The Balancing Act

 

My Christian life is a balancing act. I am assuming that’s how it goes for most people. You hear a sermon or read the Word and get a revelation and you think, “I’ve got to live a life of faith!”  The next day you hear about stewardship and you’re like, “I need to be a good steward!”  The day after that you’re thinking, “Humm…. faith and stewardship.  Where do you find the middle of the road on that one?!” 

 

 

I want to walk into life expecting God to be bigger than I can imagine and to do great things.  I want to pray big prayers and believe in the impossible.  I want to pray away poverty and see Kingdom come.  Still I know how we grow in trials.  I realize there is suffering.  I see that the church in China and other persecuted countries don’t pray about their persecution because it propels them to a deeper reliance and focus on God Almighty. 

 

Balance.

 

I know that when I disciple and minister to WR participants they need love, compassion, and mercy.  We are about tenderness and grace as a staff.  But discipline and correction and feedback are needed to bring people back on the road after straying off course.  Sometimes you have to say that tough word.  Where’s the line of tenderness and toughness? 

 

Balance. 

 

It’s not either/or… it’s both/and.  I hear that a lot.  We all want clear-cut answers to how you live and walk-out your Christian lfie.  That thin white line in the middle isn’t so clear and when you’re the most desperate to find it, that’s when it’s the most difficult to discern and find. It’s a holy tension with which I have a love-hate relationship.

 

In struggling to find this balance in my life, I’ve found a few key things to help ease this holy tension.

 

Community.  If you want a reflection, look in a mirror.  My community acts as a mirror in my life.  When I want to know if I look like Jesus and live a Kingdom lifestyle, I go to my mirrors.  Sometimes my mirrors come to me first. At the end of the day I don’t have to rely on my own assessment of a situation or circumstance.  I realize that my perspective and experience can limit how I read the stuff I go through and the decisions I have to make.  I’ve got a close-knit group that offer their eyes and ears to help me find the difficult balance of life.

 

Transparency.  I’ve got a great community, but I’ve learned that if I’m not transparent and honest it’s nothing more than a group of friends playing games and hanging out. Eveybody longs for “more” in their relationships.  You get “more’ by being honest and open with those people in your life.  Without this kind of honesty, the crystal-clear mirror reflection turns into looking at a ripply, cloudy and muddy river.  It’s okay to not be okay.  It’s okay for things to be messy and difficult.  Let’s get it out in the open and figure out what to do next.  If I’m honest, the struggle to find balance is sometimes a little overwhelming and sometimes I just don’t have the patience and strength to come back to the middle of the road. 

Coaches.  Sometimes what I need is a little more life experience.  I look back on my life and see where a little balance would have been good.  Now that I’m older and more experienced, I’d probably have some great feeback for that struggling teenage self.  It seems to be clear that my new adult problems could use some experience from those who’ve walked before me.  I’ve also learned that this valuable insight from knowledgable experts doesn’t usually just fall in your lap when you need it.  I’ve got some great men and women that can help out, but it’s my responsibility to seek them out for help.  It would have the exact opposite effect if they were to hold my hand through life and point out each little potential stumbling block that could trip me up.  I’d be weak.  I’d be co-dependent.  Then one day, I’d be alone without the capibilities to fend for myself.  So I’ve got people who love me regardless, that watch from afar, pray like crazy, and answer my questions when I’m ready to ask for help.  Who doesn’t love that!

 

QT with JC.  At the end of the day I have access to the best tight-rope walker ever.  His name is Jesus.  He is constantly at work through the whole process.  He’s there cluing my community into the fact that i’m a little off balance.  His Holy Spirit is in me prompting me to reveal the reality of my heart.  He’s taken others over the same mountains and rough roads.  But when my community’s attention is focused elsewhere, when it’s hard to be honest and vocally put my issues out there, when my coaches’ experience just doesn’t cover it… He’s still there.  All I need is Him, but He uses all these other steps to help me out too.  It’s incredible to call out to the creator of the universe and ask for some guidance.  He speaks to me…. and He speaks to me daily if I take the time listen. Sometimes He brings balance to my life through a whisper that shakes my soul and others through those “There’s the answer” moments when I read the Word.

 

 

When I started asking this question about finding balance in my life, He showed up and spoke about all the ways He’s helping keep me on the balance beam.  With Christ taking the wheels on this process, I can flip, cartwheel, and backhand spring all along that tight little line.  When I get to the end of the road, it’s going to be a terrific dismount! All 10’s…Camera flashes all over the arena…standing ovation.  It’s so great to be relieved of the pressure of having to do this in my own strength and power. 

 

Have you asked Him to help with the balancing act of your life?  I just got tired of trying to do it on my own.  I think you’ll like doing it this way much better.  I know I do.