Glory of the False Prophets; Parable of
the Poopy Diaper
I had a dream last night that my 2-year-old son had an awful, poopy diaper that leaked out the
diaper and all down his pajama leg.
This morning, I forgot about the dream until I went to change my son's poopy diaper and saw that
it had leaked out on both sides.
But it wasn't anything nearly as bad as the dream. Gratefully.
And that is the point. Because of the dream, I was grateful that the diaper was only this messy
and not as messy as in the dream. It made the task of cleaning him up much more bearable, even
though in actuality it was one of the most messy diapers he's had in a long time.
So the dream was right, but the dream was wrong. It gave me a foreboding of something messy, but
in reality it wasn't nearly as bad as the dream had portrayed, which made what would have
otherwise been a miserable experience not really all that bad.
Such is the role of those who set forth the 'worst case scenario' of prophecy. Here's what COULD
happen.
Indeed, they are right, for those things could happen.
But when what actually happens is not as bad as what could have happened, and we have perhaps been
anticipating something far worse, then what actually happens is much more easy to bear; when if
were not for the warning, then what actually happens hits us cold and is far more difficult to
handle.
Hence, those who are like Jonah, and tell us how awful things could be, given our current course,
do us a great favor by painting the awful situation.
I certainly would not be disappointed if the end time tribulations are not as awful as some
depictions I've heard of.
It's the parable of the poopy diaper.
Sincerely,
Sterling D. Allan
Feb. 22, 2002
