Dale Cresap's blog

Can you be a victim and an oppressor at the same time? Have you ever known anyone with victim mentality? Did you enjoy their company? So these attributes typically occur together. Victim mentality is an aspect of narcissism and you notice it in people who magnify and are consumed with their own problems. Do you find their presence and negative expression to be oppressive? Don’t follow this path yourself. Ask me to open your eyes to see your blessings and develop a sense of gratitude. Express this openly and others will find your presence to be encouraging and refreshing.

Do you know the difference between a bridge and a home? This seems like an obvious distinction, but these concepts have applications beyond the physical and material. You will encounter temporary circumstances in your life that serve to facilitate your onward journey. You may think of these as bridges and they are good and necessary, but they are not your final destination. Don’t make the mistake of thinking of them as your permanent home. You would not make this mistake on a journey in this world.

One of my titles is the Prince of Peace, and I offer my followers a peace that surpasses understanding. Have you experienced this yourself? If you follow me do you consider yourself to be an agent for passing peace on to others as well as a recipient of it yourself? Is it reasonable to expect this approach to work on a larger scale? What nation of the world doesn’t have an army? Yet some of these are used in wars of aggression and others only for defensive purposes when other means have failed. What can you do to expand the scope of peace? For those who make peace are my children.

Do you like a bargain? Do you like free stuff even better? Do you understand that grace is a free gift? But grace is not free in the sense that you think of other free things like promotional giveaways such as swag, that end up as useless clutter in your home. Grace was costly, but it was a price you didn’t have to pay. The Bible doesn’t say that grace was bought with a price, but you are, and you are to glorify God as a result. So this turns the concept of ‘free’ upside down. Be grateful that grace is free, but realize that it is not like a possession you can be indifferent to.

Are you familiar with the concept of raw materials? There are very few things that you use in the same form in which they were originally obtained, but you have to start with something, and change it into a form in which it is suitable for consumption. Do you view people as raw materials? Have you met people who you would consider to be pleasant company if only they could be changed to make them more agreeable? Do you take this task upon yourself? It is acceptable for me to view people as raw material, but not you. Transformation is my work, not yours.

Have you ever heard it said that a picture of someone doesn’t do them justice? Only so much of the human essence can be captured on film. If you know someone personally you are connected with them on a human level which is greater than can be captured in a two-dimensional image. Have you seen pictures of me? You know that there are no photographs of me and I never sat for a portrait, so the pictures you see of me are artist’s impressions.

Have you ever heard the phrase, get over yourself? Have you ever spoken it to others, or had them speak it to you? This is commonly used when someone is expressing behavior that indicates inner turmoil or issues that interfere with a full life or even a true understanding of the world they live in. Do most of your problems come from external circumstances or from unresolved internal issues? Understanding this is the first step in the process of resolution and being transformed into my likeness. If you can get over yourself what else is left for you to overcome?

Does your church take credit for divine favor? Do your members get preferential treatment, and more blessings, and fewer afflictions than others? Wouldn’t this be a great marketing device if it were true? But I send blessings to everyone, making my sun to shine and rain to fall on the just and on the unjust, on the wicked and the righteous. This says more about me than it does about them, but it is still true. Does this make it harder to make a case for gospel evangelism in general and recruiting for your church in particular?

Have you heard of people who are hard to please? This is not meant as a compliment. Do you think it applies to me? You think of me as perfect and holy, and the standard given to you is to be holy as your Father in heaven is holy. Do you struggle with this and fall short? Do you live with a sense of my favor toward you or my displeasure? If people who are hard to please are not gracious and loving, and I am, then this cannot apply to me. Your concept of me will determine the way you live your life.

Does my word speak to you? How else do you learn about me, and the things of my Kingdom? I taught from the scriptures, but I also taught from the natural world. I told my audience to consider the lilies of the field, to consider the ravens, and to consider the grass as illustrations in my spiritual lessons. These things are visible to everyone. Do you consider them? Do you draw the same spiritual lessons from them that I did? The visible world is a testament of truth. One of the most important things you learned was to read written language.