Balance in Life

And he gave the apostles, the prophets, the evangelists, the shepherds and teachers, to equip the saints for the work of ministry, for building up the body of Christ, until we all attain to the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to mature manhood, to the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ, so that we may no longer be children, tossed to and fro by the waves and carried about by every wind of doctrine, by human cunning, by craftiness in deceitful schemes. (Ephesians 4:1-7 ESV).

 

When we lived in Weatherford, Texas, during the late 80’s and early 90’s I always took great pride in hanging the Christmas lights and Aggie sign on the roof and eaves of our home. The picture I’ve attached was taken in 1993. The steep nature of the roof was something of a challenge, though I always finished it with minimal help. No one said anything about the potential dangers of being nearly three stories in the air on a 45 degree pitch without a safety harness or tether. Those were those days. Today, my ladders have all been taken away from me on the offhand I would try to climb on one of the roofs or in a tree to trim some branches.

 

I suppose there may be some reason for the restrictions. My balance is not quite what it was twenty years ago. I do randomly get a little light-headed and wobble a bit from time to time. The doctors have indicated they think it is a combination of medications and age. Well… I think he could have left the last part of that diagnosis off. But, then there you are. I’m not as balanced as I would like to be. While I’ve never been “sea-sick”, I can imagine how much worse it could be than my slight dizziness at times. Paul compares the life of an immature Christian to such misery.

 

Martin Luther, a 16th-century Reformer, compared an immature Christian to a drunken peasant who climbs onto his horse only to fall off the other side. Seasickness and drunkenness both affect a person’s sense of balance. But more pitiful than literal nausea is a faith that staggers from one foolish and mistaken idea to another.

 

Our reading today gives us another admonition toward finding balance through Scripture. The Apostle Paul says we need to be “built up” until we attain maturity in our faith.  At least a part of that is learning how to remember the mighty acts of God in the past. He has acted in miraculous ways through our lives. We often trivialize these miracles. We should. We should celebrate them, praising Him. This is one of the ways we can create balance in our lives and produce a sense of grace resulting in great joy.