Dale Cresap's blog

Have I not promised that nothing shall by any means harm you? Yet you encounter unpleasant things in life. Do you see this as a contradiction? Good parents take seriously the responsibility to protect their children and are diligent to keep them from danger. Yet wise parents also realize that growing up involves some hard lessons. You don’t always get your own way. Parents can train their children by exposing them to the consequences of bad choices yet without putting them in real danger. Am I not a good Father? How much more than earthly parents will I train my children in righteousness yet at the same time protect them from real harm? 

Do you know anything that isn’t true? It is better to realize you don’t know something than to be persuaded of something that is false. Your certainties can get in the way of true understanding. Have you ever had your beliefs shaken to the core? You probably found this to be an unpleasant experience. Did you consider it to be my doing? How could I improve your understanding without getting you past the barriers of false certainties? Revelation can occur by the test of shaking. Truth will stand up to any level of examination and scrutiny. Let those things that can be shaken drop away, and that which remains will be tried and true. 

Surfers ride waves. Have you ever done this? Not everyone has the skill and opportunity for this form of recreation, but in a spiritual sense it is available to all. You may think of the moving of my Spirit as the blowing of the wind, or as the movement of a wave. If you continue to move with me then you can ride the crest of the spiritual wave. Does this sound appealing to you? Yet how many people will seize upon one aspect of my ongoing revelation and camp there? These are prone to criticize those who continue to move on. I want you to rejoice in what you have and still keep looking for more. Your time is always ready and the surf is always up. 

Do you care more about doing what is right or about what people think of you? Hopefully all of those in your circle of acquaintances will love the truth and affirm righteous behavior and will therefore approve of you when you do what is right. In this case there is no conflict between the two objectives but you can’t count on this and even those who have received the truth may not understand what I am doing in your life. If no man can please two masters then it follows logically that no man can please millions of masters. Fortunately you only have to please one. Obey me and I will be pleased with you. 

Do you see my hand at work in your life in the many blessings you receive? Blessed are those who recognize the source of their blessings that they may be grateful for them. Do you also see my hand at work in your life in things you find painful and unpleasant? This is a more difficult challenge, but if you recognize my ultimate goodness you can see value even in painful things. Joseph refused to become bitter at the mistreatment he got from his brothers and after many years of patient endurance he said that what they meant for evil God used for good. Blessed are those who understand and walk in this. 

Have you heard of an easy activity described as a walk in the park? You may not describe the Christian life this way, but how about a walk in the garden? This is what I did with Adam, and what is available to you by the redemption I offer. Would you argue that you don’t live in a paradise? My creation is still good, and when you encounter the fallen aspects of it I offer you a transcendent life where you can live above it all even in the midst of the pain and sorrow that this world brings. Have you learned that who you are with is more important than where you are? I want you to see that my presence with you creates paradise wherever you are. 

My word promises that you can have whatever you ask for in my name. Have you found that it is not quite as easy as this suggests? Perhaps there are good reasons for this. Some things you want are not good for you. A wise parent considers a child’s best interests above their immediate desires, and I am wiser than any earthly father. Have you not already asked for things that you later reconsidered? I could see before you could the wisdom of withholding it. You have your desires and I have mine. The process of maturity involves yours being conformed to mine. Be patient while they converge. 

My disciples assumed that faith was tribal and ethnic. I told them that I had other sheep who were not of this fold, but even after my crucifixion and resurrection they didn’t understand. This issue became the first crisis of the church, for them to get the message that I was the savior of all mankind, and to preach the gospel to every creature, and to accept into fellowship all who responded. Do you understand this? You may observe that if people practice any faith it is the one in which they were raised. I died for them as well, even if their current faith won’t acknowledge it. Declare the light of my love to them that they may be released from darkness. 

Do you know how to worship? I declared that the correct way was in Spirit and in Truth, for the Father seeks such to worship him. This is an open door to a great variety of methods and at the same time a narrow restriction on intent and purpose. For this reason you should not judge someone else in their manner of worship, for two people may do something that appears identical yet for very different reasons. In like manner I want your objective in worship should be to please me rather than those around you. I say this to liberate you from the fear of and expectations of others. You cannot serve two masters, and I am not difficult to please. 

You are familiar with my Great Commission. What approach do you use to carry it out? Do you find that the sales pitch method is the accepted standard, involving a forceful presentation, answers to every question, and as much pressure as necessary to close the deal? This may work in the world of commerce, but are you uncomfortable with it or have you found it to be ineffective in evangelism? If so, you may approach your audience with the understanding that I am already at work in their lives to prepare the ground for the planting of the word, and present yourself as a sojourner on the path to life even as you deal with questions and issues of your own.