Balance of the Mind Pt. 3

Yesterday we discussed the various uses of social media platforms, websites and/or applications that my cause us to lose track of time as well as our responsibilities resulting in neglect.  We didn’t even scratch the surface of gaming whether online or static but that can also cause imbalance.  We also talked about mismanaging our finances on things we want vs. what is needed and the consumption of foods that result in an unhealthy lifestyle (e.g. high cholesterol, hypertension, excessive weight gain, etc.).  This lack of balance is what we inadvertently teach our children which produces learned behavior and creates their “normal” lifestyle which they will teach to their children.  Children do what we do more than they do what we say.

We dove deeper into the narrative when we talked about our spiritual lives and that if we are not careful, we could end up doing more harm than good as Ambassadors for Christ.  For example:  Spending far too much time praying or studying the word to the point of neglecting our family, job, other responsibilities and/or ourselves; Fasting without purpose or direction from the Lord to the point of excessive weight loss and/or health challenges; Attending so many church services that there is no time for secular activities; The choice to over spiritualize simple conversations with a lot of “church folk” vernacular (e.g. overuse of the phrase PTL (Praise The Lord), Glory to God, Hallelujah) as a crutch phrase for almost every other word spoken.  We convince ourselves the devil is hindering people from answering our calls, to duck when they see us coming, exclude us from social activities, etc.  Everything is not the devil, we bring a lot of stuff on ourselves because we’re pestering people and living out of balance.

Tania Not Tanya nugget:  I’m not talking about stuff I heard, I am talking about stuff I witnessed firsthand and/or did myself.  I wasn’t as bad as wearing all the Jesus paraphernalia (t-shirt, necklace, earrings, scarf, book bag, bumper sticker, etc.), I didn’t speak in a tongue in the middle of a regular conversation or keep a big family heritage bible in my cubicle, but I was pretty religious because it was all I knew.  I was on my way to becoming a religious, judgmental bigot, out of balance Christian but something about a lot of that stuff didn’t sit well with me.  I was rescued to a certain degree by an amazing spirit filled mentor who is like my surrogate mother.  She helped to keep me grounded by telling me about her life as a teenager.  She was the “realiest” person I knew, always kept it one-“hunid”.  She helped me see that God visited other places besides the COGIC and sometimes those people wore makeup, red fingernail polish, pants to church and they attended secular activities.  I had to learn to blend in without giving in.

Am I bashing the COGIC doctrine, absolutely not?  I am talking about my personal experience and transformation into the balanced person I am today.  It was a long intentional journey.  I still haven’t evolved into the amazing woman that God intended me to be, but I thank God I am not who I used to be.

Why is balance important? 

1.     If you understand the why, you might be more compelled to do the “what”;

2.     Too much of anything can be unhealthy, counterproductive and/or plain old destructive; and

3.     Most importantly if we don’t have balance it can destroy our witness.

Most non-believers are not going to burst your church doors down.  So if they’re not coming to us, we’ve gotta bring it (the Good News) to them.  The master said to the servant, ‘Go to the highways and back alleys and urge people to come in so that my house will be filled.  Luke 14:23 (CEB).  Did you hear what I “say”?  Back alleys, the “Ho” strip, the TL, the Nawth, the gutters of the non-believer’s lives, etc.  They ain’t comin’ to yo’ church progrumm cause some well-meaning religious person done scurred ‘em or because they feel too dirty and nasty due to the sin in their lives.  So how do we get the Good News to them?  Do we douse them with blessed oil, spray ‘em with holy water or dump or force a five course sermon down their throats about the Death, Resurrection, Second Coming, Rapture and Eternal Judgment and they choke and die spiritually before they ever had a chance?  No, we show up in balance, wisdom and understanding. 

Sometimes the balance is saying nothing more than Good Morning; Hey, How are you? Or just a simple smile that is so anointed that your co-worker feels the love of God radiating from your lips.  It could be an ear to listen to your friend vent about their abusive relationship; a shoulder for your alcoholic cousin to cry on for the 57^th time; telling your son you love him when he calls you from jail instead preaching at him for how stupid his decision was.  He knows that!!!  He needs his mother, father, sister, brother, friend.  It doesn’t mean you have to put your property up to bail him out of jail but it won’t kill you to accept a collect call or a few dollars on his books, or write him a letter minus the condemning language about him going to hell.  It would be a great time to lift him up and tell him how Apostle Paul was a Terrorist turned Christian that became an ex-con who spent his later years incarcerated which allowed him the time to write many of the New Testament books that we read and grow from today.  You won’t go to hell for that.

But Tania, where’s the recipe for balance.  It's coming but first we have to have the ingredients and then go over them to ensure we have everything and then we'll put it all together to we can create a customized recipe that works for you.  You’ll just have to come back tomorrow so we can close it out.

In His New Excellence,

Tania Not Tanya