Dale Cresap's blog

A fool utters all his mind, but a wise man spares his words. Have you ever met people who spoke every thought that came to mind? Did you find this to be tedious and wearisome? Were you tempted to tell them that it would be better if some of their thoughts remained private, but thought better than to mention it? Yet have you met other people you wish would say more, because their few words were profound? You consider them wise, but the former are not. Their words punctuate the silence, but for the former, silence is a relief. So in your own case, what words do you withhold?

Have you ever had a story of joy or sorrow and wanted to share it, but hesitated not knowing how it would be received? Yet if someone inquired about your situation you were eager to tell the tale and grateful that someone cared enough to open the door and ask. Have you ever said, thanks for asking? Has anyone ever said this to you? What do you want to know about the Kingdom of God? Do you want to know what the Spirit is saying to the churches today? Do you want to know of the future and the hope that I have for you? Do you want to sit at my feet and hear my word?

Do you delight in your liberty? I tell you to stand fast in it, and not be entangled again in the yoke of bondage. Yet there are two sides to this coin, and urgency is a counterbalance to agency. For you also have an unction from the Holy One, and the love of God compels you to fulfill your destiny. So these two things go hand in hand. What is the value of your liberty if you have no noble mission to apply it to? It is your destiny to have a purpose that gives meaning to your life. Have I not promised that my yoke is easy and my burden is light?

Are you an optimist? A pessimist? Everyone loves an optimist, and who loves a pessimist? No one knows the future, so neither position can be rigorously defended, but you still have to make decisions now based on reasonable expectations not knowing how they will turn out. But these choices do not occur in a vacuum of theoretical abstraction. You have the basis of your own experience. Do you also have a world view of a benevolent Supreme Being who grants you favor and blessing? If you have a history of my faithfulness to you in the past, is it reasonable to expect it to continue?

Have you heard that the first shall be last and the last shall be first? Do you believe this? Does anyone? How many people fight or even maneuver for position to get to the back of  the line? Some ancient mystics are famous for having done so, but this is not the motivation or expected outcome. What are the benefits of being last? Releasing self-promotion purifies intention and allows you to do the right thing for the right reason. I gave you an example to follow by making myself of no reputation.

Are you grateful for things you would not have chosen? Do you ever choose things that are painful and difficult? Do they come to you nonetheless? How do you deal with them? Have you noticed that these difficulties can have beneficial effects in your life? In recovery programs there are those who refer to themselves as grateful drunks. This implies that the whole process of addiction and recovery have brought them to a better place in life than they would have obtained without it, and so they are grateful. You may not be a drunk, but can you be grateful for your own suffering?

The early apostles were persecuted for preaching the gospel and responded by asking me to grant them even greater boldness in their efforts. This established a pattern in which boldness in evangelism is admired by believers. Is it admired by unbelievers? Is it effective? Do they, or you, distinguish between boldness and pushiness? For pushy people drive away more than they attract and you have experienced this yourself. He who wins souls is wise. That implies the wisdom to tell the difference between boldness and pushiness. Do you know how to be bold without being pushy?

Have you ever taken a multiple choice test? These are very common and considered to be objective. The instructions typically say to choose the best answer from those available, implying that an argument could be made for more than one of the responses, but one is clearly better than the others. So here is a quiz for you: Did I tell those who responded to my message to [a] follow me, [b] worship me, or [c] believe the correct propositions about me? If you can make an argument for more than one of these responses, in what order would you rank them?

Are you grateful? Gratitude is universally recognized as a positive trait, but you must have something to be grateful for and someone to be grateful to. Can you think of things in your life that you are not grateful for? Even so, are there more things that you can be grateful for? Even in the midst of devastation, do you know that you live in a world that is good, because I made it that way and this has never changed? Even in your trials, do you have a sense of consolation, knowing that the world is governed by a benevolent supreme being who secures and sustains you?

Do you think of your faith as more accurately described as knowledge or skill? You gain knowledge from books, classrooms, lectures, and other sources. Skills are different in that they require practice. Knowledge is highly rated in your culture of rationalism, so much so that you are said to live in a knowledge economy. But is that all that matters? To illustrate the difference, would you feel comfortable flying in an airplane with a pilot who only had a knowledge of landing from reading books? Is your faith reducible to knowledge? If not, what skills do you need to practice?