Balance?

Should we try to find a balance in our spiritual life?

A year or so ago, i was with a group of men. Christian men. We were talking about how to live a christian life. You know, being a christian & working with a variety of people who have different interest & beliefs. A man who has been a christian for many years was answering this question, in his opinion. A recently converted christian was trying to understand how to be a christian in the workplace. You know, how do you actually pull that off sorta question. The man advised that your life had to be a balance. You had to balance between who you are spiritually & who your are in the work place. At the time that really gnawed at me. It made me uncomfortable. It didn't ring true. Well, that's what i want to talk about.

My issue here is that i don't think that we can balance our spiritual self with our social self or our work self or our anything else self.

Jesus told His disciples that if anyone would come after Him, they would have to deny themselves & take up their cross daily & follow Him. Then He said that whoever would save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for Jesus' sake will save it. Then He asked what would it profit a man if he gains the whole world, but loses himself? And lastly in this passage He said that whoever is ashamed of Him & of His words, that He would be ashamed of that person when He comes in His glory & the glory of the Father & the holy angels.

So i guess for starters, i would have to ask, how can i deny myself, take up my cross (which actually means to die) & follow Jesus & also live a balanced life. Do you follow? In the first place, why are we in need of a balance. What are we balancing? Are we to deny ourselves, die & follow Jesus when we're in a spiritual setting? When we go to work, do we miraculously rise from the dead, stop denying ourselves & stop following Jesus for 8 hours?

And what about when He said that whoever would save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for Jesus' sake will save it? i'm having trouble visualizing any sort of balance here. Is any more commentary needed? If you are trying to have a balanced life, you have come to the wrong place.

Continuing, i also read where Jesus asks what would it profit a man if he gains the whole world, but loses himself (or his sole)? Again, balance?

And the last thing He said to us in this passage is that if we are ashamed of Him, then He would be ashamed of us. Please keep in mind that the subject of this post is to try to find balance in the life of a disciple of Jesus Christ. i will have to say that in reading just 4 verses, i can't for the life of me see anyway that we can live a balanced life. Seriously, i'm at a loss.

scripture reference: Matthew 16:24-27

Have you read my post on the The Americanized & Westernized Christian or my post It's hard to get there from here? What i'm saying here is that for the most part we are blind to the word's of Jesus. What He said to us about following Him, about being His disciples. When you have time, please read Isaiah's description of Jesus in Isaiah 53:3. That's who we follow.

So understand, that i am clearly convinced that there is no balance in the Christian life.