This morning as I was reading, I thought of a scale, like that one that looks like a small teeter totter that you may use in an elementary math or science class. This was the picture He gave me for the extremist behavior. But with one side was up in the air and the other resting on the ground. Never equaling out the sides, but always just shifting the load, wholly, back and forth. All in our all out.
I believe we do this because we are being led by our flesh instead of allowing His Spirit to be in the lead.
The Lord brought me to the fact that He calls us righteous. When I looked up the definition, it was justifiable, which means valid, sound, sensible... then it popped. A sound mind. Something I pray over myself and my kids, daily. After a little more digging, the Greek word, sophroneo came up. It means "having a sober outlook that reflects true balance." HELPS word studies goes on to say, "For the believer, sophroneo reflects what God defines is true moderation. This God-controlled perspective blends the extremities of truth on both sides on the matter." He balances our scale. It no longer has to be all in or all out, when we give out minds to Him.
I've tried, at times, not to live this all in or all out, but a period of time will go by and I'm right back at it. Chalking all of those times up as failures and then falling into the lie, "that I''ll never be able to do it any differently. And maybe He just made me this way for a reason."
Stop! ✋🏼🛑 maybe I've allowed the enemy access to my thoughts and instead of standing on what God says and understanding that He alone has the ability to give me a sound mind, to level out my extreme thoughts and actions, I've allowed the enemy to manipulate my perspective and how I see things and interpret things...?
Sorry 'bout it sneaky snake. you have no place here anymore. I do have the ability to have a sound mind. To be able to regulate extremes, through the power of my God. My scale balancer.
When we go to extremes, we sometimes miss what God is telling, teaching and/or showing us.
Something that it makes me think of is that period in my life when I was rrreeeaaalllyyy enjoying my quiet time in the cold winter mornings. I'd get up, still dark, kids sleeping and get that pot of coffee ready. I'd pour a cup, top it off. Pour another and then maybe another. Something about quiet, dark, fire blazing, my bible and a cup of hot coffee that was so pleasing. But next thing I know, 3 cups in and I can't focus because... well my mind and body are going 💯 x10! I was ALL in ☕️ He convicted me (yes, even about coffee, but no, it's not good or bad regardless of how many cups you drink, but when anything, coffee or sports or social media or whatever, interferes or makes the Lord's voice covered in static, it's time to take a look at the issue) and in the most gentle, loving way, as He always does, allowed me to see where I over overdoing something and going head first into something.
Or trying to discipline my children. I have a hard time letting my emotions get the best of me. So what that looks like is... I lose my temper, yell then feel guilty and sit in condemnation. So then I think, well I'm not going to do that anymore, but then that turns into not disciplining at all because I'm too nervous I'll slip and let my emotions get the best of me again. But we know that discipline, out of love, is for their good. So my being too lax in order to not snap, isn't doing anyone any good.
There is a middle ground, when boundaries are in the right place, where discipline is out of love and not anger, when emotions are leveled out.
This may not always look like too many cups of coffee or no discipline, but does happen often in so many different ways. And I am choosing to stand on the truth of His word, that I have been given sophroneo - a sound mind- a God-controlled perspective that blends the extremities of truth on both sides of the matter.
Romans 12:2 - And be not conformed to this world: but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, that you may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God.
1 Corinthians 2:16 - For "who has known the mind of the Lord that he may instruct Him?" But we have the mind of Christ.
We have the mind of Christ. We just have to be sure our flesh isn't ruling over our Spirit.