The Actual Cost

“Then the other supervisors and the governors tried to find something wrong with the way Daniel administered the empire, but they couldn’t, because Daniel was reliable and did not do anything wrong or dishonest. They said to each other, “We are not going to find anything of which to accuse Daniel unless it is something in connection with his religion.” So they went to see the king and said, “King Darius, may Your Majesty live forever! All of us who administer your empire—the supervisors, the governors, the lieutenant governors, and the other officials—have agreed that Your Majesty should issue an order and enforce it strictly. Give orders that for thirty days no one be permitted to request anything from any god or from any human being except from Your Majesty. Anyone who violates this order is to be thrown into a pit filled with lions. So let Your Majesty issue this order and sign it, and it will be in force, a law of the Medes and Persians, which cannot be changed.” And so King Darius signed the order. When Daniel learned that the order had been signed, he went home. In an upstairs room of his house there were windows that faced toward Jerusalem. There, just as he had always done, he knelt down at the open windows and prayed to God three times a day. When Daniel’s enemies observed him praying to God, all of them went together to the king to accuse Daniel. They said, “Your Majesty, you signed an order that for the next thirty days anyone who requested anything from any god or from any human being except you, would be thrown into a pit filled with lions.” The king replied, “Yes, that is a strict order, a law of the Medes and Persians, which cannot be changed.” Then they said to the king, “Daniel, one of the exiles from Judah, does not respect Your Majesty or obey the order you issued. He prays regularly three times a day.” So the king gave orders for Daniel to be taken and thrown into the pit filled with lions. He said to Daniel, “May your God, whom you serve so loyally, rescue you.” When he got there, he called out anxiously, “Daniel, servant of the living God! Was the God you serve so loyally able to save you from the lions?” Daniel answered, “May Your Majesty live forever! God sent his angel to shut the mouths of the lions so that they would not hurt me. He did this because he knew that I was innocent and because I have not wronged you, Your Majesty.” The king was overjoyed and gave orders for Daniel to be pulled up out of the pit. So they pulled him up and saw that he had not been hurt at all, for he trusted God.”
‭‭Daniel‬ ‭6‬:‭4‬-‭13‬, ‭16‬, ‭20‬-‭23‬

My pastor preached a message today about how Daniel was so consistent in his faith and actions that those against him and the king knew he would continue to do what he had always done, despite a death sentence. In the midst of his message, my pastor said something about benefits, correlating the benefits that come with full time employment vs. part time, and how there are less benefits for those part time employees.

I work part time at a job for the sole purpose of the benefits. So the comment took me in a different direction. I am entitled to the same benefits that my full time coworkers have, I just have to pay a bigger portion of the actual cost. It is still cheaper than letting my spouse carry me on his employer benefits. It is cheaper than getting them through the marketplace, but it does cost me more than those working full time for the same benefits.

The thought that came to me was, “we often want the benefits of serving God full time but only want to put in the part-time requirements.” I lived that way for many years, serving God on Sunday and Wednesday, living like a heathen the rest of the week. No one would have looked at my life outside of church and thought “What a good Christian girl.” They probably would have questioned my presence in church if they new my actions the rest of the week. At the time, I wasn’t thinking about any benefits from God, I just knew I needed Him in my life.

Just like the company I work for provides benefits that are dependent on my relationship with them, so are the benefits from God dependent on my relationship with Him. He has already provided all the benefits:

Grace be to you, and peace, from God our Father, and from the Lord Jesus Christ. Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who hath blessed us with all spiritual blessings in heavenly places in Christ: According as he hath chosen us in him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and without blame before him in love: Ephesians 1:2-4

The benefits are available through connection with Him. Our access to Him is dependent upon our actions, not His. God doesn’t change.

When we don’t abide in Christ continually, often we have to pay more in the moment. It might come in the terms of stress as we quickly try to “convince God” that we need and are deserving of His help. Or the stress from trying to do things on our own first. We may feel like we are not worthy, and so we hesitate in going to Him for help, seeking it elsewhere first.

Whereas, when I am abiding in Christ, He is my first resort. He is not my last resort. I am connected to Him and so it is not a matter of reconnecting first, it just flows. My faith is in Him, regardless of what I am facing. I can trust that He has a plan and purpose for me, even if I am thrown in the midst of the lions’ den. I can know that He is for me, and that even in difficult times, He is there with me and will use it for His glory.

I can also say that I have seen this played out in my life, time and time again. God has been with my through everything, but for me personally when I was living part-time for Him, I struggled through the difficult times. It cost me a lot of peace. It cost me joy. When I was already abiding in Him, when similar difficulties came at me, they were not easy; I kept my joy and peace despite the difficulties. I had to chose to stay in His presence, but the actual cost of abiding with Him far outweighs the alternative.

We have the choice to serve God daily, to connect with His Word and to join with Him in prayer. He does not force us. He will not force us. He just remains available for us. He is our power source. When storms in life come we don’t want to be searching for lamp in the dark. It is hard to find the plug-in and outlet when you are already in the dark. That is what it is like being a part-time Christian. You don’t have the reserve within you for yourself or others.

When I am abiding in Christ, full-time I can trust He will light the path even on the darkest nights. When the storm comes, His Word is already deeply hidden in my heart, a lamp unto my feet a light unto my path. (Psalm 119:105) I only have to still myself and listen to His voice. His light doesn’t go out. I am already plugged in.