The Key to Balance
Today’s mantra is: balance is the key to having a happy life. But, seriously! If you are like me what the heck is a balanced life?!?! Does my life, your life, ever achieve a:
“state of equilibrium” let alone a “constant state of mental and emotional stability, a harmonious proportion and pleasing harmony of various elements in any given situation.”
I don’t know if the definition of balance makes me laugh until I pee or if it makes me want to curl up in a fetal position suck my thumb, rock back and forth, and mutter (no doubt, as I lay there in my imbalanced distress my kiddos toss laundry on top of me and ask what there is to eat).
And, even if I could figure out how to achieve this harmonious harmony in all aspects of my life, what about all the other people in my life? Are they hopping aboard my harmony train? Balance isn’t a one size fit all proposition. What I consider to be balanced is probably not in alignment with everyone else in my life. Does my boss, my husband, my children, my friends, my family, my clients, and my church have the same state of equilibrium as me? Don’t even give that question a minute’s thought. The answer is: NO.
Even within our faith life, balance seems to be fleeting. Don’t we (o.k. me), in our brokenness, always gravitate to one extreme or the other: legalism or license; too much doctrine without being led by love or too much grace so we ignore to be Biblically led?
Which leads me back to the definition of balance:
State of equilibrium: an adjustment between opposing influences (physical, intellectual or emotional).
Constant state of mental and emotional stability: the strength to endure; to restore the original condition.
Is it just me? Or, does the definition of balance—when read with Kingdom eyes—point us to THE truth: balance is found in the one who formed, holds and has overcome the world.
Balance begins with a relationship with God. A life that is surrendered to our desperate need for Jesus:
“But we have this treasure in jars of clay to show that this all-surpassing power is from God and not from us. We are hard pressed on every side, but not crushed; perplexed, but not in despair” 2 Cor 4: 7-8
“Therefore we do not lose heart. Though outwardly we are wasting away, yet inwardly we are being renewed day by day. For our light and momentary troubles are achieving for us an eternal glory that far outweighs them all. So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen, since what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal.” 2 Cor 4: 16-18
If, with strength and endurance (His all-surpassing power), I am equipped to walk the narrow path between my flesh and my spirit, between my desires and my calling, then I will be restored to my original condition (renewed day by day). Which results in experiencing a pleasing harmony in any given situation (eternal glory; Phil 4:7 peace).
Balance is simply beyond our ability. When we rely on our own efforts to try to achieve it we set aside the One from whom all balance flows. Every time we fix our eyes on self-effort or on the world’s promises, imbalance takes root. Rather than experiencing the constancy that comes from God, we are tossed about by temporary things: feelings and circumstance. The worldly mantra “balance is the key to having a happy life” stands in opposition to the truth: our power to achieve balance is insufficient because we are not in control (even self-control does not come from within us; rather, it originates with God’s indwelling Spirit). As well, the world mantra’s promise of happiness is hollow: at best, happiness is rooted in the shifting sand of circumstance.
We must shift our gaze:
To the One who stills the storm and hushes the waves.
To the One who carries our burdens and bears our pain
To the One who is our sure foundation, a rock
When Jesus is the centering force in our life, when we cling to the Cross, we discover the source of true balance.
Perhaps the mantra should read: God is the key to a balanced, joy-filled life.