A red herring was a term coined from a method of training hunting dogs to follow the scent of their prey. Once the dogs were following the proper scent, their trainers would draw red herrings (a stinky fish) across their paths. Initially, the dogs would be diverted by the scent of the herring. They had to be trained to ignore that scent and instead stay focused on the scent of their prey. Pastor Keith discusses some red herrings which could divert our attention from what we should be pursuing.