By ELIZABETH COOPER
Tuesday 28 July 2020
1 CORINTHIANS 3 v 11
Getting the balance right in everything is the key to success. Too much of one thing and the end result is often a failure.
This is true in baking – too much flour and the cake is hard; too much time in the oven and it's burnt.
It's also true in our world – too much pollution and our resources and wildlife suffer.
And it is true in our lives – too much fat and sugar and our bodies can't function effectively.
Getting the balance right is no less true in our spiritual lives.
As I listen to the conversations on balance at the moment, I am reminded of how fine a thing balance is.
Many of us have had the time to realise that we have worked too hard and are now enjoying the enforced rest. Looking to the future we are vowing to keep the balance right.
This got me wondering how our spiritual lives are balanced at the moment. Having so much time to ourselves through isolation was a bonus at first and I have had many conversations about 'how wonderful to have time to pray and study and sit with God.'
Then, as the weeks and months have gone by, is that balance still tipped in God's favour?
Spending time with God, through prayer and studying His word is the basis of our spiritual life and the way we are fed in order to grow.
Paul writes in 1 Corinthians 3 v 11: " by this time you ought to be teachers, but you need someone to reteach you the basic principles of God's word. You need milk, not solid food! For everyone who lives on milk is still an infant, inexperienced in the message of righteousness. But solid food is for the mature who, by constant use, have trained their senses to distinguish good from evil".
God wants us to be teachers – mature disciples who teach others. This is how His Kingdom has always worked from the very beginning.
And people often ask 'how can I know if it is God working or the enemy?' Here in this passage we are told that by feeding on God's word constantly and using it we train our senses to know the difference.
Living in the word and praying in faith support our quiet time with God, and this is the basis for everything else that we do as a disciple.
With God's word in our hearts and minds we can face any circumstance because, let's face it, as a Christian we are not exempt from difficulties. Rather we are given strength and wisdom and peace to walk through whatever comes.
Living in God's word cultivates a relationship with God in which you can successfully weather the storms. And from there you grow.
So how is your spiritual life balanced at the moment?