The Lord abhors dishonest scales, but accurate weights are his delight.

) Do you see a man skilled in his work? He will serve before kings; he will not serve before obscure men.

Luke 14:28-30 (NIV) Suppose one of you wants to build a tower. Will he not first sit down and estimate the cost to see if he has enough to money to complete it? For if he lays the foundation and is not able to finish it, everyone who sees it will ridicule him, saying, 'This fellow began to build and was not able to finish.'

Colossians 1:10 (NIV) That you may walk worthy of the Lord, fully pleasing Him, being fruitful in every good work and increasing in the knowledge of God.

Cost management practices should be elevated in business environments based upon these Biblical principles. Cost management represents stewardship of resources with the propensity to satisfy God, since the Lord is pleased with accurate measurements and diligent planning. A true commitment to being a disciple of Jesus Christ requires careful consideration of the cost. Jesus actually correlates the meaning of measuring the cost with building a tower and to a king sending troops into battle (Luke 14:31-33). Business decision making can be distorted because of either the inaccurate measurement of the applicable costs or the lack of proper planning. Jesus requires careful evaluation when walking as a disciple. He draws from the deliberate approach used in other important functions by those in positions of authority.

God desires productivity from His people. The capital markets facilitate exponential productivity through competition and cooperation. God engages with us in the natural world as we conduct business with one another, and he is pleased when we serve humanity in this capacity. The quality of preparation determines the quality of performance. Value creation in the business world and in the kingdom of God requires preparedness and understanding of the objectives we need to achieve. As believers in Christ, we need to realize that we are his workmanship, but each individual is a work-in-process. Our desire to please him in all things should generate fruitfulness in all of our dedicated works and the acceptance that we are growing in knowledge to be more productive servants.

Describe how you have counted the cost of investing time and resources in the M.B.A. program? What are the most significant benefits you expect from the investment? Please use appropriate grammar and good sentence structure, while also proofreading your work prior to submission.