Balancing Life as a Christian

We tend to swing from one extreme to another and skip the middle ground altogether. You can see this plainly in everyday life. For example, you can see this in the drastic extremes that are preached in the different churches of America and in the way some people twist their minds to give the Bible the meaning that they want it to have. This produces twisted lives. Let me clarify that I am talking about Christians here.

Every Christian should strive to live a life in balance, whether it is in actions, attitudes, words, thoughts, theology, or any other aspect of life. The bible advices us of this in several places.

 ^"Be not overly righteous, and do not make yourself too wise. Why should you destroy yourself? Be not overly wicked, neither be a fool. Why should you die before your time?" Ecclesiastes 7:16-17, ESV

"Put away from you crooked speech, and put devious talk far from you. Let your eyes look directly forward, and your gaze be straight before you. Ponder[c] the path of your feet; then all your ways will be sure. Do not swerve to the right or turn your foot away from evil." Proverbs 4:24-27, ESV

How to achieve this balance becomes the main concern. This balance is what Matthew 7:13-14 is talking about when it mentions the straight and narrow path. On one side of the path we will find a cheap grace that excuses the Christian's every sin and gives free reign to the flesh and not the spirit. On the other side of the path we will find self-righteousness and make ourselves modern day Pharisees filled with pride, judgment, and self-centeredness, but deep down both sides are the same. Both sides are selfish and filled with sin and death.

The answer is found in the Proverb quoted above. "Let your eyes look directly forwards, and your gaze be straight before you." Jesus is the only one that can keep us on the straight and narrow path. He is the only one that can keep us from veering to the right or left.

Father, please keep our feet on the path that leads straight to you. Let us not veer to either side, but keep our hearts humble as we look to you for guidance. Amen.