Luke 14:25-33
Now great multitudes accompanied him; and he turned and said to them,
“If any one comes to me and does not hate his own father and mother and wife and children and brothers and sisters, yes, and even his own life, he cannot be my disciple.
Whoever does not bear his own cross and come after me, cannot be my disciple.
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 to encounter another king in war, will not sit down first and take counsel 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 an embassy and asks terms of peace.
So therefore, whoever of you does not renounce all that he has cannot be my disciple.
Homily:
An understanding of an undertaking is important before beginning, lest apathy befalls us on the way and then we suffer more than those that did not even start.
An understanding does not mean we know all possible scenarios, it is acknowledging the risks, probabilities and possibilities.
Understanding is weighing the cost against the end, and if the end weighs more, assessing your capacity and capability to bear the cost.
We might not have the capacity and capability at the beginning, but we need to understand what is required to build it and meet the end.
Our being must be aligned to the end. To be aligned, pay attention to the present magnitude, space, time and direction. Usually, we need more magnitude, less space, free time and clear direction.