I’ve become increasingly frustrated with the people who have been entrusted with informing the masses about the important daily happenings occurring in our world. A long time ago, I swore off watching the news and buying into all of the crap they spew; understanding that much of it is scripted and designed to either keep us in fear or frustration over things over which we seemingly have no control. What’s worse, many of the people who stepped up to provide information that was being suppressed have started to lean more heavily on their audiences for support rather than being the resources for truth that they originally were. Instead of leading the people, they’ve begun to leverage those relationships as a means to support themselves and their content is becoming a whiny rehash interspersed with desperate pleas for financial support. I understand that by stepping up to inform us, many of them were likely unable to return to conventional work to pay their bills, however, if you have nothing new or substantial to say, please stop asking me to pay for old words.

That’s a gutsy statement from an author who hasn’t released a new book in a while. My words are obviously old, but I’m still asking people to buy my books. However, it’s a little different to ask new readers to check out a story than to expect subscribers to pay more and more for you to rehash cold theories that are never fully substantiated. Bringing on guests who say the same things over and over is becoming annoying and at this point, my patience with some of these people is all but gone. I realize the fight for freedom is extremely important, but we’re not going to make anyone feel as though we are highly informed if our information continues to loop around itself without ever resolving. When you have a message to deliver, you should be talking about how that message ties into what’s going on in the world around you and why it is important to connect the dots instead of taking each of these stories that are being generated from mainstream sources as gospel. For God’s sake, dig deeper.

And stop whining! Lord, there are a few who just keep asking the same questions and making the same statements and then whine about how bad everything is for them and how hard it is to do what they do. You know what, everything we have to do is hard. There is not one single parent out there who would say that the issues they are facing as the result of all of the shenanigans going on in Washington, D.C. are easy to deal with. Things are tough all over and constantly telling people it’s going to get worse is not helping to instill confidence or hope. And to give someone an uplifting angle to look at is not pushing “hopium” as they say. It’s giving them a reason to look for the truth where it is being hidden from them. Tell them the full truth and help them to find it where you found it. If they don’t want to accept it, fine. But stop trying to use a different side of the fear porn coin to control your followers. It’s stupid and it degrades the entire purpose of what you were originally trying to do.

It’s really the same issue that disciples have had from the beginning of their existence. How do you find a way to tell people what they absolutely need to know without completely alienating them and basically pushing them into the arms of the devil? Well, you give your testimony…truthfully and openly…and you ask them to consider whether or not it resonates with them. If it does, they may be ready to consider the truth you’re telling them over the “truth” that’s being told by those with less than pure motives. If it doesn’t resonate, then they aren’t ready. And you have to let God deal with them. What you don’t do is continue to tell them the same thing and then add to that just how bad things are going to get for them if they don’t listen. What you don’t do is stop in the middle of your testimony to ask them for a contribution or to buy something you’re selling. If your motives are, in fact, pure, then you need to focus on the message and why the message is needed and to abandon all self-serving statements during the course of your interaction with that audience.

And for the love of God, please stop pointing out all of the places where you were right in your predictions or statements. If you must acknowledge something you had previously stated, please don’t be smug or childish about it. People who have been duped by those whom they trusted already feel bad enough and nothing turns off a listener like the whole “I told you so” speech. Stop it. Examine your motives. Ditch the script. And tell the truth.

Rebecca Benston is the owner of Higher Ground Books & Media and the author of over twenty titles currently available through Amazon and other outlets. Her books include a mystery series (The Rona Shively Stories), empowerment resources such as Wise Up to Rise Up, Don’t Be Stupid (And I Mean That in the Nicest Way), and From Judgment to Jubilee, children’s books including Grumble D. Grumble Learns to Smile, All the Scary Things, and See How Strong You Are. Benston lives in Springfield, Ohio with her awesome daughter, Mya and enjoys traveling, reading, writing, and telling it like it is. She enjoys being able to help other authors get their stories out there through Higher Ground and has recently expanded her freelance services to offer more extensive guidance as a writing coach and social media manager. For more information, you can contact Benston at highergroundbooksandmedia@gmail.com.

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