June 12, 2026 · Mark Bishop
Attention!
“For which of you, desiring to build a tower, does not first sit down and count the cost, whether he has enough to complete it? Otherwise, when he has laid a foundation and is not able to finish, all who see it begin to mock him, saying, ‘This man began to build and was not able to finish.’ Or what king, going out to encounter another king in war, will not sit down first and deliberate whether he is able with ten thousand to meet him who comes against him with twenty thousand? And if not, while the other is yet a great way off, he sends a delegation and asks for terms of peace. So therefore, any one of you who does not renounce all that he has cannot be my disciple.”
Luke 14:28-33 →
## Not Enough Room
In the movie, Toy Story, a boy has many toys but only one is his favorite. The cowboy he once loved felt replaced by a newer toy, the Astronaut, and the two ended up battling each other for the affection of the kid. Whenever you have two of something, one will take your attention away from the other because we can only really focus on one thing at a time. I know there are those who multitask, but those are tasks requiring just enough of your attention to be marked completed. One reason that having more than one wife doesn't work too well is that your attention will be on one and neglect the other. We see it throughout the Bible. It strains the relationship when one gives you want you desire, and the other doesn't or can't by any means, such as having children. Jesus says this elsewhere in the Gospels; you can only serve one master (wholeheartedly) (Matthew 6:24; Luke 16:10-13). Some things just naturally fight for our undivided or full attention, which means everything else is background noise.
## Think On Your Feet
Jesus gives a few examples of examining a decision before going all in. He's not saying there are those that don't do the wise thing, but if I were to ask, "How many of you made a quick decision without thinking it through only to regret it later?" most of us would nod. But when it comes to really important things, we tend to give a little more
attention and focus before just diving straight in such as building a house, purchasing a car, getting a new cell phone or cell phone plan, etc. So if we put some effort into those decisions, how much more should we ponder on one that'll change how we live for the rest of our lives?
## Self-Check
If you want to follow Christ, then He must be everything. Is Christ everything in your life? If you save for an item you've really been wanting, and God speaks to you about giving that money away to a person or to help a specific cause, would you give or ignore? We must put Christ above, even if we don't get what we want at the time. He wants and deserves all of our attention. Are you giving it to Him today?
## Salt for the Earth