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I receive numerous “news story” e-mails several times a month. Most are political. I also see a lot of them on Facebook. What I don’t see is where these stories have been confirmed. Every once in a while I hop onto Snopes.com to check them out.

About 95% of the time, the information forwarded is false. They are urban legends passed on from one e-mail to the next. There is currently one making the rounds that claims that Mitt Romney said he can relate to “black people” because his ancestors once owned slaves. This one is so ridiculous it’s absurd. Or the fact that Lowes sells American flag doormats. That is also not true. They sell doormats with patriotic colors, but none with the American flag. The sad part is people actually believe these, especially if it comes from a friend.

Passing on an e-mail of this sort is on different than if you were telling the lie. It doesn’t matter whether you were the one who came up with it or not. God doesn’t differentiate between sins. Lying is the same as murder in the Lord’s eyes. Proverbs 19:22 reads, What a person desires is unfailing love; better to be poor than a liar.

Wow! It is better to be poor than a liar. That’s harsh. God knows the reason we tell lies. It’s to hurt others and to make ourselves look better. And once you get away with lying, you’ll move on to something else like stealing. Lying is usually the easiest of sins to get away with. It’s also the sin that hides all the others.

Passing on lies is the same as telling the lie yourself. Before you forward an e-mail or post that Facebook information, check to see if it’s true. Snopes.com is the best place to do this. If you don’t have the time to check, don’t forward it or post it.

If you’re like me, you have enough to beg God’s forgiveness for, without adding something as ridiculous as passing on an untrue e-mail.

Today’s society is infatuated with fame. Getting your fifteen minutes is so important to some people they will lie, cheat, and steal to get it.

A woman, with her attorney beside her, tells the world she’s won a large lottery jackpot. The news media fawns over her the first couple of days, then starts to question her honesty. Too bad they didn’t question her before, then they wouldn’t have wasted their time. A singer goes on a talent show claiming to be a wounded vet, even showing a photo of himself in his uniform. The picture turned out to be someone else. If the show had done some research beforehand, they wouldn’t be embarrassed by what appears to be falsehoods by this man.

These two did what they did for possible fame. I’ll almost guarantee they will be on at least one or two television talk shows discussing what they did. The worse part isn’t that they lied to get attention. The tragedy is they both have children. These parents are the same people who are shocked when their own children lie or cheat.

Proverbs 22:6 states, Start children off on the way they should go, and even when they are old they will not turn from it. If you raise your children to be honest, they will be honest. Just as if you raise your child to steal, they will steal.

And children learn from watching.

Do you walk through a store eating grapes as you shop? Then when you get to the checkout, you don’t pay for the grapes you’ve eaten. “Oh, it’s not that much,” you say to justify. You’re probably right. But you’ve just taught your children to steal.

Have you ever asked your child to keep something secret from your husband? Maybe you didn’t want him to know you went to the mall so you told your daughter to tell him you were at Grandma’s. You just taught your child to lie.

We all hate to pay our taxes at the end of year. But if you aren’t completely honest on that tax return, don’t be surprised when one of your children cheats on a test.

Children are taught by way of your actions. Lip service doesn’t go far if you aren’t doing what you preach. If you want honest thoughtful children, treat them and others that way.

If you don’t show your children the correct ways to act, don’t be shocked when they behave just like you.

People are social creatures. We need to be around others. That’s why some who are alone will have pets or become that crazy cat lady down the road. She’s found something to connect with.

And when you need comforting or support, there is no better place to get it than with your Christian family. Ecclesiastes 4:9-10 reads, Two are better than one, because they have a good return for their labor: If either of them falls down, one can help the other up. But pity anyone who falls and has no one to help them up.

I don’t know how people who do not have a Christian family make it through, especially at the time of someone’s death. Even if they have support, they have no hope of ever seeing that person again. I would hate that once someone died they are gone forever. I love the idea of seeing my grandfather one day.

I lost a friend over the weekend. We’d grown apart the last couple of years, but I still feel a loss. It’s just a nice feeling to know that one day I’ll get to see her with Jesus. I pray her family realizes she’s no longer in pain, and they will one day see her again. It’s easier for me to say that than for her daughter to feel it, even if she is a good Christian.

The pain from the loss of her mother cannot be soothed right now with good Christian words. Only hugs and love can help her. In time, she’ll remember the good times and the fact that one day she’ll feel her mother’s arms around her once again.

I just found out an old friend has breast cancer. What are the right words to say? Especially when you haven’t been so close in the last couple of years? Sorry seems more fitting for someone you don’t really know, not for someone you used to be closer to.

Sometimes all you need to do is let someone know you’re there. It’s just nice to hear that someone is praying for you and that you are in their thoughts. The big C can be devastating even if it isn’t terminal. The fear alone is enough to make you feel empty inside.

But no matter how afraid you are, you always have God there to hold you. Psalm 56:3 states,  When I am afraid, I put my trust in you. Trust that God will get you through, and trust that He will hold on to you no matter what.

I wrote a quick note to my friend letting her know I was praying for her. I included a Bible verse. I hope it makes her feel better.

When faced with something like this, you don’t need to be eloquent. You just need to be there, even if it’s just in thought. Sometimes a cartoon or picture that is a reminder of you and your friend might be enough to put a smile on her face. Make sure you keep them in your prayers.

The worst thing you can do is nothing at all.