Rich Dixon with the third part of his thinking about costs. (Part one) (Part Two)

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I’ve been talking about costs.

Quick recap: I’m wrestling a bit with The FREEDOM TOUR. As I get older and it gets harder, is my season of doing The FREEDOM TOUR closing?

I also asked myself – and maybe you – what’s the deal about counting the cost?

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I ride bikes. I’m not a theology guy.

Jesus used the example of a man building a tower. Don’t start until you “count the cost.”

Superficially, I suppose that would mean “don’t begin a project like The FREEDOM TOUR until you understand where it might take you.” But that’s silly. No one, except God, could have imagined that a seven-person bike ride in 2013 would grow to include hundreds of cyclists and raise $345,000 in 9 years.

Count the cost isn’t project-specific. It’s making an all-in choice to follow, regardless of where the path leads.

That last part matters. When you sign up you choose the journey, not the destination.

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So, what about The FREEDOM TOUR?

The short answer is, “I don’t know. He and I are talking.”

I’m pretty sure I can’t do this forever. I’m also convinced I heard something 9 years ago when I saw this quote for the first time.

You may choose to turn away, but you can never again say that you did not know.
~ William Wilberforce

Now, as it gets harder, I could turn away. Becky and I could relax and take more summer vacations. But I couldn’t say I did not know about 22 kids at a Home of Hope.

Perhaps, once you’ve built something others depend on, you don’t just stop because it’s difficult. So maybe you find ways to hand off some parts you can’t do any longer.

Perhaps following all-in doesn’t mean running yourself into the ground. Maybe there’s a way to follow – and rest.

Like I said, we’re talking.

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None of this is about guilt. Jesus doesn’t do guilt. It’s about sharing one guy’s struggle with obedience and seasons.

Because maybe you need to know you’re not alone.