PUSH BUTTONS
The Cost of Towers: From Intentions to Monuments
There was this time I travelled for work after an incredibly busy season. I was so pressed for time that I, uncharacteristically, packed my bags the morning of the trip. Upon arriving at the hotel, I realized I had forgotten my toothpaste. Just the one time I thought to wing it, I forgot something as basic as whole toothpaste. The airline unfortunately didn’t give us any travel pack so no hope there. Gratefully, the hotel was adjacent to a mall, and I had never been so relieved to see a grocery store. As I strolled back to my hotel with the toothpaste in hand, I thought, if only I had taken a moment as I typically would to sit down and think about my trip, this oversight would have been avoided.
Jesus, in the book of Luke, makes a profound and piercing statement;
Which of you intending to build a tower doesn’t first sit down and count the cost, whether he has enough to finish it. — Luke 14:28 NKJV
Jesus emphasized the critical importance of prioritizing a sitting posture — pausing to plan — to building right — embarking on any significant endeavour.
As we have stepped into the New Year, many have envisioned sky-high towers symbolizing our goals and aspirations across various aspects of life — spiritual development, personal development and more. We imagine our timelines filled with accomplishments as striking as a bustling metropolitan skyline. We have imagined our end-of-the-year reel filled with a lot of new, daring and bold moves. Yet, often, many fail to consider the cost of building these lofty heights. The disconnect, as Jesus highlights, lies in the failure to sit down.
A building, in this context, can represent anything we hope to achieve — a project, a goal, an intention, a resolution, or an outcome. Good intentions alone are insufficient. I intended to pack everything I needed for my trip but because I didn’t pause, my intention did not translate to action.
Adopting the discipline and patience to sit down converts dreamers into achievers. Jesus teaches us to pause at the start of a project so that the next pause happens when the work is complete. If we skip the initial pause, we may be forced to stop mid-way, often due to preventable challenges. Rested introspection at the outset provides the clarity and perspective needed to sustain the building process to its end.
Why is this sitting posture so important? Jesus explains that it helps us understand the cost of our intentions and assess whether we are committed enough to see them through. True reflection involves envisioning the goal, praying for insight, and acknowledging the costs required for success. It includes a gap analysis — recognizing what you have, identifying what you need, and letting go of what hinders progress.
Here are five costs to count before building
1. The Cost of Demolishing: Much like you cannot erect a building on a land with an uncompleted building, sometimes what we have in hand i.e. a bad habit, a toxic mindset, unresolved pain, hinders our growth. One of the primary costs you must count is what you need to demolish before you start to erect that building you desire. That maxim, take me as I am or that is just me, has hindered some people from reaching the heights that grace has afforded them.
2. The Cost of Knowledge: Knowledge is the foundation on which your building rests. Do you have the requisite knowledge needed to complete this stately building? What are the gaps in your knowledge and what steps do you need to take to close them?
3. The Cost of People: No building is built by one person. It takes a network of competent people to complete a building. You don’t need to know everything, you just need to know the right people. Do you have and know the right people to help with your building projects? Mentors, encouragers, accountability partners, and problem solvers who can help you succeed
4. The Cost of Character: There is a new character you may need to imbibe to step into the newness of what you desire. Your character is the glue that holds your building together and the paint that beautifies it. As the maxim goes, culture eats strategy for breakfast. Similarly, failure to evolve reduces our stately resolutions to mere intentions. There was this story of a lady who was praying to receive something from God and God told her that what she was asking for was at the other end of a real and genuine love walk. He told her she had some anger issues and that she had to let go. She was grateful to the Holy Spirit for that wisdom and she went to work!
5. The Cost of Discipline: Discipline bridges the gap between intention and accomplishment. What new routines and practices do you need to adopt to ensure consistent progress? What you don’t achieve daily or weekly, would not materialize in a year.
Take, for instance, someone aspires to grow spiritually, the person admires our Senior Pastor for his deep knowledge of the Word and sets a similar goal. Beyond, verbalizing and publicizing your intention, you need to assess what you need to do to ensure that by the end of the year, you have actually grown.
Sitting down with Pastor Damilola for guidance, investing in study tools like a Bible and journal, seeking accountability partners, and restructuring their routine to make time for study and prayer are all part of the cost.
By counting and committing to these costs, they transition from merely visualizing a dream to cutting the ribbon on a completed tower for all to see.
Shouts of grace to it and to you!
Have a blessed week ahead.
For His glory and His renown
Olayinka Adebayo
IG/Twitter: @layinkadebayo
Push Buttons is a weekly devotional of The Powerpoint Tribe.
