The Importance of Balance in Life: What Does It Mean
This morning, snowflakes waltzed on the trodden lawn like tufts of cotton grass bobbing on a summer morning. I remembered summer with all its life and possibility, and the season we’d settled into felt more like a sterile waiting room where everyone just stared at the walls and prayed for our names to be called. I’d been thinking about the importance of balance in life, and that balance felt lacking.
Sometimes it’s all you can do not to put every last ounce of hope in the day when the season finally shifts.
With all your heart you want to put your hope in something bigger than your circumstances – Someone bigger than your circumstances – but this is no easy feat when all you can think about is your daily survival and how in the world you’re going to get up and do it all again tomorrow.
Life has felt ridiculously out of balance this winter.
A weekly routine once filled with dozens of gratifying and varied tasks has been replaced by what feels like one all-consuming task that drains me of every ounce of energy.
It feels as if the twenty equally filled buckets of my life are suddenly empty, and I’m called to pour my life into one prevailing, overflowing bucket that dominates the realm of my daily existence.
The Importance of Balance in Life
Maybe you’ve been here. Maybe you’ve worked and worried about orchestrating a balanced life, and despite your best efforts, half of your buckets are empty while very few are filled to the brim, wearing you out as you try to carry them from one place to the next.
You can’t figure out why God would ask you to put all your energy into this one overflowing bucket.
Not long ago, a mentor reminded me that balance isn’t having twenty buckets, each filled equally.
Balance is having twenty buckets, some filled to overflowing for a season and others very low and sitting in the background for a season. The key is to follow God by pouring into the buckets he is calling you to fill in this season.
Balance is having twenty buckets, some filled to overflowing for a season and others very low and sitting in the background for a season. #balanceinlife #balance #encounteringGod Share on XRedefining the Importance of Balance in Life
It is a rare season when the buckets are each filled equally. Meanwhile, balance has little to do with the fullness of the buckets and everything to do with following the One who calls you to pour into them.
As I stood on this truth this morning, I was given the freedom to set aside the buckets that had brought a sense of fulfillment and even importance in past seasons. What I found was no easy road ahead of me, but there was a rich sense of purpose as I committed to keep pouring into that one prominent bucket.
Here are several truths to stand on if you’re feeling out of balance or struggling with the importance of balance in life today:
1. Jesus did not promise or model a perfectly balanced life.
Jesus did not live a life of perfect balance.
He often prayed all night.
At times, he radically invested in certain groups of people. He poured tremendous amounts of energy into his 12 closest friends and also poured himself out on behalf of others.
He showed us that following God often includes stepping beyond our comfort zones and giving our whole hearts to specific callings. We are called to follow his example by living lives in which we seek first his kingdom, and all others things follow (Mt. 6:33).
2. Priorities will shift as the seasons of your life change.
Let’s return to the image of the buckets in your life.
The buckets that overflowed when you were single and pursuing your new career will likely be very different from the buckets that overflow when you start a family. Your priorities will change with the seasons of life, and so will your idea of balance.
The key is to embrace the changing seasons, not fighting to stay in a season God has called you to leave.
3. There are times for giving all to a certain cause.
We all face times when one priority requires what feels like all of our energy and attention.
While we need to be sure our priorities align with God’s plans for our lives (which always put loving God and loving others at the top of the list), there are times when we are called to give most of our energy to certain causes: raising children, caring for elder relatives, investing in our marriages, pouring into our careers, launching new ministries, and even caring for our bodies.
4. Balance is defined by the One you follow, not the load you carry.
When we learn to stay in step with the Spirit, he promises to help carry the load (see Matthew 11:28-30). When we walk in step with him, his side of the yoke enables us to press on, even when life feels entirely out of balance.
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As you consider the importance of a balanced life, I encourage you to let God be God. Let him determine which buckets will be full for this season. A balanced life has little to do with pouring out evenly in the many realms of your life; it has everything to do with pouring out in the places where God has led you.
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Calling all moms and daughters!
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