Don't run out of steam

I am still digesting some things from yesterday. For those who were not at Cottonwood yesterday, we had a great day, getting ready to send a couple to minister long term in Asia. Mike Stroope reminded us that 10 years ago, we "adopted" a people group who basically had no access to hearing God's word, with no Christian presence and no Bible in their language. We committed to doing whatever we needed to do to live among them, build relationships with them, and give them the opportunity to know Jesus.
During that time, we have sent a number of people to live among the people for a a few years, and we have sent hundreds on short term trips. Now, we are getting ready to send Katie and Baxter to live there until God decides to bring them back.

So, since we have been on this course for 10 years, where do we stand?
When we first heard about the concept of a local church sending their own to other countries, and supporting them financially and personally, we said, "Yes" to God. We did not know exactly what that would look like or how it would work out, but we wanted to be obedient. Sometimes, it is easy to jump in, but hard to keep up momentum.

Luke 14:28-31
28 "For which one of you, when he wants to build a tower, does not first sit down and calculate the cost to see if he has enough to complete it? 29 "Otherwise, when he has laid a foundation and is not able to finish, all who observe it begin to ridicule him, 30 saying, 'This man began to build and was not able to finish.'

When you read that passage, do you automatically think he ran out of money? I just noticed yesterday that Jesus did not say money. I always assumed that was the "cost" he referred to, but the cost can be a lot of things. Why didn't the man finish the tower? Jesus just said he was not able to finish it. After the sermon, I kept thinking about that. It was easy to apply this passage to going to overseas. After some yearsof sending people, we needed a reminder that we have to finish the work.

I felt that there were more applications, though. I have put my "yes" on the altar for whatever God would call me to. As Mike said, we just say yes, and let God fill in the details. What if I don't like the way God fills it in? I have to believe that my yes still stands. I know that God has put some things on my heart, some of them are from many years ago. What if I get tired of doing the things that God has given me? I don't want to "run out" of energy, motivation, or heart, and not finish what God has sent me to build. The cost may be high to selfish desires. I may not have the time, energy, or money to do some things that I want to do. BUT the rewards are so great; new brothers and sisters, seeing people walk in freedom, new friendships, most of all, someday to hear my Lord say, "well done, good and faithful servant".