Everything Costs Something

Every choice you make costs something. Doesn't matter if it's a good choice or a bad choice, they both come at a cost. So when you make a decision about something, you need to consider if the cost would make that decision worth it.

I've been making decisions to promote more time for family and service to others. Those decisions have costs. I've been recently feeling overwhelmed and frustrated with all the things I'm doing to have more family time and to be more available for service because of the cost that I'm paying. I'm paying for these things with my sense of security, my peace of mind, and my need to be in control. I don't have a traditional job where I could clock in, clock out, and expect a check every two weeks. I have to go out there and make my own money. This brings uncertainty, fear, frustration, and overall discomfort.

However, should I decide to work a regular job where everything is guaranteed, then I'll feel secured and at peace. But what would be the cost? No family time and lack of availability to others, two things that are extremely important to me.

No matter what choice I make, I would have to pay it with something. I would either have to pay with my sense of security or with my family. We all have to pay for our choices. What are you willing to pay for?

Wouldn't it be interesting if any time we needed to make a decision, we would be presented with a "Decision Menu?" On this menu, it would list our options and the cost for each. Spending money isn't something we get excited about, but we know that nothing in life comes free. If we want something, we need to pay something. The questions are: what are we paying for and does the cost seem reasonable? Before you make a decision, you need to see if the cost for that decision is reasonable.

Many times, we make decisions without counting the cost. One time, Jesus made a point to his disciples by saying, "Suppose a king is about to go to war against another king. Won't he first sit down and consider whether he is able with ten thousand men to oppose the one coming against him with twenty thousand? If he is not able, he will send a delegation while the other is still a long way off and will ask for terms of peace." (Luke 14:31-32) Both decisions had a cost. The decision to make war with little man power may have costed the king a devastating loss, as well as possible enslavement of his people. Even if the king won the war, it would have came at a heavy loss. But seeking terms of peace came with another cost: he may have had to surrender his kingship to another king and caused his people to pay taxes to the new king. But at least his soldiers would still be alive and his people could still live a normal life.

Here's the thing about cost: there is NO cost that is pleasant. When you spend money, you've lost it. You could only hope that what you paid for was worth it. No matter what decision you make, you will have to pay for it, and paying isn't pleasant. However, if you paid for the right decision, you could at least be at peace with your decision. If you paid for the wrong decision, you would have regret for a very, very long time.

Right now as I think about the decisions I make so I could be with my family more often, I get frustrated at what I had to pay with. But then I know that I wouldn't have it any other way. Had I gotten a regular job, I would have had that sense of security, but I wouldn't see my family. By not having a regular job, I have NO sense of security, but then I realize that nothing in life is secured. Chasing after security is like chasing after the wind. So, what should I be willing to pay with: my family time or security? Which one is more valuable? Which is worth dying for?

If you, too, get frustrated because you think you're being punished for making noble decisions, remember that doing the right things is EXPENSIVE. There are some things in life you just need to spend extra money on, even if it hurts to do it. In the same way, there are worthy life decisions that we must pay extra for. Sometimes, it may feel that you're paying too much for these worthy life decisions. But don't see these costs as losses, but as investments. In time, you will reap a bounty for your decisions -- IF you paid for the right decisions. If you paid for bad decisions, don't expect to reap much of anything.

There are no decisions in life that don't come with consequences. I don't care how new your car is, there will be some issues unique to that car that you will sooner or later have to deal with. All decisions come at a cost, I don't care how noble they are. You need to decide whether or not to pay for those decisions, and if you're going to pay, what are you going to pay with? Any decision that requires you to pay with one of your values is never a good decision. It may seem good now, but down the road, you'd regret paying for that decision. On the flip side, the noble decision you make now may seem like a bad decision now, but down the road, you'd be at peace with the price you had to pay for that decision.