Tuesday, January 24, 2023
We all want to live a balanced life if we are Christians, but not everyone does. Maybe this article will help you in some way to get your life balanced. How many of us have trouble balancing our time? I know, that many times, I sure did. Most likely, at some point, you have as well. We might even begin our day well but somehow by the end of the day we just didn’t get everything finished we wanted to.
What happened to our time? Well, for one…our time is limited. That’s right. There are only so many hours in a day and we, somehow think we must fill them all up. We spend all our time but don’t finish what needs to be done so we get all stressed out or must push it to another day.
The question is not how will I fill my time today, but what will I fill the time that I have today. This is a pressing issue but even more of a priority. Why? Because we are only given so much time each day and we need to take care of our time.
Regarding Jesus: “The next morning Jesus awoke long before daybreak and went out alone into the wilderness to pray. Later Simon and the others went out to find him. They said, “Everyone is asking for you.” When there is not enough time in the day, we need to carve out our time for God and something happens…somehow it seems we find more time.
Teach us Lord to make the most of what time we are given so that in that time we can learn and grow in wisdom (Psalm 90:12) So since we all know that our days on earth are limited and we should have priorities let us: Give God first place each day, If you are married…and give your spouse the time they deserve and need.
Do you think about your eternal life and where you will spend it? What are you doing about your life to ensure that you will get there? The more specific we are about our destination, the more likely we’ll arrive where we want to go. At least we will be working on getting there. All of us are works in progress and I know God is not finished with me yet. (Eph 2:10). Every day I need to give God my day so that He can lead me down the right path. Not my will or way, but His will and way.
Whom do you trust to define what constitutes a highly healthy individual? A lot of us have learned a lot about this subject with this covid thing. Most of us don’t trust our government one iota. I know that I surely don’t. I believe all of us have been lied to over and over and we get poorer while this government lies and gets rich and destroy our once great nation: America!!!
Truth is truth and God is that truth. We can lie to ourselves and others, but God is always right and always truthful. I know that I can personally follow, believe, trust, and do as my example: Jesus Christ has given me/you through the word of God aka the Bible.
We all need to not only be about our Father’s business, but we need to care for ourselves as well. Do the things that keep you healthy…not the things the government lies about and wants you to believe will. God’s been in the healing business forever…I can and will trust Him over everyone else. Sometimes, I am sure, that God will want us to do things that will keep us healthy, but sometimes I do believe God will want us to walk away from the lies we are being fed so they can control us. We need to keep our minds sharp, and our bodies healthy emotionally, mentally, and in a great spiritual condition. We function so much better if it is God that is leading us.
How do you know if your life is out of balance? Here’s a very simple way to identify imbalance: if we love anyone or anything more than God our lives are out of balance.
Balance is a great thing for each of us. When we go too far either way in our life then our life is out of balance. Anyone or anything that we place above God becomes an idol to us and needs to stop.
We need to take care of our bodies by eating right, sleeping properly, working, exercising, and yes, recreation. We need to be mentally fit, emotionally fit, and spiritually fit.
We need balance by:
- First of all, we need a balance between the different dimensions of our lives: a) Psychological, b) Social, c) Spiritual, d) Physical and e) Vocational.
- We need a psychological balance between the: Mind, Will, and Emotions
- We need balance in our physical lives: Rest, Exercise, Work, and Recreation.
- We need balance socially: family vs. friends; believers vs. unbelievers, etc.
- We need balance in Christian doctrine: a truth pushed too far is heresy.
- We need balance in our intake of God’s Word.
- We need balanced prayer: adoration, confession, thanksgiving, supplication
- We need balance in Christian discipleship: being a disciple and making disciples.
- We need a balance between worship (intake) and work–ministry (output). “If your output exceeds your intake, then your up keep will be your downfall.”
- We need a balance between biblical faithfulness and cultural relevance.
What Are Some Of The Areas In Which We Should Not Be Moderate Or Balanced?
- Love God first and foremost: with all your heart, mind, soul, and strength.
- Zeal for the things of God – Never flag in zeal – maintain your spiritual fervor.
- Wholeheartedness – Whatever your task, do it for God with all your heart.
- Listen and speak – be quick to hear and slow to speak.
- Confidence in God – everything God does in worthy of our trust.
- Commitment to God – in all your ways trust and acknowledge God.
- Communion with God – apart from Christ we can do nothing.
- Discipleship – if we don’t give up all we have we can’t be Christ’s disciple.
- Hatred of sin – Proverbs says that the fear of the Lord is hatred of evil.
- Our pursuit of wisdom – Proverbs says, above all else, get wisdom!
We are in control of a lot that goes on in our life. We have a choice in where we want to spend eternity and the way you get to heaven is by choosing Jesus and that He is your Lord and Savior.
What do you need to change in your life so that you are healthier and more balanced?
If you feel out of balance in life…is there someone you need to forgive? Unforgiveness is not a good thing.
Daily Dozen Decisions For Devoted And Balanced Disciples
- Attitude:I will choose and display Christ-like attitudes daily. I choose to have a PMA – a positive mental attitude and positive impact others rather than having a DRA – a dirty rotten attitude and negative impact others. (Phil. 2:5)
- Priorities:I will determine and act upon biblical priorities daily. I will prioritize my life and give focus and energy to those things that give the highest return for the kingdom of God. (Matt. 6: 33)
- Health:I will learn and follow healthy guidelines for daily living. Since my body is God’s temple, I will take good care of my body by getting the proper rest, nutrition and exercise needed. (1 Cor. 6:19-20)
- Family:I will communicate and care for my spouse/children daily. I will adopt a family-based definition of success:“When those closest to me love and respect me the most.” (Josh. 24:15b)
- Thinking:I will practice and develop good (godly) thinking daily. I will seek to cultivate the mind of Christ by thinking God’s thoughts after Him and by bringing every thought captive to the obedience of Christ. I will think on things that add value to myself and others. (Phil. 2:5; Isa. 55:8-9; 2 Cor. 10:5)
- Commitment:I will make and keep proper commitments daily. I will commit myself to following through on what I believe God wants me to do. I will not live by human impulse but by the clear guidance of God’s Word illuminated by God’s Spirit. By the grace of God I will keep on keeping on.(Matt. 9:29b)
- Finances:I will make money ethically and biblically manage money daily. I will earn money ethically, manage it biblically and share it generously. I will not make money my god, but I will learn to fear the Lord by offering to Him a tithe of my income. I will get out of debt and stay out of debt and be a faithful steward of all I give and all I spend.
- Faith:I will deepen and live out a vital Christian faith daily. Since I can’t please God without faith, by God’s grace, I will trust Christ as my Savior/Lord and I will deepen and live out my faith daily.
- Relationships: I will initiate/invest in loving relationships daily. Since we are relational beings, I will initiate and invest in establishing healthy relationships with others on a daily basis.(Prov. 18:24)
- Generosity:I will plan for and model a generous spirit daily. In response to God’s grace, I will live to give. I will plan for and model generous giving daily by giving of my substance/self as God directs.
- Values:I will embrace and practice biblical values daily. Since life is not a dress rehearsal and I only live once, “I will embrace biblical values and practice them daily.” (Eccl. 12:13-14)
- Growth:I will make daily progress in the sanctification process. Since I never outgrow my need to grow, “I will develop and follow a personal growth plan for my life.” (2 Pet. 3:18)
May God give us wisdom in our daily decision making and may He give us the desire and power to grow and develop in a way that is pleasing to Him.
Here are many verses from the Bible that may help you
For everything, there is a season, and a time for every matter under heaven: a time to be born, and a time to die; a time to plant, and a time to pluck up what is planted; a time to kill, and a time to heal; a time to break down, and a time to build up; a time to weep, and a time to laugh; a time to mourn, and a time to dance; a time to cast away stones, and a time to gather stones together; a time to embrace, and a time to refrain from embracing; …
Proverbs 11:1 ESV
A false balance is an abomination to the Lord, but a just weight is his delight.
But seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be added to you. “Therefore do not be anxious about tomorrow, for tomorrow will be anxious for itself. Sufficient for the day is its own trouble.
2 Peter 3:17 ESV
You therefore, beloved, knowing this beforehand, take care that you are not carried away with the error of lawless people and lose your own stability.
Philippians 4:8 ESV
Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is commendable, if there is any excellence, if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things.
Casting all your anxieties on him, because he cares for you.
Hebrews 13:5 ESV
Keep your life free from love of money, and be content with what you have, for he has said, “I will never leave you nor forsake you.”
2 Timothy 1:7 ESV
For God gave us a spirit not of fear but of power and love and self-control.
Philippians 4:11 ESV
Not that I am speaking of being in need, for I have learned in whatever situation I am to be content.
But seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be added to you.
No temptation has overtaken you that is not common to man. God is faithful, and he will not let you be tempted beyond your ability, but with the temptation he will also provide the way of escape, that you may be able to endure it.
Isaiah 41:13 ESV
For I, the Lord your God, hold your right hand; it is I who say to you, “Fear not, I am the one who helps you.”
Ephesians 5:15 ESV
Look carefully then how you walk, not as unwise but as wise,
Romans 12:2 ESV
Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that by testing you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect.
John 16:33 ESV
I have said these things to you, that in me you may have peace. In the world you will have tribulation. But take heart; I have overcome the world.”
Philippians 4:13 ESV
I can do all things through him who strengthens me.
Luke 10:38-42 ESV
Now as they went on their way, Jesus entered a village. And a woman named Martha welcomed him into her house. And she had a sister called Mary, who sat at the Lord’s feet and listened to his teaching. But Martha was distracted with much serving. And she went up to him and said, “Lord, do you not care that my sister has left me to serve alone? Tell her then to help me.” But the Lord answered her, “Martha, Martha, you are anxious and troubled about many things, but one thing is necessary. Mary has chosen the good portion, which will not be taken away from her.”
Mark 6:31 ESV
And he said to them, “Come away by yourselves to a desolate place and rest a while.” For many were coming and going, and they had no leisure even to eat.
Colossians 3:17 ESV
And whatever you do, in word or deed, do everything in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him.
Genesis 2:2-3 ESV
And on the seventh day God finished his work that he had done, and he rested on the seventh day from all his work that he had done. So God blessed the seventh day and made it holy, because on it God rested from all his work that he had done in creation.
3 John 1:2 ESV
Beloved, I pray that all may go well with you and that you may be in good health, as it goes well with your soul.
Galatians 5:22 ESV
But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness,
Proverbs 16:11 ESV
A just balance and scales are the Lord’s; all the weights in the bag are his work.
1 John 2:15-17 ESV
Do not love the world or the things in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him. For all that is in the world—the desires of the flesh and the desires of the eyes and pride of life—is not from the Father but is from the world. And the world is passing away along with its desires, but whoever does the will of God abides forever.
John 5:30 ESV
“I can do nothing on my own. As I hear, I judge, and my judgment is just, because I seek not my own will but the will of him who sent me.
Philippians 1:6 ESV
And I am sure of this, that he who began a good work in you will bring it to completion at the day of Jesus Christ.
Or do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit within you, whom you have from God? You are not your own,
1 Peter 5:8 ESV
Be sober-minded; be watchful. Your adversary the devil prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour.
Job 31:6 ESV
(Let me be weighed in a just balance, and let God know my integrity!)
1 John 4:1 ESV
Beloved, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits to see whether they are from God, for many false prophets have gone out into the world.
Hebrews 11:6 ESV
And without faith it is impossible to please him, for whoever would draw near to God must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who seek him.
Matthew 7:7 ESV
“Ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you.
2 Timothy 2:15 ESV
Do your best to present yourself to God as one approved, a worker who has no need to be ashamed, rightly handling the word of truth.
Mark 1:35 ESV
And rising very early in the morning, while it was still dark, he departed and went out to a desolate place, and there he prayed.
1 John 1:4 ESV
And we are writing these things so that our joy may be complete.
John 8:32 ESV
And you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.”
Psalm 127:1-2 ESV
A Song of Ascents. Of Solomon. Unless the Lord builds the house, those who build it labor in vain. Unless the Lord watches over the city, the watchman stays awake in vain. It is in vain that you rise up early and go late to rest, eating the bread of anxious toil; for he gives to his beloved sleep.
John 14:6 ESV
Jesus said to him, “I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.
1 Peter 2:9 ESV
But you are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for his own possession, that you may proclaim the excellencies of him who called you out of darkness into his marvelous light.
Love bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things.
Psalm 46:10 ESV
“Be still, and know that I am God. I will be exalted among the nations, I will be exalted in the earth!”
Luke 2:52 ESV
And Jesus increased in wisdom and in stature and in favor with God and man.
It is good that you should take hold of this, and from that withhold not your hand, for the one who fears God shall come out from both of them.
Psalm 62:9 ESV
Those of low estate are but a breath; those of high estate are a delusion; in the balances they go up; they are together lighter than a breath.
For everything there is a season, and a time for every matter under heaven: a time to be born, and a time to die; a time to plant, and a time to pluck up what is planted; a time to kill, and a time to heal; a time to break down, and a time to build up; a time to weep, and a time to laugh; a time to mourn, and a time to dance; a time to cast away stones, and a time to gather stones together; a time to embrace, and a time to refrain from embracing; …
Isaiah 41:10 ESV
Fear not, for I am with you; be not dismayed, for I am your God; I will strengthen you, I will help you, I will uphold you with my righteous right hand.
Psalm 127:2 ESV
It is in vain that you rise up early and go late to rest, eating the bread of anxious toil; for he gives to his beloved sleep.
Proverbs 30:7-9 ESV
Two things I ask of you; deny them not to me before I die: Remove far from me falsehood and lying; give me neither poverty nor riches; feed me with the food that is needful for me, lest I be full and deny you and say, “Who is the Lord?” or lest I be poor and steal and profane the name of my God.
Proverbs 20:23 ESV
Unequal weights are an abomination to the Lord, and false scales are not good.
Galatians 6:6 ESV
Let the one who is taught the word share all good things with the one who teaches.
Jeremiah 29:11 ESV
For I know the plans I have for you, declares the Lord, plans for welfare and not for evil, to give you a future and a hope.
Isaiah 40:12 ESV
Who has measured the waters in the hollow of his hand and marked off the heavens with a span, enclosed the dust of the earth in a measure and weighed the mountains in scales and the hills in a balance?
Job 7:1-5 ESV
“Has not man a hard service on earth, and are not his days like the days of a hired hand? Like a slave who longs for the shadow, and like a hired hand who looks for his wages, so I am allotted months of emptiness, and nights of misery are apportioned to me. When I lie down I say, ‘When shall I arise?’ But the night is long, and I am full of tossing till the dawn. My flesh is clothed with worms and dirt; my skin hardens, then breaks out afresh.
1 John 1:9 ESV
If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.
Revelation 1:1 ESV
The revelation of Jesus Christ, which God gave him to show to his servants the things that must soon take place. He made it known by sending his angel to his servant John,
2 Timothy 3:16 ESV
All Scripture is breathed out by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness,
Ecclesiastes 3:1 ESV
For everything there is a season, and a time for every matter under heaven:
Proverbs 17:22 ESV
A joyful heart is good medicine, but a crushed spirit dries up the bones.
Leviticus 19:36 ESV
You shall have just balances, just weights, a just ephah, and a just hin: I am the Lord your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt.
Matthew 11:28-30 ESV
Come to me, all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.”
Matthew 6:34 ESV
“Therefore do not be anxious about tomorrow, for tomorrow will be anxious for itself. Sufficient for the day is its own trouble.
James 4:13-16 ESV
Come now, you who say, “Today or tomorrow we will go into such and such a town and spend a year there and trade and make a profit”— yet you do not know what tomorrow will bring. What is your life? For you are a mist that appears for a little time and then vanishes. Instead you ought to say, “If the Lord wills, we will live and do this or that.” As it is, you boast in your arrogance. All such boasting is evil.
Ephesians 4:32 ESV
Be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, as God in Christ forgave you.
If then you have been raised with Christ, seek the things that are above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God. Set your minds on things that are above, not on things that are on earth. For you have died, and your life is hidden with Christ in God. When Christ who is your life appears, then you also will appear with him in glory. Put to death therefore what is earthly in you: sexual immorality, impurity, passion, evil desire, and covetousness, which is idolatry. …
Galatians 2:20 ESV
I have been crucified with Christ. It is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me. And the life I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me.
Or do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit within you, whom you have from God? You are not your own, for you were bought with a price. So glorify God in your body.
Romans 12:1-2 ESV
I appeal to you therefore, brothers, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God, which is your spiritual worship. Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that by testing you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect.
John 6:35 ESV
Jesus said to them, “I am the bread of life; whoever comes to me shall not hunger, and whoever believes in me shall never thirst.
John 3:16 ESV
“For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life.
Matthew 18:4 ESV
Whoever humbles himself like this child is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven.
Romans 5:8 ESV
But God shows his love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.
John 3:36 ESV
Whoever believes in the Son has eternal life; whoever does not obey the Son shall not see life, but the wrath of God remains on him.
Romans 8:18 ESV
For I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worth comparing with the glory that is to be revealed to us.
John 8:12 ESV
Again Jesus spoke to them, saying, “I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will not walk in darkness, but will have the light of life.”
The fool folds his hands and eats his own flesh. Better is a handful of quietness than two hands full of toil and a striving after wind.
The revelation of Jesus Christ, which God gave him to show to his servants the things that must soon take place. He made it known by sending his angel to his servant John, who bore witness to the word of God and to the testimony of Jesus Christ, even to all that he saw. Blessed is the one who reads aloud the words of this prophecy, and blessed are those who hear, and who keep what is written in it, for the time is near. John to the seven churches that are in Asia: Grace to you and peace from him who is and who was and who is to come, and from the seven spirits who are before his throne, and from Jesus Christ the faithful witness, the firstborn of the dead, and the ruler of kings on earth. To him who loves us and has freed us from our sins by his blood …
1 John 5:20 ESV
And we know that the Son of God has come and has given us understanding, so that we may know him who is true; and we are in him who is true, in his Son Jesus Christ. He is the true God and eternal life.
Matthew 11:28-29 ESV
Come to me, all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls.
1 Timothy 6:12 ESV
Fight the good fight of the faith. Take hold of the eternal life to which you were called and about which you made the good confession in the presence of many witnesses.
Now may the God of peace himself sanctify you completely, and may your whole spirit and soul and body be kept blameless at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ.
Ephesians 6:4 ESV
Fathers, do not provoke your children to anger, but bring them up in the discipline and instruction of the Lord.
Proverbs 14:27 ESV
The fear of the Lord is a fountain of life, that one may turn away from the snares of death.
2 Timothy 3:7 ESV
Always learning and never able to arrive at a knowledge of the truth.
For we walk by faith, not by sight.
Mark 8:35-37 ESV
For whoever would save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for my sake and the gospel’s will save it. For what does it profit a man to gain the whole world and forfeit his soul? For what can a man give in return for his soul?
Matthew 5:44 ESV
But I say to you, Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you,
Exodus 16:1-36 ESV
They set out from Elim, and all the congregation of the people of Israel came to the wilderness of Sin, which is between Elim and Sinai, on the fifteenth day of the second month after they had departed from the land of Egypt. And the whole congregation of the people of Israel grumbled against Moses and Aaron in the wilderness, and the people of Israel said to them, “Would that we had died by the hand of the Lord in the land of Egypt, when we sat by the meat pots and ate bread to the full, for you have brought us out into this wilderness to kill this whole assembly with hunger.” Then the Lord said to Moses, “Behold, I am about to rain bread from heaven for you, and the people shall go out and gather a day’s portion every day, that I may test them, whether they will walk in my law or not. On the sixth day, when they prepare what they bring in, it will be twice as much as they gather daily.” …
Hebrews 10:1-39 ESV
For since the law has but a shadow of the good things to come instead of the true form of these realities, it can never, by the same sacrifices that are continually offered every year, make perfect those who draw near. Otherwise, would they not have ceased to be offered, since the worshipers, having once been cleansed, would no longer have any consciousness of sins? But in these sacrifices there is a reminder of sins every year. For it is impossible for the blood of bulls and goats to take away sins. Consequently, when Christ came into the world, he said, “Sacrifices and offerings you have not desired, but a body have you prepared for me; …
Romans 8:35 ESV
Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or danger, or sword?
Hosea 2:23 ESV
And I will sow her for myself in the land. And I will have mercy on No Mercy, and I will say to Not My People, ‘You are my people’; and he shall say, ‘You are my God.’”
Ephesians 2:8-9 ESV
For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, not a result of works, so that no one may boast.
So that we who were the first to hope in Christ might be to the praise of his glory. In him you also, when you heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation, and believed in him, were sealed with the promised Holy Spirit,
Romans 9:25-26 ESV
As indeed he says in Hosea, “Those who were not my people I will call ‘my people,’ and her who was not beloved I will call ‘beloved.’” “And in the very place where it was said to them, ‘You are not my people,’ there they will be called ‘sons of the living God.’”
Romans 5:10 ESV
For if while we were enemies we were reconciled to God by the death of his Son, much more, now that we are reconciled, shall we be saved by his life.
Matthew 6:25 ESV
“Therefore I tell you, do not be anxious about your life, what you will eat or what you will drink, nor about your body, what you will put on. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothing?
My son, beware of anything beyond these. Of making many books there is no end, and much study is a weariness of the flesh.
Proverbs 18:21 ESV
Death and life are in the power of the tongue, and those who love it will eat its fruits.
John 11:25-26 ESV
Jesus said to her, “I am the resurrection and the life. Whoever believes in me, though he die, yet shall he live, and everyone who lives and believes in me shall never die. Do you believe this?”
Matthew 10:30 ESV
But even the hairs of your head are all numbered.
Isaiah 40:15 ESV /
Behold, the nations are like a drop from a bucket, and are accounted as the dust on the scales; behold, he takes up the coastlands like fine dust.
I pray that there is something in this lesson that blesses you.
Now, may our Father in heaven bless you, keep you, draw you, teach you, provide for you needs, bring healing to you in whatever way you need it.
God bless you!!