Jesus lived what seemed to be a perfectly balanced life. He understood who he was, where he came from, and what he had to do. He was focused on God’s plan for his life and God’s greater purpose for the world and rarely if ever, distracted from the mission. That’s not easy to do. It certainly doesn’t happen by accident. What was Jesus’ secret?
FOUR KEYS TO THE BALANCED LIFE
1. Discover your life purpose.
This is where it all starts. You will never find true balance in life until you are investing it in the one thing that God has called you to be. The place where your passion, profession, vocation, and mission all come together is the sweet spot where you will find true balance in life.
Jesus knew why God put him on earth. He knew exactly where he was headed and why. If you don’t get that right, you waste time working for balance around the wrong thing. Although you might find a semblance of balance, it will never truly make you happy.
2. Define balance.
What does balance look like for you? It is a little different for each person. Depending on your personality and the way you are wired we all have different capacities for balance.
Jesus had a sense of his capacity. Jesus had a clear picture of what balance meant to him. He was consistently making decisions based on that definition.
There are a few things to keep in mind as you develop your own definition of balance for your life:
- Balance is a result of working toward something that matters to you – every part of it has meaning to you.
- Balance happens when your internal values and external goals are in harmony with each other.
- Balance is impossible without boundaries.
- Balance is not a final goal, but an ongoing process.
3. Live in three dimensions.
Jesus was strategic in the way he spent his time. He had a sense that his time on earth was short and he wanted to pour everything he had into the work God had for him.
To that end, Jesus consistently lived in three spaces. These were literally, physical spaces, but represented something deeper. Each of the three spaces was carved out for some very important spiritual work. Each space represented a unique and vital dimension to his life and ministry.
These spaces were: the mountain, wilderness, and village.
The Mountain – Relationship with the divine.
This is where Jesus connected to God and experienced God’s supernatural power. This was Jesus’ alone time with his Father. Jesus went to the mountain when he was tired or afraid or lonely or anxious. He went there to be replenished and to catch the bigger vision.
The Wilderness – Relationship with self.
This is where Jesus connected to his own humanity. Jesus went into the wilderness to discover what he was made of. There he dealt with his fears and doubts and temptations. Jesus grew in self-awareness in the wilderness.
The Village – Relationship with people.
The village was the space where Jesus poured into other people. In the village, he taught and healed and laughed and played. In the village Jesus built community. In the village, Jesus dealt with conflict. He lived for the village and he died for the village.
True balance will include life in all three of these spaces.
4. Learn to say, NO.
Jesus knew how to say “No,” to the wrong things so that he could say “Yes” to the right things. Sometimes those choices were obvious. Jesus said “No” to Satan in the wilderness temptations. Other times it was not as clear. Jesus said “No” to his disciples, and even to his own family.
Balance is impossible without boundaries. That’s why Jesus knew how to say “No.”
Over the coming weeks, I will be unpacking these and other concepts to living the balanced life with Jesus. I hope you can come along for the journey.
