“Or what king, going to make war against another king, sitteth not down first, and consulteth whether he be able with ten thousand to meet him that cometh against him with twenty thousand?” –Luke 14:31
Have you ever decided or promised to do something and later realized you wouldn’t be able to make it happen? Were you embarrassed or felt like you had failed?
A few years ago while outside photographing some flowers, I came across an interesting sight. A tetragnatha pinicola spider appeared to have sensed movement. It slowly made its way to the center of the flower where a honey bee was gathering pollen. As both the spider and honey bee drew closer together, the spider carefully stretched out one of its legs, drew it back again, and backed away. It appeared to have examined its potential prey and counted the costs before attacking. The bee on the other hand seemed quite undaunted by the spider’s presence or covert probe. The encounter reminded me of Jesus admonishing a great multitude of followers to count the cost of becoming His disciple (Luke 14:25-35). A Japanese proverb says, “A monk for just three days,” describes a person who hadn’t fully considered what he was getting into and gave up when things became too difficult. Jesus never promised us a rose garden here on Earth. Following Jesus has cost some people their family, friends, jobs, and even lives. A Dutch proverb says, “What costs nothing is worth nothing.” Just as Jesus used the common examples of a man building a tower and a king going to war, we, too, should count the cost before venturing into any potential unknown.
“Before you act, consider; when you have considered, ‘tis fully time to act.” —Sallust, Roman historian
June 5th, 2013 at 1:05 am
This is an excellent reminder for impulsive people like me. Thank you, Rene.
June 5th, 2013 at 7:36 am
Aww, thank you, Vicki! ((hugs))
June 5th, 2013 at 2:19 am
To answer the question, yes I have made promises I regretted, as I couldn’t keep them. And I further confess that there were points in my life when I moved toward Christ, then bailed when the cost seemed more than I could afford–I was young, stupid, insecure. I am so grateful that He continued to both pursue, and wait for, me–that He knew I belonged to Him, for He had called me at a young age; and I’m equally grateful that there is now no condemnation–I needn’t bury myself in shame for the times I walked away from Him. He knew from the first, what I did not–that when I finally caught the revelation of Who He is, and all that He wanted for me, I would never have reason to turn away again. That sums up “unfailing love”, for me. God bless you BIG–love, sis Caddo
June 5th, 2013 at 7:21 am
Me, too, Caddo! I am so grateful for His amazing grace and patient loving kindness! Thank you! 🙂
June 5th, 2013 at 1:51 pm
So beautifully spoken, Caddo. When we have Jesus, we are always held in His loving hands, even when we allow the details of life to move away us from Him! All we need is to REMEMBER that we are His, and the realization awakens us once again that He never never lets us go. Oh, the sweetness of Jesus!
June 5th, 2013 at 2:31 am
You might even want to ask before you act. 🙂
Thank you for stopping by my blog and giving me a friendly nod today, Rene.
Happy Wisdom Wednesday to you and your friends on Sweet Rains. xo God bless.
June 5th, 2013 at 7:31 am
Yes! I thought about your blog after posting this. 😉
Happy Wednesday to you, too, sweet friend! ((hugs))
June 5th, 2013 at 6:04 am
Thank you for this great thought to ponder! Sometimes it is hard to know when to move, to stand firm, or to walk away. I pray we will all take the time to seek out God’s guidance in our lives every day, and then have the courage to do what He is telling us to do.God bless you, friend!
June 5th, 2013 at 7:34 am
Yes, knowing what to do is hard sometimes. Like my friend, Sandra, above said as well, it’s good to ask before we act. Thank you, Valarie! Blessings to you, too!
June 5th, 2013 at 8:09 am
Amen – a lesson I have had to learn the hard way. God has given us His Spirit to guide us, but we are not robots and have a free will, in which case He has given us a conscience to rely on, but your conscience is only as good as your character and your wisdom to use it. Counting the cost is not only advised by Jesus Himself, but is just good common sense. Nobody goes into WalMart to buy groceries with only $20 and not count the price of the items in their head before going to the checkout – why should we be any different when making life changing decisions?
June 5th, 2013 at 1:49 pm
I love your analogy of shopping without considering how much cash one has. That also goes with using credit cards, doesn’t it? Thank you so much for your added words of wisdom!
June 5th, 2013 at 11:43 am
$20 is a metaphor for a limited amount of money 🙂
June 5th, 2013 at 1:43 pm
Oh, your comments are a blessing to my thinking. Thank you all!
June 5th, 2013 at 1:50 pm
You are such a blessing, Vicki! Love you!!
June 5th, 2013 at 1:52 pm
Thank you so much, Rene. You are a light in my heart, every time I think about your sweet grace and spirituality. I love you too!
June 5th, 2013 at 1:45 pm
So hard to think before we act! Thanks for the wise counsel and beautiful sunflower. I love sunflowers! Blessings, crystal
June 5th, 2013 at 1:55 pm
Thank you, Crystal! Yes, thinking before acting can be difficult. Blessings to you, too!
June 5th, 2013 at 1:51 pm
Awesome post and a beautiful picture, Rene!
June 5th, 2013 at 1:56 pm
Thank you, Bill! (^_^)
June 5th, 2013 at 3:01 pm
Nature reveals much wisdom but it is a discerning woman who uncovers it. Thanks for your message.
June 5th, 2013 at 3:04 pm
Thank you so much for your kind words, Katherine!
June 5th, 2013 at 4:41 pm
Great wisdom! Thank you!
June 5th, 2013 at 5:49 pm
Thank you so much for stopping by! 🙂
June 6th, 2013 at 11:39 pm
You are a wealth of knowledge….and great quotes! I have gone back on a promise before and it’s a terrible feeling. Your article reminds me to stop and think before I act.
June 7th, 2013 at 7:55 am
I’ve been reminding myself to count the cost this week, even this morning. Any knowledge I have gained comes from God’s Word and the experiences and trials of life. I try to learn from my mistakes and sins, but I still fall prey and act foolishly sometimes. Thank you for you kind words. 🙂
June 17th, 2013 at 10:33 pm
Simple wise words. Thanks Rene
June 17th, 2013 at 11:28 pm
Thank you, Doug! 🙂