Dale Cresap's blog

You know that I have many titles. Do you see me as the president of a large corporation? Part of the job of a business manager is to hire staff and assign them to the proper positions. A good manager will find people who are well-suited for the job in every way, including natural talent, skill, experience, character and temperament. Do you understand that I have a job for everyone in my Kingdom? Not all of them pay wages in the wealth of this world, but all have rewards in heaven. Submit your application and trust me to assign you a task for which I created you and prepared you for it is your destiny. 

Do you understand that I created the world, and man in my own image? This concept that was universally accepted for centuries has come under relentless attack for decades so that the only defenders are my followers. It is one thing to accept this as a doctrinal premise and another to walk in the reality of all it implies. You live in my world. When you open your eyes do you see my presence and fingerprints everywhere? More to the point, do you see a divine imprint in everyone you meet, regardless of their religious beliefs or complete lack thereof? You may think that the fall changed all the premises of creation, but it didn’t. 

Do you think of the Bible as words of life? Yet it contains some difficult passages. I spoke words that neither my friends or my enemies liked, about eating my flesh and drinking my blood. Even Peter was distressed, but he would not go away, for he affirmed that I spoke the words of life. Have you ever heard Christians using scripture to make proclamations against those who do not believe, declaring over them eternal judgment? That is not their job, for I also teach you not to say, even in your heart, who shall ascend into heaven, and who shall descend into hell. Don’t turn the words of life into words of death. 

Do you see your church as a Christian community? Does it consist of people you would hand-pick for companions? Perhaps they wouldn’t pick you either, and there is a purpose for this. In most areas of life you have the choice to associate with those of your own choosing. Family is an exception to this, and church can be depending on how you view it. You can think of examples of those who go from one church to another in an endless search for the right one. This is not my plan for you. Receive from me the wisdom that there is a benefit for you in belonging to a group that you didn’t choose, and realize that I hand-picked them for that purpose. 

I tell you to lay up treasure in heaven where it is really safe, for where your treasure is, there will your heart be also. Do you think this refers to treasure only in terms of money? But you are not laying up money in heaven. Treasure in this world can consist of money, but it can mean other things too. Even if you have a godly attitude toward money and are not materialistic, are there things here that you treasure in a way that displaces me or interferes with your accumulation of treasure in heaven? Ponder this question in a broad sense. The scripture passage implies that your treasure is whatever you give your heart to.

What does your culture value? Is money more important than wisdom? What do you value? My word describes wisdom as crying in the streets. There don’t appear to be any takers. Apparently there was a ‘buyer’s market’ for wisdom. Yet Solomon asked for wisdom and I was pleased with his request and gave him more besides. You have my promise that if you seek you will find, which is to say that you will find what you seek. If you value the things that are truly important, then seek them and you will have them. My promise that if any man lack wisdom to ask of me and receive it still holds. 

Are you led by the Spirit? Do you claim this as a matter of Biblical doctrine or as a matter of firsthand experience? Do not use this question as a basis for self-condemnation. It is possible to be more aware of the leading of the Spirit in hindsight, when you look back and realize that I was with you all along, even though it felt at the time as if you were wandering or groping along alone. I speak in a still small voice, but I do speak, and have promised that you will hear my voice. Do you see how pleasant and favorable it is to hear my voice in the moment, to walk with a constant awareness of my presence with you and my guidance? 

Do you see yourself more as a member of a particular church or as a member of the Body of Christ? Both things should be true, but some believers emphasize one more than the other. There are great benefits to both aspects, which are available to you if you embrace and receive them. You know that I have one body, which should make you identify with every other believer, showing the world that you are my disciples by loving one another. At the same time you need deep roots in a community of people you know, and who know you, with whom you can share my life face to face. 

My apostles prayed that they may have great boldness in proclaiming the gospel message, and I gave it to them. Yet I was meek and lowly in heart. Can these things be consistent? There is a difference between belligerence and boldness. Perhaps you have encountered those who intimidate by sheer force of will. If you cannot escape from them then you may make superficial accommodations to reduce the level of conflict. I am looking for a deeper and enduring change in you and this is not accomplished by force and pressure. It is done by peaceful entreaty and non-threatening persuasion. Proclaim my gospel message boldly this way. 

Some radios are hard-wired to a single frequency, others are tunable across a frequency band, and still others are tunable across multiple frequency bands. Do you hear my voice in a certain way? If so, be diligent to seek my voice in that way that you may hear when I speak. Yet I am not limited to speaking in a single way. Sometimes I will change the channel and speak to you in a way you had not previously experienced. This is not to thwart or frustrate you, but that you may grow in your perception and hearing. I am always speaking. Are you always listening? He who has ears to hear, let him hear.