The thing about risk is that there is a cost. I don’t think its possible to take a risk and find more comfort/security…and least not immediately. They just don’t go together.
And that’s where we get hung up.
We see an opportunity- maybe it’s job-related or ministry-related. We believe in it and we’re passionate about it. But we want certainty. We want our lifestyle to stay the same, we want our relationships to stay the same, we want our bank accounts to stay the same, we want ______________ to stay the same.
But, if we’re waiting for certainty, we will never take the risk. Because that’s what risk is all about.
Uncertainty.
You don’t know the outcome. You can get feedback and endless amounts of wise counsel from the experts, but at the end of the day, even the very best financial guru’s don’t know what the market is going to do tomorrow.
When we are determining whether or not to take a risk we have to look at what it will cost us and resolve to be okay with it for the sake of a better outcome. This looks different for each of us.
For me, when I had to look at the cost of moving to the Bay area five years ago, I had to essentially “give up” my idea of home ownership and private school for my kids. Those were two certainties I had to relinquish for the sake of a better outcome.
And when I say “give up” that doesn’t mean I’ll never get those things back, BUT I had to surrender the desire and expectation of having those things to God. And I have to do it repeatedly. It’s not a one time thing.
The likelihood of owning a home in the Bay area comparable to the size of our home in Charleston is unlikely. And the private, Christian school that my mom is a principal of in Charleston doesn’t really compare- and the ones that come close cost more than what I payed for college (of course that was almost 15 years ago!).
Whenever I have those days and wish I could get those things back (I’d be lying if I said I never did), I remember why we are here. We aren’t living in the Bay area because of awesome housing prices or schools. We are living here to reach people for Jesus. At the end of the day, will I be more fulfilled because of a house I bought or school my kids attended, or because of the people we helped influence and point toward Jesus? For me the answer is obvious.
If all it takes is giving up a little comfort (it’s not like we’re living on the street) to experience the joy of seeing others come to know Jesus, I would do it again a hundred times. It’s so worth it.
Are you wanting to take a risk?
What is it going to cost you?
You can’t hang on to it and take the risk.
If what you’re giving up is worth what you’re hoping to gain, resolve to give it up knowing that the outcome will be better.
Mandy