Life is a Balancing Act

There are so many things we must balance in life...so I decided to list some of them out.

• Balancing Love and Discipline (and giving natural consequences)


• Balancing Work and Family


• Balancing your different circles of friends


• Balancing Service to others with your Personal time (when/how to say "no" when you have too much on your plate already)


• Balancing Empathy with Advice (when to stand up for something and when to be quiet and listen)


• Balancing Intrusion and Concern (all about gossip)


• Balancing Diet and Exercise


• Balancing a Laisse-Faire attitude with Structure


• Confidence vs. Arrogance


• Trust vs. Skepticism


• Your Future: Taking Risks vs. Letting Go and Letting God take care of things
• Worldly vs. Godly

Let me expound on the last one - Worldy vs. Godly. We should take delight in learning about the world around us, discovering our heritage, history, and the creatures that inhabit it. However, Romans 12:2 says "Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God's will is- His good, pleasing, and perfect will." I'm still working on finding the balance between enjoying the world without conforming to the way society wants me to think about things.

Society says, "Be sexy by wearing these types of clothes/makeup/jewelry and be as skinny as possible because that's what is sexy." God says, "Do not worry about what you wear or eat." My interpretation: Our focus should be on things that MATTER - things that affect our future and our eternity. Our role, as women, is to help our men live for God - not tempt them into sin.

Society says, "Movies, TV shows, and media in general can promote any type of behavior and language they want to." God says, "Do not let any unwholesome talk come out of your mouth."

I'm not saying I'm "above" what society promotes - I fall into the trap like everyone else! But I try my best to remember how Jesus would act and follow His example.

God is always at work!

Do you ALWAYS feel God working in your life? Probably not. However, when you do FEEL Him "working" on you - what's your response?

Right now, I can totally feel God working in my life. He's helping me find a path for my career (by opening doors and letting me shine.) He's speaking to me through sermons and Bible Fellowship lessons. He's helping me remember to hand over my stress and let Him take care of things. He's helping me see things in a new perspective, too. I feel like I understand the "bigger picture" of life - more so than ever before! When I listen to people, I'm taking the time to REALLY listen and try to understand so that I can empathize better. I still catch myself reverting back to "old Katie" sometimes - but at least I'm catching it before I totally revert back. I'm even watching and enjoying the History Channel now! I've realized that TV (and multimedia in general) is such JUNK sometimes. It's a waste of time and energy! (Now don't get me wrong - I love to "veg out" and be entertained every once in a while...but too much of a good thing can be bad in the long run.) I'm enjoying LIFE and LEARNING more. I'd rather take walks, enjoy good conversation, or read a book.

So back to my question - Do you always feel God working in your life? Probably not - but I believe He's always working in our lives and in our hearts....we just might not always realize it until later. However, during the times that you can definitely see Him at work - PRAISE Him for it! It's nice to know that we have Him on our side, and it's comforting knowing that He is looking out for our best interest all the time.

Communication = Trust

In every aspect of life, it is imperative to communicate with others - openly, clearly, and delicately sometimes. With your spouse you share your joys and daily triumphs as well as your concerns and daily struggles. Holding these conversations help you to understand each other better AND you will be able to help each other learn and grow. Often times my husband listens to me ramble about something and he provides a different perspective for me to consider. This has helped me become more of a global thinker and I've learned to contemplate things more completely before forming an opinion and making a decision to take action on things. Forming opinions too quickly can lead to eating your words later and regretting what you said. I've discovered that taking back words is NOT easy!

This is one reason we need some type of armor ready when people say hurtful things to us. "Grow some thick skin" my dad always said. In the workplace, communication between co-workers (and between boss and employee) must be present so that you know what to expect of each other.

With God, we should communicate daily (actually, we should never cease praying!) I try to turn my radio off and talk to God on my way to work each morning. This is difficult sometimes because my first instict is "I wonder what Kidd Kraddick (insert your favorite radio personality here) has to say this morning...something funny and entertaining I'm sure." I've noticed a difference in my daily walk with God when I turn the radio OFF and listen to HIM instead.

So how does Communication equal Trust? Being completely open and honest with someone builds trust. When we hold back information or present it in a manipulative way, we are hurting our relationships in the long run - this actually makes us less trustworthy. I have experienced this first hand in many different kinds of relationships. I have been the one who cannot be trusted (unfortunately) and I have been on the other side as well - not knowing who I can trust. Neither feeling is good! I hate myself for not being completely trustworthy in the past, and I resolve to become someone that others can rely on and feel comfortable talking to.