Socrates once said, “The truth is in the mean.” By that he meant that the truth is often found only by holding two things in tension. The best path is often between the two extremes. For instance, good parenting is keeping your balance between being too strict on one hand, or being overly lenient on the other. Good parents know how to discipline in love, because both extremes exasperate the child.
Wise people are balanced in their work habits, trying to avoid being a workaholic on one hand, and being lazy on the other. There has to be a balance between disciplined effort and restful leisure.
Think about all the theological issues where the truth is found in holding two truths in tension. For instance, consider the sovereignty of God vs. the free will of man. I believe that God is in charge, but I also believe people have free will. It is wise not to go to seed on either extreme.
Or how do we balance world missions vs. local evangelism. If we send all our money to foreign missions the local ministry suffers. When that happens long enough, eventually, there is no money to send overseas. The key is balance.
A big issue among some churches today is “should we be outwardly focused or inwardly focused.” The answer, of course, is both. The hard thing is to keep that balance.
Ecclesiastes 7:18 It is good to grasp the one and not let go of the other. The man who fears God will avoid all extremes.
There is even a balance between faith and works. We must balance our trust in the Lord with putting forth some honest effort? John Wesley said, “Pray as though it all depends on God and work as though it all depends on you.” Balance is very important.
One of the marks of a life God would be proud of is balance; avoiding the unhealthy extremes in life. After being both a student and a teacher of the Bible for over thirty years, I’ve come to a solid conclusion: Most people who make an impact for Christ over the long haul have learned the secret of living spiritually balanced lives.
Someone has said, “A life out of balance is like a tire out of balance; both tend to wear out quickly.” But if balance is so important, how do you find it? How do you get it and keep it? How do you live that kind of life?
How do you answer these questions?
Insight for the Journey 
Thanks for the thought provoking blogging, I try to read each one.
I believe that balance is achieved through discipline. It is the same way with a balanced diet. Frequently, it is the stuff that is bad for you that tastes good to us, but through discipline, we are able to resist. We need to have a long range plan, see the big picture. Of course, that is much easier when we have the new nature of Christ inside, and not the old nature of man.
Our balance in life comes through coming up with a plan, similar to the nutritional pyramid. The base is our relationship with Christ. Build upwards with prayer, relationships, exercise, bible reading, good diet, etc. I think if people put as much thought into balancing their lives as they do into balancing their diets, life would go much better.
Thanks for blogging, I look forward to reading each one.
Tom
Amen! A balanced life, is a healthy one — of course the same thing applies to our spiritual lives. Seems pretty simple, but this is the first time I’ve read it anywhere.
For me, one of the ways to stay balanced is to include other people in my evaluation. It’s too easy to slide one way or another, and loose perspective on where the middle is. Our spouses, our friends and our accountability buddies are a great resource in making sure we don’t get too far from the centre…
favorited this one, brother
great topic, and very true. sometimes i think of the balanced life as one that is on the straight and narrow… avoid the ditches (extremes) on either side. i think satan is often trying to get us into one ditch or the other…
as far as finding balance, i think we need to know what scripture says, in a comprehensive way. knowing just one or two verses, out of context, is a sure way to end up in a theological ditch.
rex, thank you for your faithful teaching, and your attention to avoid extremes on either side of an issue. i regularly notice in your sermons that you illustrate two truths that we must hold in tension, to avoid extremes, and avoid error. i’m sure this has been a great help to those who attend grace fellowship!