Jesus must be smiling when he asks us: “If one of you decides to build a tower, will they not first sit down and calculate the outlay to see if they have enough money to complete the project?”
In other words, be prepared to follow through. He talks about making a commitment and following through. Sometimes, though, we fall in love with the blueprint but don’t consider the sacrifices necessary to complete the project. I wonder if it wasn’t this reality of outlay which Jesus was comparing to the cost of discipleship, rather than the surface message of “plan ahead.” Several times in the Gospels, he speaks about the price of being his follower—it seems pretty clear. We all have known moments when our ‘yes’ was joyous and jubilant. But, then ….
There are, God knows, a lot of unfinished buildings around