The Art of Balance…
The art of balance is truly an art. But, just like art, it is truly possible. I am far from perfect, so please don’t think that I am making that claim. As I have aged a little and successfully raised one child to adulthood with three others going through elementary school, I juggle a lot. Not only am I raising these wild ones, I am also their teacher, I teach 6th grade part-time, I run an art program and studio, I am wrapping up my own schooling, and I manage to find some time for self-care. Am I tooting my own horn? Maybe, a little. I acknowledge that God has given me these precious gifts and it is my responsibility to handle them with care, that includes myself.
I was talking with a great friend this morning and proudly exclaimed, “BALANCE IS HERE!” For a couple of weeks now, I fell out of balance with the things that were my “norm.” First, let me say that my norms change…a lot. I am far from normal and I realize this. However, the things that I was most used to doing made me feel as though I was being neglectful in this new season. As it turns out, though, God was just making me refocus. That’s all. He knew the things that were important to me and just wanted me to take some time to refocus and prepare for the future.
Sometimes, when we are lost in the moments of the chaos of the every day, it can seem as though we are being neglectful of the life that we feel we should be living. There were days when I WANTED to do things that I thought were self-care and I would beat myself up for not getting them done. Working out, putting my own time constraint on a task, trying to force things to happen that weren’t what God wanted for me at that time…didn’t force me to get these things done. It forced me to grow impatient and easily agitated. It forced me to think about these things on repeat when I could have focused on the now and been satisfied with what was going on at that time. The things that deserved my whole focus.
“Balance will come when you follow your principles and prioritize His plans.”
Sometimes, it seems unfair that this is the only life that we have to live and we learn these lessons so late in our lives. But every lesson learned is so purposeful. Being still in these moments, allowing ourselves some grace, getting excited about life, laughing at ourselves, it is all so that God can use us at our full potential. He cancels out the bad in our lives to bring us through the good. Even when things aren’t “bad”, perhaps we are just sitting in a place where God doesn’t want us, letting Him do the work in our lives to bring us to the place we are supposed to be…BEAUTIFUL. And even more beautiful, He can change our circumstances to make it happen so many times in our lives if we will just be still.
I am here to tell you, that balance is an art. And, just like art, we should keep pushing through that piece to see how it turns out and then admire the beauty in what God has created. Finding yourself in a place of happiness, surrounded by people who lift you up, help you build, and appreciate you is worth it. It is worth it every time.