Paying the Price

Today I read a great illustration of knowing and embracing our duty as followers of Jesus in Spiritual Leadership by Oswald Sanders:

"A young man who was beginning his work with the coast guard was early called to take part in a desperate assignment.  A great storm had arisen and a ship was signaling its distress.  As the men began to move the big boat to the rescue, the young man , frightened at the fierceness of the gale, cried out to the captain, "We will never get back!"   Above the storm the captain replied, "We don't have to come back, but we do have to go out."  In most decisions the difficult part is not in knowing what we ought to do; it is in being willing to pay the price involved." (Sanders, J. Oswald. Spiritual Leadership. Marshall Pickering, 1986. page 54)

If the Coast Guard only answered distress calls in good weather, they would not be fulfilling the purpose they are especially trained and outfitted for.  Soldiers, firemen, policemen, and medical personnel are among the many professions where men and women put their lives on the line to do their duty to help others.  In the course of their job there are many difficult decisions to be made, but the great leaders among them are those who are willing to pay the personal price to see their duty done well.  In the illustration with the captain and new recruit, the captain did not wrestle over whether they should embark on the assignment:  the need to go was crystal clear.

Having chosen to search for those who sent the distress call, however, questions remained over how they were to best tackle the developing emergency.  Drawing upon his training, experience and knowledge--with the counsel and aid of the officers and crew--clear decisions could be made and communicated to work together for a successful outcome.  It is likely the captain would have rather been doing something else that day, but he had been prepared for such an occasion and had the means to do what others could not.  One need not be the captain of a Coast Guard vessel to rise to the occasion of administering an encouraging word, asking a question, or lending a hand.  As believers we are called to love one another as Jesus loves us, and this will always come at a personal cost.

There is no confusion over our Christian duty to love one another, yet we can still question what is the best way to do so.  Like the young man was afraid to leave port because his safe return was not guaranteed, we also can shrink from loving as Jesus does because of fear:  how will others take it?  What will they say?  How could this negatively impact our relationship?  What unwanted demands will this person or situation impose upon my time?  Why is this happening to me?  Can't there be an easier way?  What if loving others results in being disappointed or having my heart broken again?  Because Jesus was willing to answer His Father's call to be crucified to atone for our sins out of love for us, He is the One to whom we look for comfort, help and rest in trying circumstances.  Our risen Saviour Jesus is the LORD who heals us, and He strengthens us to follow Him day by day.

It is good for us to consider:  how much does fear factor into our decision making?  It may be we are being more guided, hemmed in, or paralysed by all manner of fear rather than walking in the fear of God!  Fear for ourselves and unwillingness to pay the price involved can keep us from doing the thing we have been called, equipped and enabled to do by God's grace.  Let us be as the captain who saw his need to go even if returning was not guaranteed, willing to pay the price God requires of us.  Our eternal salvation and destination by faith in Jesus is assured, and thus with boldness we can venture forth because He has already paid the price.