Dale Cresap's blog

Are you familiar with the story of me wrestling with Jacob? Do you remember what time of day it happened? It was at night. Do you think this is a significant detail? It is because I wanted to break off the engagement before dawn. So he was wrestling with me in the dark. This is pertinent because those who wrestle with me do so in the dark. Do those who struggle with the difficult questions of being describe this as wrestling with me? But that is exactly what is happening, and it works better if they are ‘in the dark’ about it.

Do you have a favorite sport? Football? Soccer? Baseball? Basketball? I do. Mine is wrestling. You may recall that I wrestled with Jacob. Job wrestled with me as well, even though that term was not used, that was the activity taking place. You can extend this concept to see the same action in principle with Peter, and Paul, and John the Baptist, and others. Can you see that struggling with me is more common than not in those who press onward toward the mark of the high calling I offer them? Have you ever wrestled with me and found it to be a beneficial experience?

I said that those who mourn were blessed, for they would be comforted. Do you mourn? Do you think this only applies when you experience the death of someone close to you? Do you consider yourself blessed when you experience the mourning that accompanies it? Is death the only thing that causes you to mourn, or are there other things that cause this reaction? As you progress and grow in life you will need to let go of old things that you may embrace the new things I am leading you into.

Have you noticed how much I had to say about the Kingdom of God? I came declaring the Kingdom, and most of my teaching was on this subject. Do you think of the Kingdom as future and far away, referring to heaven as your destination when you die? But I declared the Kingdom as a present reality, here and now. I cautioned that when you were told that the Kingdom was in a particular location you didn’t need to travel to take part, for I said that the Kingdom of God was within you. But when my accusers called me a king I said that my Kingdom is not of this world.

There were Roman soldiers who were sent to apprehend me. You may guess from this description that they were not leaders, or well learned, or people of the covenant. Yet they returned to their superiors empty-handed, although they had the authority and the weapons to take me into custody if they wanted. When asked about this by their superiors they said never a man spoke like this. What kind of an answer is that? A good question here is what did they see in me that neither the Roman civil authorities nor the Jewish religious authorities could see?

Are you a trusting person? Have you ever been cheated? The obvious risk of being too trusting is that you will be taken advantage of. Is it possible that you are not trusting enough? The risk here is less obvious. Are you aware of the missed opportunities for connection and for growth and beneficial interaction because you were suspicious? This is a great and real cost that you will pay whether you are aware of it or not. So is the risk of being cheated greater than the risk of rejected opportunities of connection?

What food do you enjoy most? Do you eat it in unlimited amounts, or do you discipline yourself to eat limited quantities? Most people learn to control their appetites even for things they like for their ultimate benefit. How do you view your spiritual life? Is it a matter of denying yourself things that you want? There may be some validity in this concept, but it presents spirituality from a negative viewpoint. How do you present your faith to others? Is it primarily positive or negative? Do you see a correlation between this and the number of people who respond to your message?

Do you belong to a church? Churches keep track of their members, so if you do your name is recorded on a membership roster somewhere, or in a database. Some churches have formal membership requirements and others do not. Have you ever changed churches? This may involve a transfer of membership, but does it change the essence of your faith? Your name is written in the Lamb’s Book of Life. This isn’t a database that you can search, but it also isn’t an entry that any church can grant or revoke.

Have you noticed that people use the term ‘absolutely’ casually in everyday conversation? This dilutes the true meaning of the term. There are, or should be, some absolutes but the concept cannot be applied to everything, for most things are passing away. Yet there is a deep, innate human desire for some firm ground to stand on. How could you live and orient yourself in life if everything was shifting and up for grabs? I told a story about a wise man who built his house on a rock and a foolish man who built his house on sand. They both built houses, but only one would endure.

Are you familiar with the Lord’s Prayer? This is the most commonly known of scripture passages. Do you think of it as collective or individual? Consider that it uses the terms ‘Our’ and ‘us’ rather than ‘my’ in reference to Father in heaven, daily bread, forgiveness of sins, temptation, and deliverance from evil. So it implies connectedness, community, and relationship. Have you ever recited it by yourself? Did you keep the same wording or adjust it for individuality? If you use the standard text even when alone then you are implying these connections even if others are not present.