In any endeavor, whether it be career-related or simply following Christ, count the cost. It sounds simple but seriously. For example, when I decided to study electrical engineering, I never would've imagined what it would've cost me, the repercussions that come with it. I never would've imagined that I would have to make decisions between studying and attending a social event or party at someone's place, and by choosing the former, being called an overachiever. I never thought that the more I would succeed, the more different I would become from those around me.
Even in following Christ, I never would've imagined that I would grow distant from those I considered close. That I'd be boxed in to a super-religious, mystical image that doesn't really identify who I really am. That conversations would be curbed when I enter the room. The assumption that I haven't seen the recent R-rated film because it doesn't seem like my style. The assumption that I don't listen to music! That I don't party because I went all-Christian. (In actuality, I couldn't never stand the smoke and darkness.) That the people I would gossip to would gossip about me.
If you told me all of this, everything I would've lost, I would've called you crazy and say "No way! That will never happen to me". Count the cost of everything you may lose (and you may just lose everything) and see if it is worth it to you.
Of everything I have lost, relationships, time, the old me, what I have gained in return has been more sincere and valuable than anything I ever possessed before. My relationships after following Christ has been more meaningful and authentic, the opportunities more rich. I lost time but gained patience and an inner awareness of mortality, how precious time is and where it should be spent. It has been worth it but oh-so-painful shedding the old life.
