As a young boy, I loved to play with a gyroscope, which is a small, spoked wheel in a round frame with a hole in its axle. You can wind it up with a string, pull it and then watch it gyrate.

When it spins, the gyroscope establishes its own force field, called gyroscopic inertia, which makes it rotate on its own axis regardless of other forces pulling at it. A bicycle, motorcycle and the automatic pilot on large airplanes (which normally use four gyroscopes) operate on the same principle.

The same force keeps our planet spinning and tilted upward. The earth turns at approximately 1,000 miles per hour and this incredibly high rate of rotation is one of the reasons that man can survive on this terrestrial globe. It also generates the earth’s magnetic field, which shields us from the deadly radiation coming from outer space. The world is marvelously designed to allow life, despite its fragility, to exist. Just looking at the basic physics involved should be enough to convince anyone that God exists by studying the complexity of things He has exquisitely made (Romans 1:20).

When I came into the Church, I discovered that a gyroscope is a good illustration of the equilibrium in God’s Spirit to create a well-balanced individual who can be used to serve God and the brethren.

One of my first memories at Ambassador College in Big Sandy, Texas was being invited to a minister’s home after the Sabbath. I was so impressed by the minister and his family—he was a happy, caring and balanced person, his children were well-mannered and his wife was friendly and loving. I came to learn that the Christian life is a life of balance in both the physical and spiritual realms.

As Christ mentioned, “I have come that they may have life, and that they may have it more abundantly” (John 10:10). Yes, true Christianity is living the abundant life, especially in its spiritual dimension. There will be trials and tests along the way, but also great joy because of what God is creating in us—godly character (Romans 8:18). It will bring out the fruits of God’s Spirit—love, joy, peace, longsuffering, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control (Galatians 5:22-23). That is what I strove to learn at Ambassador College and what is now being taught at Ambassador Bible College in Cincinnati, Ohio. We learned to do all things in a balanced way—to laugh, study, work, dance, play, eat and drink in an appropriate and moderate manner.

Paul also described the balancing elements of God’s Spirit when he told young Timothy, “Therefore I remind you to stir up the gift of God which is in you through the laying on of my hands. For God has not given us a spirit of fear, but of power and of love and of a sound mind” (2 Timothy 1:6-7, emphasis added throughout).

These three elements of God’s Spirit, power, love and a sound mind are a great example of the internal balance we should strive to have but naturally lack. Each spiritual force should complement, yet check each other. We should remember the following points.

Power

Power (Greek dunamis, from which the terms dynamic, dynamite and dynamo come) is needed to impart courage and strength to get things done, but without love, it can become cold and harsh, causing damage.

Love

Love (Greek agape—outgoing concern for others) also needs to be balanced so it doesn’t become bland or weak and a way of spoiling someone by being overindulgent. As Proverbs 29:15 says, “Wise discipline imparts wisdom; spoiled adolescents embarrass their parents” (The Message Bible).

Sound mind

Next comes a sound mind, which involves balancing everything by using good judgment and self-control.

Yet, these wonderful forces can be drained, so they need to be periodically recharged and renewed by drawing closer to God through prayer, Bible study, meditation, and occasional fasting (2 Corinthians 4:16).

Christ was the perfect example of godly balance, having all of these three spiritual forces in complete equilibrium. For instance, He could eat with the Pharisees, which were religiously over-strict, and yet not become one of them. He could also eat with the Publicans, on the opposite side of the spectrum (religiously very lax), but not follow their examples. Jesus always found the happy medium between these two extreme groups by being internally centered through God’s Spirit.

While Christ never compromised with God’s laws, and neither should we, He applied them with love and concern toward others. As Paul mentioned about this same principle, “For though I am free from all men, I have made myself a servant to all, that I might win the more; and to the Jews I became as a Jew, that I might win Jews; to those who are under the law, as under the law, that I might win those who are under the law; to those who are without law, as without law (not being without law toward God, but under law toward Christ), that I might win those who are without law; to the weak I became as weak, that I might win the weak. I have become all things to all men, that I might by all means save some”
(1 Corinthians 9:19-22).

So, to please God, we need to continue developing that inner balance in all things pertaining to our lives, both physically and spiritually, and seek the abundant life God wants for all of us. To help remind us of this—remember the gyroscope!