Refuse to Start What You Cannot Finish

“We rate ability in men by what they finish, not by what they attempt.”

—ANONYMOUS

For which of you, wishing to build a farm building, does not first sit down and calculate the cost [to see] whether he has sufficient means to finish it?

—Luke 14:28

Multiple unfinished projects clutter our minds and lives. They continually scream at us to finish them and they condemn and mock us. The longer it takes to finish the worse we feel about ourselves. No person can attempt to do everything and do any of it well. We do have limitations and we should not be afraid to face them. God is not limited, and truly, each of us who places faith in Him can do whatever He leads us to do; however, God does not lead people to start things and not finish.

God has begun a good work in each of us and will continue working right up until the day of Christ’s return, completing and perfecting that good work (see Philippians 1:6). Some projects are short term and others take longer—impatient people usually do not finish the long-term ones. Spiritual maturity, for example, requires patience. We don’t change overnight. There are many people who backslide because they cannot obtain a “drive-through breakthrough.” They want instant success and there really is no such thing.

I know people who begin every new project with an abundance of emotional energy, but when the newness wears off, either they leave it for someone else to finish or it never gets finished at all. New things are always exciting, but what about after all the goose bumps and applause is gone? Who is still around then? Only those who counted the cost and knew from the beginning there would be many phases to go through other than the exciting ones. Those who quit and walk away are almost always frustrated and full of excuses for why they can’t finish something.

Most people in our society today are addicted to taking on more than they can handle. Stress management has become a billion-dollar business, and most of the stress we experience today is caused by trying to do too much. I always have more on my to-do list than I can finish in one day, but I go after it again the next day. Whatever we take on as a responsibility, we should commit to finishing and doing it well and on time.

Simplify your life by beginning only what you know you can finish and finishing what you begin. Don’t allow yourself to get distracted—stay focused and finish. When you complete something, you no longer need it on your mind. You are free to give yourself completely to the next project, to the next goal, the next big idea in your life. You are free to dream and free to create because your mind and your heart are clutter-free. This is simplicity at its best.