Balance

Balance requires examination of priorities. Our true priorities are not mere lists of activities completed or goals set, but honest reflections of our heart desires. What we consider important receives the most time, energy, attention and resources. The importance of right and balanced priorities is illustrated by the life of Martha.

Luke 10:38 Now as they went on their way, he entered into a certain village: and a certain woman named Martha received him into her house.

Jesus knew that He was always welcome in the home of Martha. He often went to Bethany, to the house of Martha, Mary and Lazarus, and even spent His final week on earth there. Jesus didn't have to wonder if He was welcome in this home or if Martha was "ready" for His presence. He knew she was. Can He say the same about us?

Seeking God begins with recognizing who He is and then living our life for Him. If He is not Lord of all, then He is not Lord at all. For some of us, the problem is not that we lack a personal relationship with God. Our problem is that we are not "making room" for that relationship. Balance comes when we yield to His will in the everyday moments of life.

I have discovered that when my life and my heart get too crowded there is not enough room for God. An unbalanced life is too busy for God. It is so easy to relegate our spirituality to religious activities when all He really wants is to spend time with us. Do we have the heart of a seeker, one who lives each day aware of God's presence, His plan and His priorities?

We often surrender control of our life to unworthy demands dictated by a world that operates in "urgent" gear. We forget what is really important. The important rarely barges in while the urgent is always an offensive intruder. The important waits patiently while the urgent demands its own way, creating disorder and imbalance. Certainly, there are times when the important is also urgent - but we must learn to discriminate between the two. We wrongly conclude that a busy life is automatically a productive life and think that a full schedule will surely produce a full heart.

Are you ready to evaluate your life according to God's priorities? Determine the top five priorities of your life - right now. Take a deep breath and brutally examine your calendar and checkbook to see where you spend most of your time and resources. We can give lip service to what we think our priorities should be but until our daily schedule reflects those priorities, we are only "playing at life."