Now the statistic about donkeys — whether real or not real — may not seem to make a difference in the great scheme of things. However, the American Donkey and Mule Society takes exception with this "false statistic" on their website.

My research also revealed that this maligning of donkeys probably stems from an article in 1987 in the London Times in which a reporter wrote:

The statistics on the safety of flying are immensely comforting, despite recent reports of a near miss between a 474 and a RAF Hercules over Carlisle, and the Boeing 747 captain who apparently had to be reminded to lower his craft's undercarriage before landing at Heathrow. One expert has estimated that more people in the world are kicked to death by donkeys than die in plane crashes.

There you have it! An unknown "expert" using an unsubstantiated estimate — one of those 90% of all statistics made up on the spot — maligns donkeys and the story is still being spread over 21 years later as being true. I don't know about you, but I tend to side with the American Donkey and Mule Society on this one.

What is the point of all of this?

I think I would rather take the time to check it out!

OK, I was directed to a website of a "Christian writer" this past week. As I opened the site, I at first appreciated the fact that this writer claimed "to speak only from the Bible, nothing more and nothing less." I spent about 20 minutes reading some of his material, then realized pretty quickly that he had missed some pretty important scriptures and the facts he presents as true, in actuality, were just a little bit shy of being completely accurate.

Now I don't claim to have "all knowledge" or "all understanding," but I do have the ability to read God's word and figure out when someone leaves something out of a simple teaching — just like you do. I'm reminded of a couple of scriptures that warn us about such things. One in particular was sent by the apostle John:

Dear friends, do not believe everyone who claims to speak by the Spirit. You must test them to see if the spirit they have comes from God. For there are many false prophets in the world (1 John 4:1 NLT).

The Shack by William P. Young In a world where religion seems to grow increasingly irrelevant "The Shack" wrestles with the timeless question, "Where is God in a world so filled with unspeakable pain?"

Russ Lawson is a former missionary to Africa and minister in Ohio. He now works with World Christian Literature Outreach and writes a weekly email devotional, Messages from the Heart. For more information about Russ, click here.

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