Dale Cresap's blog

When I said that wherever 2 or 3 are gathered in my name that I would be there in the midst of them, did you assume that this was an implied lower limit, and that more could only be better? Are you sure this is true? More is not always better. Have you considered that many of my greatest miracles were nearly in secret, or with only a small number present? Consider Abraham and Moses and Jacob, who encountered me in the wilderness, and my own time in the wilderness alone. Consider your own life. Have your greatest advances and breakthroughs come when you were in a large crowd, or with a handful of people, or by yourself?

Have you ever gone on vacation and returned to tell your friends, ‘it was a nice place to visit, but I wouldn’t want to live there’? Perhaps you have heard this statement from others. Has it occurred to you that I could feel the same way? There are people who take confidence in the fact that I bless their efforts, and that I visit them, but I will bless and visit things I will not inhabit. I am not satisfied with occasional visits with you. Are you satisfied with just visits from me? There is a higher standard involved in structuring your life to provide an enduring habitation for me, but this is what I am looking for.

Everyone wears clothes, and some people care more deeply about their appearance than others. Some have a lot invested in their clothes, and some use them to make a statement. What do your clothes say about you? Your investment in your clothes can be personal as well as monetary. If you derive your self-image from what you wear then you can have your image as well as your money invested in your wardrobe. There is nothing wrong with wanting to look your best, and people will judge you by your appearance. What do your clothes say about you? What image do you want to present? Is this image consistent with the truth of your inner being?

Have I ever asked anything of you that was impossible for you? You assume that this could never happen, but consider what the angel told Mary. You (a virgin) will conceive, and you know the rest of the story. Obviously this wasn’t something she could go out and do herself. So there is a precedent for me asking people to take part in tasks that they could not possibly do alone. Note how Mary responded. She didn’t sulk or pout, she didn’t complain or refuse. Considering the situation, ‘be it unto me according to thy word’ is a good reply. Wouldn’t you like to be a part of a story larger than yourself? You can start with gracious acceptance of what I ask of you

The woman at the well asked me if the mountain where her people worshipped was the right one, or if mine was the correct one. I replied that true worship was in spirit and in truth, implying that the selection of the right mountain was secondary. To bring this story up to date you could substitute church for mountain. How many people today don’t care about mountains but think their church is the right one? Yet the underlying concept is the same and the answer is the same. I have people in more churches than you think, but the important thing is still to worship me in spirit and in truth.

When I said that unless a grain of wheat dies it abides alone, but if it dies it brings forth much fruit, I was speaking of myself. But I expounded a general truth that applies universally, particularly to my followers. Seeds produce plants that bear fruit, and so the seed is multiplied, but the seed is consumed in the process. My own destiny was unique, and the process took my life. I told those who would follow me to lay down their life, and pick up their cross and follow me. Paul provides an example of this when describing his ministry and adding that he died daily. How eager are you to bear fruit that will remain? Are you willing to be consumed in the process?

I tell you to love your enemies. This was a radical departure from common sense and commonly accepted practices when I introduced the concept, and it still is. You regard yourself as being correct and walking in truth and light. You know that I love you. Can you accept that I love your enemies as much as I love you, even if they are wrong and walking in darkness? I loved you this much when you were far from me. The purpose for loving your enemies is not to validate their positions. It is to make you like your Father in heaven. Don’t let your enemies alienate you from me.

Are you accustomed to getting what you want on demand? You open a faucet and water flows, and you turn on a switch and electrical current flows. Your access to information networks is very similar, and you like this convenience. Do you see your spiritual connection with me the same way; that I am there for you whenever you want me? Yet this perspective can give you a distorted view of our relationship, as if I am here for your convenience. If you call me Lord, shouldn’t it be the other way around? The reality is not that I am with you on demand, but that I am with you always, whether it is convenient for you or not. How would a greater awareness of my abiding presence with you affect the way you live your life?

My word promises that you can have whatever you ask me for, anything you want. Do you like this promise and exercise it often? Do you know that you can also have things you don’t want, and didn’t ask for? Paul had a thorn in his flesh. He didn’t want it, and on repeated occasions asked me to remove it, which I declined to do. I told him that my grace was sufficient for him. He struggled with this but came to accept it. So the story had a happy ending, not that the thorn was removed, but that Paul came to a state of grace concerning it. Can you come to a state of grace about things in your life you don’t want and can’t get rid of?

Do you find it easier and easier to surround yourself with like-minded people? Modern network communications make it easier than ever to make contact with those of similar backgrounds and beliefs, and opinions. Is this a good thing? The same technology also makes it easier to come into contact with those outside of your familiar group. Which do you prefer to do? It is comforting to be reassured that you were right all along, but that is not a formula for your growth and transformation. So it is easier to do the easier thing, and also easier to do the harder thing that provides more growth potential for you. Which will you do?