We’ve been talking a lot about this idea of conviction throughout the series, so what does it mean to get conviction, and why is it so important?
Rule number 3 of Michael Saylor’s 21 Rules of Bitcoin says: you’ll never be done learning about Bitcoin. Saylor also makes the point that you spend about 40,000 hours of your life trying to make money, so you might want to spend just 100 hours figuring out how to keep it.
In other words, you have to put in the time. Unlike Neo in the Matrix, we can’t just download knowledge of kung fu into our brains. Bitcoin relies on proof of work, and so does your conviction about Bitcoin — you have to put in the effort.
Diamond hands take work
You may be able to convince your church to adopt Bitcoin on your word alone, and this might be fine during a bull market, but when things turn down — and in Bitcoin it can turn down fast and hard — emotions can take over and things can get ugly.
Bitcoin has a way of filtering out paper hands, and this is why over time only the diamond hands remain. So how do you develop diamond hands?
The book of Proverbs provides a few clues.
Let the wise hear and increase in learning, and the one who understands obtain guidance.
Proverbs 1:5
Then later:
Where there is no guidance, a people falls, but in an abundance of counselors there is safety.
Proverbs 11:14
So if we are to be wise, we need to constantly be learning and obtain guidance from an abundance of counselors — even if it means giving careful attention to those who argue against Bitcoin. In Bitcoin parlance, we need to take our orange pills.
Become a filter for your church
Previously, we talked about how getting into Bitcoin in 2024 versus 2014 is much less risky, and part of the reason for that is the resources that are now available for learning.
The amount of content available today is actually overwhelming, and part of your job while developing your own conviction about Bitcoin is to become a filter for your church. As you read books, watch videos, and listen to podcasts, you should be bookmarking and categorizing the best content so your church can spend less time studying Bitcoin and more time doing ministry.
We recommend cataloguing a variety of content in terms of length and format, because your delivery is just as important as the message. Like we said before, not everyone has the time or attention to devote to books or long-form podcasts, and this can be especially true if they’ve already been influenced by misinformation about Bitcoin from mainstream sources.
Sometimes a short video or even a meme can be just as powerful as an entire book — at least in terms of helping people reach an ah-ha moment, or piquing their interest to dig deeper. (For a fun example, the video God Save the Coin runs through a slew of common objections.)
Over the course of this series, I’ve provided links to many different sources that we trust, and I’ve also taken the time to put all of these resources and more together in one place for your reference in our resource library. Make sure to bookmark it and check back from time to time, as I’ll constantly be updating it with fresh content as I continue on my own journey of learning — and feel free to leave a comment with your favorite content if I’m missing something.
Remember, developing conviction doesn’t happen in a silo, and we all need to share the best content and memes with each other to combat all the fear, uncertainty, and doubt that surrounds Bitcoin.
Getting ready for objections
Another reason to carefully curate your orange pills is to be ready to handle the inevitable objections you’ll encounter when discussing Bitcoin. In the next few parts, we’re going to outline the most common objections and provide some high-level answers that you can give in response. These answers aren’t meant to be definitive or rigorous; rather, they’re meant to provide a starting point for further study and discussion. When possible, we’ll suggest which resources to use for further study.
To make specific answers easier to access, I’ve grouped the objections into the following categories:
There’s a separate part for each category, and within each one I’ve attempted to order the objections starting with the most common — but it really depends on who you’re talking to in terms of what matters most to them.
For example, financial planners and wealth advisors may have more sophisticated objections that take more time to answer, but these gatekeepers may also be less likely to take you seriously because they position themselves as experts to make a living. If your church uses an expert to help manage their finances, proceed with all caution and humility, and don’t be discouraged if you are immediately dismissed. For context on why trad-fi experts may be quick to dismiss you, there’s an excellent article titled Why The Yuppie Elite Dismiss Bitcoin.
Bear one another’s burdens
So just keep building rapport with the people at your church, and don’t feel obligated to establish yourself as an expert. Rather, think of yourself as a filter or conduit to the best resources and experts on Bitcoin, and by doing so you can fulfill Galatians 6:2:
Bear one another’s burdens, and so fulfill the law of Christ.
Galatians 6:2
Of course, Paul goes on to say in verse 3: for if anyone thinks he is something, when he is nothing, he deceives himself. In other words, while you’re bearing burdens, don’t become puffed up. Instead, stay humble and recognize your own limitations.
And keep in mind, it isn’t your job to be an expert on every arcane technical detail of Bitcoin or economics. Just be ready with a high-level response to the most common objections, and this can go a long way to giving your message credibility and showing your church that you’ve carefully considered your position. If someone isn’t satisfied with a high-level explanation, that’s okay — you just need to be ready to direct them to the right resource, or at least know where to find one or who to ask for help.
If you’re currently handling a specific objection, feel free to skip ahead to the relevant part. Each answer is meant to stand on its own, so you can understand it without necessarily going through all the previous objections.
A soft answer
As always, feel free to reach out if you have a specific question or objection that you’re not sure how to handle. And remember, your goal is to be a winsome Bitcoin maximalist. Don’t give in to the temptation to become condescending or toxic, even when others treat you with contempt. This is a great opportunity to practice Proverbs 15:1:
A soft answer turns away wrath, but a harsh word stirs up anger.
Proverbs 15:1
In the next part, we’ll start working through those objections — beginning with the economic ones.