I was reading Isaiah 40 and it mentions how people can hope in the Lord and find new strength just like the eagle soaring on its wings. I wondered, “Do eagles renew their strength in some specific way?” I consulted one of my favorite sources to find the answer — the internet.

There’s a remarkable story about bald eagles, oft-repeated in various blogs and chat rooms. According to the story, eagles can live up to 70 years, but they must go through a painful re-birthing process. In their mid-40s, their beaks and talons are losing their ripping efficacy. Their feathers are old. Their bodies are weak. So, they fly up to a nest up in the mountains. Once there, they smash their beaks against a rock until they fall out. The beaks regrow. Then they focus their attention on the old talons and begin to pluck their talons out one by one. The talons regrow longer and sharper, the better to catch their prey. Finally, they pull out all of their feathers with their upgraded beaks and talons. New feathers grow in, thicker and stronger. The whole process takes approximately 150 days from start to finish, and when they soar out of their craggy nest, they soar with new strength.

This is certainly an inspiring story. Applications abound for those who are hitting a wall of weariness and need to renew and rediscover who they are, coming out of a painful re-birthing process stronger and bolder. There is only one problem with the story about the bald eagle: it is a complete and utter fabrication from start to finish.

Anyone who actually knows about bald eagles may have to concede the following is true about the story: there is a bird named the bald eagle. It has a beak and talons, and sometimes it may nest in the mountains. As for the rest — utter gibberish. Bald eagles live up to 30 if they are lucky. As a rule, eagles don’t lose their beaks or talons. They would starve to death well before the theoretical 150-day mark. Same goes for feathers. It is true they lose their feathers, but not all at once, and not by plucking them out. They fall out naturally in a molting process like any other bird. While eagles do have nests, they use them to raise their young, not to reclaim life from the ashes Phoenix style.

Well then, what about all those people repeating the story on the internet? Can they all be wrong? Bluntly, yes. They can all be wrong either because they are the original liar or because they got sloppy and wanted an inspiring story to tell. The problem with some people is they talk too much about things they know nothing about, and if they do so loudly enough with just the right amount of enthusiasm, there are a legion of people who are predisposed to believe them and repeat it as gospel truth. This phenomenon often has dire consequences among the people of God.

Take gossip for instance. Someone says something negative about someone else. They make their critical comment even if there is no proof. Their comment is listened to and repeated over and over again until everyone assumes it must be true. Instead of asking the person directly about it, they are talked around ad infinitum. False teaching is a problem, too. If people are not reading the Bible for themselves, that leaves them at the mercy of what someone else is saying about it. Something false could be taught and repeated, and instead of checking it out in the pages of scriptures, people defer to the one who is making the claim. Sometimes the problem is group-think. The herd instinct can take over because it is easier than thinking for yourself, especially if the truth is uncomfortable for the majority of the group you are attached to.

The Bible continually warns the people of God about gullibility and naivete. Proverbs 14 hits this theme repeatedly. “There is a way that appears to be right, but in the end it leads to death.” (14:12) “The simple believe anything, but the prudent give thought to their steps.” (14:15) “Simpletons are clothed with foolishness, but the prudent are crowned with knowledge.” (14:18)

In the New Testament, Paul writes to Christians in several different places warning them not to just go along with the crowd but to be mature in understanding. “Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is — his good, pleasing and perfect will.” (Romans 12:2) “Then we will no longer be infants, tossed back and forth by the waves, and blown here and there by every wind of teaching and by the cunning and craftiness of people in their deceitful scheming.” (Ephesians 4:14) Likewise the writer of Hebrews cautions the Church not to be “carried away by all kinds of strange teachings.” (13:9)

So today I don’t have an answer for you to my original question of whether eagles renew their strength in a particular way. What I do have for you is more questions. Do you check things out before you repeat them? Do you confront those who are telling a salacious story about someone else? Do you read and study the Bible for yourself or do you simply defer to what others are saying about it? Are you ready to disagree with the majority of people you associate with if you believe they are wrong? Are you testing and approving God’s will by not conforming to the world, or are you blown along by every wind of teaching that comes your way? An immature Christian gets carried along by whatever sounds good. A mature believer uses the mind God gave them and seeks the truth, not taken in by the erroneous stories people are telling. Which are you?

Derek Russell is pastor of the Hillsboro Global Methodist Church. He loves Jesus, family, dogs and football.