Living a Balanced Life Part 2

Opening

Who among you here will raise their hands and say… “I am living a balanced life”

If you wish you have more time… show your hands

Balance by the way is not just about time

It’s also about many other things such as balanced diet, emotional balance, spiritual balance, financial balance and more...

Jesus taught us balance between work and rest in His presence, as a lesson arising from His stay at Martha’s house, when Martha does all the preparations, while Maria rested besides the Lord and listened to His teachings

He taught balance between debt, forgiveness and love

Pericope (Matthew 11)

After Jesus gave instructions to His twelve followers, He left and went to the towns of Galilee to teach and preach

John the baptist who was in prison, heard what Jesus was doing, so he sent some of his followers to Jesus to ask Him if He was the One who is to come, or if there was someone else

Jesus told them to tell John what they hear and see that He does.

Jesus’ response underscores His fulfillment of prophetic expectations for the Messiah. The blind sees, the crippled walks, the deaf hears, the dead are raised to life and the good news was preached to the poor

As John’s followers were leaving, Jesus began talking to the people about John.

Jesus affirms that John is the forerunner of Christ

That he was greater than anyone ever born.

Jesus said

Matthew 11:17 NIV

“ ‘We played the pipe for you, and you did not dance; we sang a dirge, and you did not mourn.’

Matthew 11:17

In other words, despite the miracles performed by the Lord, they still didn’t believe

BREATHE!

Then Jesus warns the unbelievers

He criticized the cities where He did most of His miracles because the people did not change their lives and stop sinning even after seeing all these miracles

He said, woe to you Chorazin! woe to you Bethsaida! If the same miracles I did in you had happened in Tyre and Sidon, those people would have changed their lives long time ago.

Tyre and Sidon are 2 sinful Phoenician cities in the Mediterranean coast

BREATHE!

After which, Jesus offered rest to people

He praised the Father for hiding these things from smart and wise people

But instead, God showed them to those who are like children

Here is where He said, that no one knows the Son except the Father, and no one knows that Father except the Son, and those whom the Son chooses to tell

Jesus is not just the source of love and peace, He is also the source of rest

Matthew 11:28–30 NIV

“Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.”

Text: Jesus Offers Rest to People Matthew 11:28-30

Matthew 11:28–30 NCV

“Come to me, all of you who are tired and have heavy loads, and I will give you rest. Accept my teachings and learn from me, because I am gentle and humble in spirit, and you will find rest for your lives. The burden that I ask you to accept is easy; the load I give you to carry is light.”

Last Sunday I gave you the first 4 of the 7 Biblical ways to “Living a Balanced Life”, there were:

Build my life around Christ

Accept my Humanity

2. Accept my Humanity

Limit my Labor

Adjust my Values

3. Limit my Labor

And today I shall share to you the remaining 3 to complete the acrostics of the word “BALANCE”

Nourish my Inner Life

God puts an inner fire in us

It’s a fire that needs to be tended

our society encourages us to live externally

in our society what is valued is what is in the outside, how it looks

God told us to live our lives from inside out, not from outside in

what is it that you neglect because you’re too busy

maybe praying, maybe spending time with your kids, or with your spouse

what do you do for fun?

Tending a 3 car-garage cannot warm a cold heart

vacation cannot a cold heart

contact with the living God is what will warm a cold heart

Psalm 119:16 NCV

I enjoy obeying your demands, and I will not forget your word.

Psalm 119:16

BREATHE!

Commit my Daily Schedule to God

Allow yourself to be flexible, to be bendable

don’t be so tight on yourself

2 main reasons why we get under stress

we try to do it too much

and we try to do it in our own power

take it easy

Relax… God is in Control

Ecclesiastes 3:1 NCV

There is a time for everything, and everything on earth has its special season.

God sets up the season in our lives

BREATHE!

Enjoy the Moment

I have just enough time to do God’s will

God will not give a me list of things to do, and not give me the time to do it

maybe I am doing it the wrong way, or I am just doing too much

the goal of life is not accomplishments, that’s called humanism

the goal of life is not acquisition, that’s called materialism

the goal of life is not just to have fun, that’s called hedonism

the goal of life is to know God and enjoy relationship with Him

use your talents to serve others because that builds character for eternity

Proverbs 14:30 NCV

Peace of mind means a healthy body, but jealousy will rot your bones.

Psalm 37:4 NCV

Enjoy serving the Lord, and he will give you what you want.

Physical fatigue, can be cured by rest

Emotional fatigue,

Spiritual fatigue, can be cured only when we are plagued back to the power

BREATHE!

Personal story about my episodes of wanting to “resign”

Prayer

Let us lay down our lives for the Lord

He is the only One that we need

When we turn to Him, He is always there

In troubled times, it is Him that we must seek

Putting Him first is all we need

Let’s humble all we are to Him

His grace abounds so deeply within us

He is the same yesterday, today and forever...

I humble all I am all to You

You are al