Dale Cresap's blog

How do you learn new things? Don’t you find it easiest to find something similar from previous experience, so you can learn what you do not know based on what you do know? But what if you encounter something entirely unfamiliar? It is harder to learn with no reference points. What if you tried the method above in this situation? You might make it work, but you might end up misunderstanding the new thing you encountered. The message of the gospel is entirely radical.

Do you still practice the faith tradition that you first learned? If not, then do you see your current practice as being an improvement? What other reason would there be for letting go of one and adopting another? You describe your faith as a journey so this should not be considered unusual. What is your attitude toward your previous beliefs? Do you operate in reaction against them, or do you see them as a part of your developmental process, understanding that they served you for a time, embracing the beneficial aspects of them, and adding to them from your current understanding?

Are you an evangelist? The Great Commission applies to all believers. Do you take the situation of your audience into consideration in your presentation of my message? If you don’t meet them where they are they will not comprehend what you say. Note the way that Paul and I engaged our audiences where they lived, with examples and illustrations that were meaningful to them. Your first encounter may not give you the opportunity to present the entire message.

Are you aware of the power of ritual? Symbolic actions have the power to take you where your mind alone will not go. Churches used to take this more seriously than they currently do, and the military still does. Yet rituals can become dead and devoid of meaning. I address this matter in my word asking who would close a door for no reason. This is the least of actions, but who would do even this without a purpose? I go on to say that you should not kindle a fire on my altar for no reason. Is it enough that you did the same thing yesterday? That is tradition.

Solomon said that the day of one’s death is better than the day of one’s birth. How could someone so wise make such a statement? Does this seem counterintuitive to you? Don’t you celebrate new arrivals and mourn the departed? Every life starts full of potential, but will that potential be fulfilled? At the end of life there is no more potential, but there is a lifetime of achievement. There are usually more people on hand to commemorate the passing than the arrival. Will the opening statement above be true of you? Live your life and make choices every day so that it is.

If you hear someone yelling and screaming about something, do you conclude that they feel strongly about it? Do you also conclude that there must be some substance to what they say? You are more likely to be right about the first conclusion than the second. What do you expect truth to sound like? I came alone, with no form or comeliness or recognized office. I was an outsider without the backing of any organization. My words were not amplified, and they were not spoken in rage. Yet those who listened said that no man ever spoke like I did, and that I had the words of life.

When you go to a restaurant, do you expect to receive a menu and choose from it whatever you please? A cafeteria is a special type of restaurant in which you can pick or pass by individual dishes in a buffet line. You live in a culture in which individual choice is highly prized. Do you see your spirituality the same way, and consider yourself to have the same freedom of action in choosing a church? But your spirituality is an engagement with the transcendent and is not entirely on your terms. Is it on your terms at all? Do you choose your spirituality or does it choose you?

Do you consider yourself to be a sensitive person? Are you more aware of your surroundings and situations than others? Do you see this as a blessing or a curse? Does this make you more sensitive to slights and insults? You may take offense at the statements of others when there was no intention to insult. Can you overlook thoughtlessness in others and say Father forgive them for they know not what they do? This requires a measure of grace but it may serve you better than other approaches. How can you apply your sensitivity for the benefit of others to advance my redemptive purposes?

Are you familiar with the commandment that you are not to seek vengeance because vengeance is mine? I will repay. Do you take comfort in this thinking that I am more capable of executing vengeance than you are? After all, you do have to concern yourself with following the law of the land. But what if the vengeance I perform is not as severe as you would like? What if I am more willing to grant your enemies mercy than you are? Will you be satisfied? If not, then maybe the problem is with you rather than them. My intention for your life is that you become more like me.

Do you ever reason by yourself? Do you ever consider an offense that is disturbing you at length alone and get into an endless loop of what they said and what you said and what you should have said, rehearsing your comeback speech in your mind? Did this leave you feeling righteous and justified? Was it ultimately helpful? What is the alternative to self-justifying thought patterns? In my word I invite you to come and let us reason together. This was presented in the context of forgiveness of sins, but it isn’t limited to that.