THE HIGH COST OF NEGLECT

THE HIGH COST OF NEGLECT

 It has been wisely stated that ‘inch by inch life is a cinch.’  It’s a reminder of our need to be diligent in taking care of small matters before they loom large.  In life, there is an extremely elevated premium to be paid for the personal decision to let things go.  That is, there is a very high price for anyone’s avoidance of placing a finger in their leaky dike.  Passivity nearly always results in calamity.

 For example, in the booming downtown business district called The Loop, Chicagoans passively ignored their city's looming budget crisis for the better part of a decade.  This was because Washington’s cutback of aid to urban areas seemed to have minimal impact on the growth and development of their business community.  However, they soon discovered the costly price of neglect, and they learned it the hard way.  A quarter billion gallons of murky Chicago River water gushed into the 60-mile network of antiquated freight tunnels underneath The Loop and brought business to a soggy halt. 

 There was a sad and largely avoidable reason behind this horrific tragedy.  It turned out that a top city official had long known about the watery leak.  But because he deemed the government to be cash-strapped, necessary repairs were delayed, which would have cost only $50,000.  In the long run, the final cost of the flood damage had a price tag over one billion dollars! 

 It’s far better to directly confront and deal with small matters before they become monumental.

 There is spiritual application here.  We often fail to consider the gradual, cumulative effect of sin in our lives.  It’s something like one avoidable family tragedy that occurred in a Saint Louis home in 1984.  The owner noticed a few bees buzzing around the attic of her home.  Since there were only a few, she made no effort to deal with them.  Over the summer, the bees continued to fly in and out the attic vent while the woman remained oblivious and unconcerned, totally unaware of the growing city-of-bees.  In fact, her whole attic had become an extremely large beehive.  Eventually the ceiling of the second-floor bedroom caved in under the massive weight of hundreds of pounds of honey and thousands of angry bees.  While this woman was certainly blessed to escape serious injury, she was financially unable to repair the resultant damage of her accumulated neglect.

 That homeowner’s situation is not entirely unique.  Relationship issues grow and fester when we do not address them prayerfully and compassionately.  Wars break out when nations allow seemingly small matters to slide by unattended.  Churches split when wisdom is not constantly and judiciously applied to occasional points of disagreement.  Death occurs prematurely when we delay doctor visits or fail to follow wise medical counsel.  You see, inch by inch, life IS a cinch!  But one has to pay close and constant attention, while remaining open to adjustments or change.  Think.

 Sisters and brothers, be continually blessed, and please (above all else) MAKE SURE YOU ARE READY TO MEET OUR SOON COMING KING. Maranatha!