Is a Balanced Life Biblical?

Type of Doctrine: Tertiary

"It is in vain that you rise up early and go late to rest, eating the bread of anxious toil; for he gives to his beloved sleep."

-Psalm 127:2 ESV

I recently ran across this quote and it stopped me in my tracks, "It is the quality of time at work that counts and the quantity of time at home that matters."[1] As I thought about it more, I realized that the statement is profound. Shockingly, that was from a business guru while many of us in the church find ourselves neglecting our homes for the sake of work (even leaders!).

If quantity of time is given to work, then other people and things must be sacrificed. The spouse, family, health, worship, and rest are neglected in favor of work success. Moreover, often working more does not bring more productivity and more quality. Studies have shown that productivity and health suffer after working more than 50-55 hours per week.[2] Therefore, improving the quality of work while working a reasonable amount of hours seems to be wise.

If quality of time is given at home but we're rarely there, then our relationships, health, worship, and rest will suffer. Our families will probably feel shortchanged. Therefore, quantity of time at home seems to be wise as well.

What is another word for this concept? Balance. When many use this term, they mean balancing their work and non-working time. The non-working time is often spent with a spouse, family, and friends and it often includes rest, recreation, exercise, church, chores, and entertainment. Is a balanced life biblical?

Let's consider a few categories in life and examine a few key Scriptures (though it can't be exhaustive!):

(1) God

• God first: "33 But seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be added to you." [Mat 6:33 ESV]

  • Note: The first two of the Ten Commandments also focus on this concept.

• Worship attendance/participation: "24 And let us consider how to stir up one another to love and good works, 25 not neglecting to meet together, as is the habit of some, but encouraging one another, and all the more as you see the Day drawing near." [Heb 10:24-25 ESV]

  • Note: This includes the many Scriptures about loving neighbor and sharing the gospel too!

• Prayer: "16 But he (Jesus) would withdraw to desolate places and pray." [Luk 5:16 ESV]

• Fasting: "17 But when you fast, anoint your head and wash your face, 18 that your fasting may not be seen by others but by your Father who is in secret. And your Father who sees in secret will reward you." [Mat 6:17-18 ESV]

(2) Spouse/family

• Marriage: "24 Therefore a man shall leave his father and his mother and hold fast to his wife, and they shall become one flesh." [Gen 2:24 ESV]

• Family: "4 He must manage his own household well, with all dignity keeping his children submissive, 5 for if someone does not know how to manage his own household, how will he care for God's church?" [1Ti 3:4-5 ESV]

  • Note: Though the context here is qualifications for elders, this is clearly his will for all Christians. There are many other Scriptures on how to relate within the family. Also, there are many Scriptures on how to relate to extended family, friends, and even enemies.

(3) Health

• Rest: "31 And he said to them, "Come away by yourselves to a desolate place and rest a while." For many were coming and going, and they had no leisure even to eat. 32 And they went away in the boat to a desolate place by themselves." [Mar 6:31-32 ESV]

  • Note: It's good to observe that in the context of this Scripture Jesus delays rest to serve people. While sometimes this is necessary, Jesus still finds time to rest and even pray alone (see Mark 6:45-46).

  • Note: The idea of Sabbath rest being a creation of God for people is significant.

• Exercise: "7b Rather train yourself for godliness; 8 for while bodily training is of some value, godliness is of value in every way, as it holds promise for the present life and also for the life to come." [1Ti 4:7b-8 ESV]

• Sleep: "2 It is in vain that you rise up early and go late to rest, eating the bread of anxious toil; for he gives to his beloved sleep." [Psa 127:2 ESV]

(4) Finances

• Giving:

  • To the church: "2 On the first day of every week, each of you is to put something aside and store it up, as he may prosper, so that there will be no collecting when I come." [1Co 16:2 ESV]

  • To the poor: "10 Only, they asked us to remember the poor, the very thing I was eager to do." [Gal 2:10 ESV]

• Providing: "8 But if anyone does not provide for his relatives, and especially for members of his household, he has denied the faith and is worse than an unbeliever." [1Ti 5:8 ESV]

(5) Maintenance (e.g., chores, repairs, cleaning, etc.)

• 38 Now as they went on their way, Jesus entered a village. And a woman named Martha welcomed him into her house. 39 And she had a sister called Mary, who sat at the Lord's feet and listened to his teaching. 40 But Martha was distracted with much serving. And she went up to him and said, "Lord, do you not care that my sister has left me to serve alone? Tell her then to help me." 41 But the Lord answered her, "Martha, Martha, you are anxious and troubled about many things, 42 but one thing is necessary. Mary has chosen the good portion, which will not be taken away from her." [Luk 10:38-42 ESV]

  • Note: There are many mundane chores that need to be done in life so that we can maintain houses, cars, lawns, clothes, food, etc. We must be faithful in these as well. However, this Scripture demonstrates that we can't allow them to distract us from our highest priority: our relationship with Jesus. What's another word for that? Balance.

These Scriptures (among others) show God's revealed will. I simply do not know how to obey them without keeping these categories in some type of balance. Use whatever word you want, but it seems to me that we are all charged with balancing these things.

Objection #1: The word "balance" is not found in the Bible.

It's true that there is no clear teaching in Scripture that says, "Keep your life in balance." However, like the word Trinity (which is not found in the Bible), the word "balance" seems to encapsulate the idea that we must manage these different aspects of life. This may look different for each of us based on our biology, jobs, marital status, need for sleep, season of life, etc. Nevertheless, we must manage these aspects of life and keep them in balance.

Also, consider the alternative: do we obey the Scriptures in one category and disobey in other categories?

Objection #2: The concept of balance is not found in the Bible.

I simply don't know what they mean. In addition to these Scriptures (shown above), balance is kind of built into the fabric of creation. You must sleep. You must take time to eat. You are relational. You must manage money. And on and on. It seems to me that it's not a question of whether the need for balance exists, but how well will you balance these things.

How much will you sleep? How much will you work? How much money will you spend, save, and give? How much time will you spend with family? How many church events will you attend/work? How much time will you rest? (Consider that Jesus rested one day per week, and he was not married and did not have kids!)

I've only heard this taught by people who allow the work category to take over a greater amount of time in life (perhaps to justify it!). I think that's an interesting observation since that is the tendency in American work culture. (That is, work tends to take over and dominate our lives and take away from the other categories.) However, even among those who teach this view, they still must sleep some amount, eat at some point, work, do chores, and many also spend time with their families (even if it's not a significant quantity of time). So, they are still balancing many of these categories! The difference is the proportion of work is much higher.

Undoubtedly, there are times when we must be flexible and make sacrifices. But, let's seek the Lord so that we balance the different aspects of life well. There are ways to err on both sides (e.g., overwork / laziness, over sleep / under sleep, overspending / stinginess, etc.). The world would like us to overwork for gain: money, fame, possessions, and success. These things aren't inherently evil, and sometimes God blesses us with them. But why sacrifice our spiritual lives, family, rest, and health for them? Jesus said, "For what will it profit a man if he gains the whole world and forfeits his soul?" (Mat 16:26).

End Notes:

[1] Brian Tracy, Eat That Frog!: 21 Great Ways to Stop Procrastinating and Get More Done in Less Time (Oakland, CA: Berrett-Koehler, 2007), 53.

[2] Jonathan Westover, "Why Working After Hours May Decrease Productivity?," Human Capital Leadership Review, April 23, 2024, accessed May 18, 2025, https://www.innovativehumancapital.com/article/why-working-after-hours-may-decrease-productivity.