When economists think about the costs of running a business, they usually make a distinction between costs in the short-run and costs in the long-run.
In the short-run, some costs are basically what they are. Think of rent, an internet connection, or a mortgage. It doesn't matter how much business you do (or don't do), these costs don't change. These are called fixed costs.
Other kinds of short term costs vary. If your business is becoming more well known in the area, you might need to hire some additional help. How much you order in supplies depends on how much of your product or service you think you'll sell over the next month or quarter. These are variable costs.
But what happens to these different costs when we expand the timeline by a year, or by five year, or by a decade, or by 20 years? Things which looked fixed in the short run are no longer set in stone. Will your business be renting the same space? Who knows? Will you find or develop better methods or adopt better technology? That's entirely possible.
Essentially, all costs become variable over the long run.
As Christians, we can take some wisdom from this. Nothing in this life, so long as you are on this earth, is as permanent as it seems. This is true for both challenges and successes.
Jesus recognized this fundamental truth. In his Sermon on the Mount, he encourages us:
19 Do not lay up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy and where thieves break in and steal, 20 but lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys and where thieves do not break in and steal.
Matthew 6:19-20, ESV
So long as your treasure is based here in this world, it will follow this world's economy - and it will not last.
