Balance of the Mind

There’s an opportune time to do things, a right time for everything on the earth:
A right time for birth and another for death,

A right time to plant and another to reap,

A right time to kill and another to heal,

A right time to destroy and another to construct,

A right time to cry and another to laugh,

A right time to lament and another to cheer,

A right time to make love and another to abstain,

A right time to embrace and another to part,

A right time to search and another to count your losses,

A right time to hold on and another to let go,

A right time to rip out and another to mend,

A right time to shut up and another to speak up,

A right time to love and another to hate,

A right time to wage war and another to make peace.  Ecclesiastes 1:2-8 

I participate in Love Life and Victory which is an open forum in which we discuss a variety of topics about life and hosted by Declare Victory.  We talk about balance very often, however, we have not yet had an in-depth discussion about it.  Since our discussion this past Friday it has been on my heart to discuss it (balance) on a deeper level.  As I meditated during my prep time I asked the Lord to lead me to a scripture related to balance as I could not recall one that specifically talks about balance and he immediately reminded me of the Ecclesiastes text above.  While this text could easily be used to discuss “time” it is also very appropriate to use it for this declaration because timing is used in balance.  How?  Keep goin, you’ll see what I mean.

Time:  duration regarded as belonging to the present life as distinct from the life to come or from eternity; finite duration.  Sometimes initial capital letter) a system or method of measuring or reckoning the passage of time.

Balance: a state of equilibrium or equipoise; equal distribution of weight, amount, etc. (for example an equal distribution of time)

Here’s what I mean about timing and balance:

·       If I spend too much ‘time’ talking and never listening there is no balance;

·       Ladies, if I spend too much time searching for a husband and Men, if you spend too much time waiting for her to show up; you will probably never get married because both of these examples are out of order (balance) biblically.  The man who finds a wife finds a treasure, and he receives favor from the LORD.  Proverbs 18:22 (NLT))

·       If I spend all my time exercising physically and little or no time exercising spiritually (studying, praying, fasting, worshiping) there is no balance and I will not be healthy. 

o   Physical training is good, but training for godliness is much better, promising benefits in this life and in the life to come.  1 Timothy 4:8 (NKJV)

o   Dear friend, I hope all is well with you and that you are as healthy in body as you are strong in spirit. 3 John 2 (NLT)

Tania Not Tanya moment:  I realize it is popular and religiously expected and accepted to talk about the negative things that happen to ungodly nonbelieving sinners but can we moonwalk back to Proverbs 18:22 for a minute:  The man who finds a wife finds a treasure, and he receives favor from the LORD.  That means that a nonbeliever can find favor with God because he is honoring God by marrying is wife.  He/they will still be lost eternally if they do not accept Christ as their personal savior, however, while here on earth God will bless their union and the things that come out of that union because of His favor.

What is favor:  something done or granted out of goodwill, rather than from justice or for remuneration; a kind act.  To ask a favor, friendly or well-disposed regard; goodwill; the state of being approved or held in regard.  Excessive kindness or unfair partiality; preferential treatment:   

I’m out of time, so we’ll pick it up tomorrow

In His New Excellence,

Tania Not Tanya