Friday, May 22, 2009

Check your balance

"Beloved, I pray that you may prosper in all things and be in health, just as your soul prospers." 3 John 2

The apostle John is writing to his friend, Gaius. This is not just a casual acquaintance of his, but he addresses him as beloved. Gaius is John's special friend.

It's John's prayer that his friend Gaius may prosper in all things. We usually see the word 'prosper' on cards bearing New Year's wishes, such as "We wish you a prosperous New Year."

What does the word Prosper mean? The Old Testament has four dozen references for the word prosper, but it appears only once in the New Testament, in today's verse. The Greek renders it 'to help on the road', as in 'to make progress', or 'to succeed in reaching'. The suggestion is that one moves ahead with success, helping others on life's road and reaching one's destination or goal.

Prosper in all things - this suggests balanced prosperity; success in the material, mental, social and spiritual realms of life. I omitted one (on purpose). John adds 'and be in health'. Healthy living is essential to being successful (prosperous) in the other realms. It appears that Gaius was doing well in the spiritual realm (from the words 'just as your soul prospers'), but John noticed that he needed a balance, with special attention needed in the physical realm.

Sometimes we get caught up in the race of life, and we exert all our energies and attentions in one direction, to the neglect of the other spheres. John reminds us that balance is important. Today, check your balance.

I wish you a balanced prosperity today and every day!

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