The CORE Values of a Balanced Life
By Toby Graham
If you’ve picked up a fitness magazine recently, you no doubt saw something related to training your “core.” Hopefully, your exposure to the word also indicated that its meaning not only includes the abdominal muscles, but also all the muscles in your shoulders, torso, and hips.
So why is such a great emphasis placed on your core? Because you use it every time you lift, bend, reach, push, pull, twist, sit, stand, or walk. This group of muscles is vital to every movement you make in life!
Having a strong core means all the muscles in your shoulders, torso, and hips are actively working together in proper balance to move the body as it was designed by God to move. But unfortunately, sedentary lifestyles are the main culprit to the deterioration in core strength.
So when these core muscles are not used day after day, they become weak and cause other muscles to be overworked, compensating for weak ones. Here is where the “pain chain” begins. The neck hurts, the shoulders begin to fall forward, the back aches, the knees hurt, and… something all of us dread… the bottom gets flat! All of this happens when the body is no longer working in perfect balance as God intended.
Isn’t that what happens in life too? Sometimes things get out of balance. We get so focused on taking care of our kids that our relationship with our husband doesn’t get as much attention as it needs. Or our job takes so much energy that we don’t have as much energy for our kids. Usually when some areas of life get overworked, other areas get weak!
Then, one day, things seem to begin to crumble. Arguments with your spouse seem to be constant. The kids start getting in trouble at school. You feel physically exhausted and spiritually dry. Important relationships have withered. Just like unbalanced core muscles lead to the “pain chain,” an unbalanced life ultimately leads to a pain chain of its own.
So the question is how can you maintain balance in your life? Here are some “core” values of a balanced life:
· Center your life on Christ. A relationship with Christ is the “core” of life. All meaning, purpose, and ultimate balance in life stem from this crucial relationship (Colossians 1:16-17). · Omit the unnecessary. Sometimes we have to eliminate the things in life that eat our time or cause us stress. Give yourself permission to miss a birthday party, dinner, or baby shower in order to “keep the main thing, the main thing” (Hebrews 12:1-2). · Renew each day. Take time to regenerate body, mind, and spirit. As women, we often get so run down that we are operating on minimal resources. Take the time to take care of your body, renew your mind and spirit with God’s Word, and decide what the true priorities for your day really are (2 Corinthians 4:16). · Enjoy life more! Jesus says he came that we may have abundant life. Have you stopped doing the things that bring you joy? When is the last time you tried something new? Have you taken a break to have some fun? Are you pausing to enjoy the little things in life? In other words, stop and smell the roses! (John 10:10).
Finding that right balance in life isn’t easy—but God will bless your efforts as you focus on him each day! |
 |
|
 |
