The Balanced Life

 

“So in everything, do to others what you would have them do to you”

—Matthew 7:12a

Living a balanced life presents quite a challenge to most of us. It’s easy to find ourselves obsessing in one direction or another.

We see this in every area of life. On the one hand we want to be treated quite fairly by others. On the other hand most of us want any advantage to flow in our direction.

Our natural bent is to expect kindness without being willing to first extend kindness. So our expectation becomes unbalanced.

Jesus gave wise instructions to His disciples when He told them in Matthew 7:9-12:

“Which of you, if your son asks for bread, will give him a stone? Or if he asks for a fish, will give him a snake?

“If you, then, though you are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father in heaven give good gifts to those who ask him!

“So in everything, do to others what you would have them do to you, for this sums up the Law and the Prophets.”

This passage is part of the Scripture that Bible students call the “Sermon on the Mount.” This sermon is found in Matthew 5, 6, and 7. It offers some of the most comprehensive, yet most difficult, teachings of our Savior and Lord.

We frankly do not want to show kindness to many people in our lives. Some people annoy us. Others treat us badly. Still others voice beliefs that we find offensive or with which we do not agree.

Maintaining a balance in our lives is very difficult. But, it’s possible if we surrender our selfish wills to God’s perfect will.

Relying on the help from the Holy Spirit, we can learn how to bring our lives into balance. We can treat others with kindness and with a generosity of spirit. We can greet the cruelty of this world with a godly spirit of kindness that shows concern and compassion without surrendering or hiding the truth.

Let us seek God’s help this day, so that we may follow Jesus' teaching and bring honor to His precious and holy name.

 

_{Copyright © 2015 by Dean K. Wilson. All Rights Reserved.}

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