will anoint your words. Leave the results to Him.

Dot From Dan At 12/15/2020 10:09:30 AM

Oh what a tangled web we weave when first we practice to deceive! Shakespeare Good morning, Leona. I pray you are doing well. I must call sometime soon!