Count the cost

"For which of you, intending to build a tower, does not sit down first and count the cost...all who see it begin to mock and say 'This man began to build and was not able to finish." Luke 14:28-30

After we accepted God's adoption plan for our lives, we started to realize that saying YES to Him means saying NO to the world. Just before the decision was made, we had big, wordly, plans for the Rust family. Our salaries had reached a place that encouraged us to not only rely on ourselves alone, but also to have many options for our lifestyle. For example, we talked about flying all 5 of us somewhere really nice this summer and spending Jason's 5-week sabatical together. A large portion of our salaries was padding a fat retirement and life insurance policy for both of us. We stopped asking if we needed any of our purchases; as long as we had the money to cover it (debt was not a word in our vocabulary for any reason except school and mortgage), that was enough for us!

We had enough options with our income that it began to feel like a burden to figure out what was the best way to spend it. When Jason got his last raise, we COULD NOT agree on how to spend it. I wanted a new (used, actually, so we could buy it straight up without borrowing, of course!) truck and he wanted to finish the basement. We went so far in our search for how to best spend the money that we bought 12 large water tanks and looked into purchasing food that stays preserved for 30 years~~just in case we might ever go hungry. GIVE ME A BREAK!!!!!

Can't you see how little our faith was? Can't you see that money and self-centeredness was beginning to creap into our family?

That still, small, Voice started with a whisper. However, when we weren't listening and acting fast enough, it turned into a LARGE, LOUD, nearly audible, Voice. When Jason came home from work one night in tears (he really is a manly man---tears are a big deal in his world), he told me he heard the Voice nearly yelling at him all day. The Voice was telling Jason to put himself into action and TRANSFORM his family, by way of building these orphanages and adopting.

God created such a holy discontent in Jason, that all we could do was say, "Yes, please!"

Here's a partial list of what we've noticed so far about this "life is not our own" plan:

NO, Thank you:
~leisurely family vacations
~cool cars
~new clothes
~cushy retirement
~full college funding for our children
~sanity
~sleep
~eating out
~babysitters (Who's going to watch 5 children?)
~clean house
~buying a new dishwasher right away when the other one dies
~focusing on ME
~closets busting with clothes
~buying something we want

Yes, PLEASE!
~camping somewhere cheap together as a family
~being used for His plan
~sharing our blessings
~showing our children what it looks and feels like to be selfless
~hand-washing dishes
~being close to the heart of God
~focus on HIM
~a limit on what we allow to take up space in our closets (Do we really need all those clothes?)
~buying something out of need only

1. Have you done anything out of faith lately?
2. Have you counted the cost of a crucified life?

*********How have you loved on HIS children today?*********