You can’t have a balanced life without a true center.

Have you ever heard an expert say you should “live a balanced life,” or had a friend suggest you balance your priorities?

Scan the internet and you will see articles full of advice about how to have a balanced life. Or, grab coffee with a friend and see if your complaints about busyness and competing schedules don't turn into a conversation about life’s priorities and the need for balance.

But, what if a “balanced life" leads to more earthly pain and an eternity apart from God?

Consider these questions:

• Can you really balance love for a family member with tasks at work?
• Would you really trade relationships for financial gain?
• Can your heart and mind actually treat everyone and everything the same?
• What time horizon do you set for life balance? 10, 20, 40, 60, or even 100 years?
• How do you balance God and the temporary things of this world?
  

God’s Word tells us we cannot have a balanced life and an eternal life with God. We must choose. "No one can serve two masters. Either you will hate the one and love the other, or you will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve both God and money” (Matthew 6:24). Jesus says, “I am the way and the truth and the life” (John 14:6). These words offer a solution to the struggle for a life that's balanced.

Jesus offers more than balance. Jesus offers a true center.

You can not have a balanced life without a true center. Consider how a scale works. A scale is able to balance things because it has a weighted center. Its ability to weigh things comes from a firm foundation. The center of your life is your heart. Everything flows from your heart, this is why we must guard our hearts.

“Keep your heart with all vigilance, for from it flow the springs of life.” - Proverbs 4:23

Jesus tells us to love God with all of our heart. “And he said to him, ‘You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind’” (Matthew 22:37). When we understand the love that God has for us, we can’t help but respond by giving God our hearts and our entire life. When we love God with all our heart, we can see how to approach the rest of life. The Apostle Paul said it this way, “I have been crucified with Christ and I no longer live, but Christ lives in me. The life I now live in the body, I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me” (Galatians 2:20).

When we understand that God loves us and place Christ at the center of our lives, we are given an incredible power to discern how to love others. Then, life begins to have clear direction. When we know that everything (people, creation, circumstances, work, struggles, and joys) comes from Him, through Him, and are going back to Him (Romans 11:36) we can have incredible peace as He shows us which things will give Him glory, and bring peace to both ourselves and those we serve.

With Christ at the Center all other things come into balance as we make decisions to:

• Attend a child’s soccer game, or stay and help a struggling coworker
• Take a promotion, or remain in a current job
• Make a change that increases profitability, or allows meaningful work for others
• Buy a vacation home, or spend more time at home
• Invest in self improvement, or spend time sharing your wisdom with others
  

When we are centered in Christ, we receive clarity on how to live, best prioritize tasks, and love others well.