Ever thought “Man, this would have been a lot cheaper and easier if I would have paid attention to it sooner!”
Recently I found myself in a lobby listening to an audiobook while my wife’s car had new tires put on. Getting tires replaced is not such a big deal except when the ones getting replaced could have lasted longer.
Because the tires hadn’t been rotated at regular intervals the front tires had worn down to a dangerous level on the inside edges. I was told that none of the tires would have passed inspection.
When I paid the bill the mechanic said, “If you rotate these tires every 7,500 miles they should last you at least 60,000 miles, but you have to rotate them.”
He wasn’t telling me something I didn’t know. I was just too cheap to pay the tire rotation fee when I’d get the oil changed. Now I was paying a bigger bill much sooner than I should have.
The scenario reminded me of the truth: “Maintenance is always cheaper than repair.”
It’s not only true with cars and tires; it’s true in every area of life.
YOUR HEALTH
Going to the gym, eating right, and getting enough rest is way cheaper than high blood pressure, heart disease, diabetes, or a myriad of other preventable ailments. Not only is the cost lower, you also get performance enhancing benefits like more energy. (The very thing we don’t have enough of to go to the gym.)
Too often we don’t make time for the maintenance that our body needs. We are just trying to get through the week or through the next project. We abuse our bodies with what we eat and what we deprive it of. We want to take care of our health we just don’t feel like we have the time to make it happen. But don’t fool yourself, there will be a day of reckoning and I bet the cost will be higher than you can possibly imagine.
We always pay. We either pay now with the maintenance of time sacrifices and food choices or we pay later with costly prescription and surgical repairs.
One day you’ll want to get on the floor and roll around with your grandkids. You’re only going to get 60,000 miles out of that body by regular maintenance.
When was the last time you had a physical?
When was the last time you went to the dentist?
What is your exercise routine (honestly)?
Is your diet fueling your body for peak performance? (1 Cor. 10:31)
Maintenance is always cheaper than repair.
YOUR RELATIONSHIPS
Regular date nights, cards, flowers, family meals, is WAY cheaper than counseling or divorce. I read recently that the average couple loses 70% of their net worth when they go through a divorce. When you factor in the emotional toll of a relationship falling apart the costs are astronomical!
We think our spouse will understand, but they reach a point where they don’t want to understand our excuses anymore. They reach a point where they clearly understand what your real priorities are.
We tell ourselves that kids are resilient, but they shouldn’t have to be. The relationship you will enjoy or endure with your teenager is based on the investment you make in those younger years.
You might resist the idea of loving someone as maintenance. I don’t care what you call it, I just care whether you do it. To see if you are winning in the maintenance category why not ask your spouse what they would like more of from you?
When was your last date night?
When was your last getaway?
When was your last family vacation?
When was the last time you bought flowers?
How much time did you spend with each child today?
How often do you have dinner together (not around the tv or in a car)?
Maintenance is always cheaper than repair.
YOUR SOUL
When you aren’t taking care of your soul it affects every area of life. Health starts on the inside and flows out. If you want the fruits of the things above it starts with the root below. We call the maintenance that’s necessary for your soul “spiritual disciplines.” It’s the things you need to do on a regular basis. By regular I don’t mean Christmas and Easter, I’m talking about weekly and in some cases, daily. Things like prayer, confession, serving, giving, reading, going to church…all simple things like rotating your tires but they have a profound cumulative effect.
People who are angry, cynical, skeptical, and bitter are people who have somewhere along the journey stopped caring for their soul and now are in need of some serious repair. No matter what someone else does or doesn’t do, you must care for your heart because out of it flows all the issues of life (Prov. 4:23).
How regularly do you pray?
How regularly do you read the Bible?
How regularly do you attend church?
How regularly do you forgive and ask forgiveness?
Maintenance is always cheaper than repair.
I’m guessing you are getting the idea now that the small things that we push off for later are really the BIG things that affect later. We didn’t look at areas like your career, your talents, your mind, your finances, or your dreams. So spend a moment and think about each one and ask yourself which price you would prefer– the maintenance one or the repair one. Everybody pays one or the other and you made the choice today.
