Chapter 46 Day 39 Balance Your Life

Day 39 Balance Your Life Live with a sense of responsibility, Don't be like those who don't know the meaning of life. (Ephesians 5:15, ph) Let not the errors of wicked men lead you astray, Throw your life out of balance. (2 Peter 3:17, CEV) Blessed are those whose lives are balanced, they outlast anyone. One of the events in the Summer Olympics is the pentathlon.The five sports include pistol shooting, fencing, horse riding, running and swimming. The goal of athletes is to excel in all five sports, not just be good at one or two. Your life is also a pentathlon with five purposes and you have to keep it in balance.In Acts 2, the believers of the early church practiced these purposes, Paul explained them in Ephesians 4, and Jesus exemplified them in John 17; but they all come together in Jesus in the Greatest Commandment and Great Commission.These two declarations also conclude the book—the five God-given purposes for your life:

1. 'Love the Lord with all your heart - You were created to please God, so your purpose in life is to love God through worship. 2. 'Love your neighbor as yourself - You were made to serve, so your purpose in life is to express your love for others through ministry. 3. 'Make disciples of all nations - You were made for a mission, so your purpose in life is to share God's message through evangelism. 4. ' Baptize them - you were created for God's family, so your purpose in life is to identify with His Church through fellowship with believers. 5. ' Teach them to obey - God created you to be like Christ, so your purpose in life is to mature through discipleship.

Commitment to the 'Great Commandment' and 'Great Commission' makes you a great Christian. Balancing these five purposes is not easy.We all tend to focus on our own more passionate ends, and suddenly others, and so does the church.However, you can maintain a balance in your life by joining a group to supervise each other, regularly checking your spiritual health, recording your spiritual progress through a life journal, and passing on what you have learned to others.These four things are very important to practice purpose-led living.These habits must be formed if you are serious about practicing them.

Discuss with spiritual partners or group members To deeply understand and apply the principles of this book, it is necessary to discuss with others in the group.The Bible says, "Iron sharpens iron, and friends sharpen their wits." Group learning is very effective.Through conversation, our minds are sharpened and our convictions deepened. I strongly urge you to find a group of friends, form a purpose-oriented life reading group, read a few chapters a week, discuss the essence and implementation methods of each chapter, and ask: "What about this? What about now? What does this mean for me, my family, and my church? What should I do about it? Paul said, "...whatever you learn...do it. "In Appendix 1, I have prepared a sheet of discussion questions for your small group or Sunday School.

Reading groups can provide many benefits that individual reading does not.You can comment on what you have learned and listen to others' responses; you can also discuss life examples, pray for each other, and think of each other for encouragement.Remember, we were meant to grow together.The Bible says, "Encourage one another. Build one another up." After you've read this book with a small group, you may want to study other books on purpose-based living that you can use in small groups or classes (Appendix 2) . I also encourage you to do personal Bible study.More than a thousand scriptures quoted in this book have been added with annotations.Please see Appendix 3, where I explain why many different translations and paraphrases of the Bible are used. In order to keep each chapter's weight suitable for everyday reading, I cannot explain the fascinating background of most of the quoted verses.But in fact the Bible should be studied by paragraphs, chapters, or even the whole book.Another book of mine, The Personal Bible Study Method, can teach you how to do inductive study.

Give yourself a regular physical examination of your spiritual life The best way to balance the five purposes of your life is to take regular self-assessments.God values ​​the habit of evaluating, and there are at least five times in the Bible that we are called to do so.The Bible says, "Examine yourselves to see if you are strong in the faith. Don't follow the crowd and take everything for granted. Examine yourself regularly...examine yourself. If you fail the test, improve." To maintain good health, you need to have regular physical examinations, and have your blood pressure, temperature, weight, etc. checked by a doctor.Likewise, in terms of spiritual health, you also examine five vital signs—worship, fellowship, character growth, ministry, and evangelism.Jeremiah advises us: "Let us examine our behavior, reorganize our lives and return to God."

At Saddleback Church we have built a simple personal assessment tool that has helped thousands of people stay within the five purposes of God.If you want this Purpose-Based Living Spiritual Health Assessment Form, you can write to me (see Appendix 2).You might be surprised: How this humble tool can help you balance your life and make it healthy.Paul urges us: "Your actions now should be commensurate with the zeal of your first thoughts." Record your spiritual progress in a devotional journal The best way to facilitate your fulfillment of God's five purposes for your life is to keep a devotional journal.This is not a diary to record the things of daily life, but a record of life lessons that you should not forget.The Bible says, "It is very important to hold fast to the truths we have learned, or we will lose them carelessly." We always remember what we wrote down.

Words help us clarify what God is doing in our lives.Dawson Trotman once said: "Under the tip of your pen, thoughts and ideas will become clear." The Bible also records several examples of God commanding people to record spiritual journals: "Moses followed the Lord's instructions and recorded his itinerary. ” Fortunately, Moses obeyed God’s command and recorded the spiritual journey of the Israelites.Had he been lazy, we would not have learned the life lessons of the Exodus. While your spiritual journal may not be as widely read as the Torah, it is still extremely important.The New International Version Bible says, "Moses wrote down the stages of their journey." Your life is a journey, and the journey is worth recording.I hope you will write down each stage of your spiritual journey in living a life of purpose.

Don't just write down pleasant experiences, be like David and write down your doubts, fears and struggles with God.Our greatest lessons often come from painful experiences, and the Bible tells us that God has written our tears in a book.Whenever problems arise, remember that God uses them to accomplish all five purposes in your life: Difficulties force you to look to God, bring you into closer fellowship with others, develop Christlike character, and provide opportunities for ministry , and give you precious testimony.Every difficulty is purpose-oriented. In the midst of the painful experience, the psalmist wrote in the psalm, "Let these things be written and passed on to posterity, so that the people to be born may praise the Lord." It is your responsibility to keep records and to testify to future generations how God has helped you Live a purpose-driven life.This testimony will continue to speak after you leave the world.

It is your responsibility to keep records and testify to posterity how God has helped you live a life of purpose. pass on what you've learned If you want to continue to grow, the best way to do that is to pass on what you've learned. "Whoever blesses others will be blessed; whoever helps others will be helped." Anyone who shares what he has learned with others will be rewarded more by God. Now that you understand the purpose of your life, it is your responsibility to spread the message that God is calling you to be His messenger.Paul said, "Now you also teach this lesson to the faithful, so that they may teach others likewise." It is your responsibility to pass it on to others.You probably know many people who don't know the purpose of life. Share these truths with your children, friends, neighbors, and colleagues.

The more you know, the more God expects you to use that knowledge to help others.James says, "Anyone who knows what is good and does not do it commits a sin." Knowledge adds to our responsibility; giving the message of purpose to a life is not merely a duty, but the greatest privilege of life.Just imagine how different the world would be if everyone knew their purpose in life.Paul said, "If you tell your brothers and sisters these things, you are a good servant of Christ Jesus." all for the glory of god We pass on what we learn for the glory of God and the advancement of His kingdom.The night before Jesus was crucified, he reported to the Father: "I have glorified you on earth, and I have done what you have entrusted to me." When the Lord prayed this prayer, he had not died for our sins , then what has He accomplished?This refers to things other than his atonement and death, and the answer is recorded in the next 20 prayers. Jesus told the Father what He had done in the past three years: Prepared the disciples to live for God's purpose, helped them know God and love God (worship), taught them to love each other (fellowship), and gave them the Word to grow them Maturity (discipleship), teaching them by example how to serve (serving), sending them out to evangelize (mission).The Lord Jesus has set an example of a purpose-oriented life, and He also taught people how to live it out. This is what He did for the glory of God. God calls each of us to do the same today, not only to live out the purpose He has given us in life, but to help others do the same.God wants us to introduce others to Christ, lead them into fellowship, help them mature and find their place of ministry, and then send them out to evangelize people. This is purpose-driven life!Regardless of your age, the rest of your life can be the best days of your life.You can start living a life of purpose today.