Cost

World English Dictionary

cost  (kɒst)
— n
1.	the price paid or required for acquiring, producing, or maintaining something, usually measured in money,time, or energy; expense or expenditure; outlay
2.	suffering or sacrifice ". . .I will not offer burnt offerings to the Lord my God of that which costs me nothing. . ."  II Samuel 24:24 (AMP)       I have always loved these words of King David.  He needed to make a sacrifice to the Lord and someone offered him everything necessary to do so, free of charge, but David insisted that he must pay for it.  The sacrifice must personally cost him something to be of true value.  To me it speaks to the value of giving to God that which is dearest to us, withholding nothing.  It is easy to "give off the top", to live superficially.  But I have learned that the best things in life are that which come at a deep, personal cost.      For example, in my writing I know that it is God's gift working in me, but when I use it, it costs me something.  That cost is usually time, energy and great amounts of emotion.  It is a pouring out.  It is an offering, a sacrifice.  And sometimes, it is expensive.  Sometimes, I "give it all I've got" and while it's exhilarating in the process, it's exhausting too.  Yet it is a price I am more than willing to pay.  I do it gladly because in it not only do I find my purpose, but I am glorifying my Creator.      I never want to cheapen my offering to him.  I don't want to offer him that which costs me nothing.      Someone once brought me a gift and it was lovely and I was touched by their thoughtfulness.  However, later I learned that this gift was actually a hand-me-down of sorts.  Someone else that this person knew had an abundance and brought it to share with a group of many.  It was still a lovely thing.  It still brought beauty to my home.  I was still thankful and appreciative and enjoyed the gift.  Yet somehow, by realizing the reality of the circumstances--that it cost the giver nothing to bring this gift to me, that in fact, my existence was not even really necessary to the exchange--it diminished the heart-value of the gift.  Suddenly it just wasn't the same.  And it wasn't about money at all.  There is a difference between "Here, I brought this for you." and "Here, someone had this for the gang and I got some too."        Specific, personal intention makes all the difference.        I don't want to worship and glorify God "on accident", as a by-product of whatever else might be going on.  I want my sacrifice to be on purpose, intentional and to cost me something.  It's got to have value.        Conversely, I gave a gift once to someone and I put a lot of time and thought and money into the gift.  Their response was, and I quote, "It's not that bad."  I was crushed!  Thank God that he doesn't respond to us that way!  He accepts whatever we wholeheartedly put before him.  We don't have to even pretend to be perfect to honor him, to give a sacrifice that pleases him.        What are you offering your Creator today?  What sacrifice do you have to bring?  And what is it going to cost you?  Thankfully this is not a painful thing.  It is where we find our light and purpose and greatest joy.  Look at the words of Hosea 6:6 in the NLT, "I want you to show love, not offer sacrifices.  I want you to know me more than I want burnt offerings."      How lovely is it that all he really wants is for you to know him?  Every perfect gift truly does come from above.  Amen! Have a blessed day!