Boundaries are Tough

I found myself knowing without a doubt I needed to have the conversation. It would be one of the hardest ones yet due to the person who would be on the receiving end.

I thought and prayed about what I would say for many days, and I had no certainty of how it would go, but I did have confidence that God would be in control making His plan come into effect when His timing was right!  I awoke early before the sun even thought about rising, and I found myself quietly praying over it and asking for guidance.

After much distraction of the morning I sat down to fill my heart and mind with God’s precious word, I spent some time being still and began to journal. It was less than a few seconds when I received the word and began writing the answers to my dilemma and how I would handle what seemed to be an almost unbearable task.

I have learned not to stop the process, to let it flow through me. In reading back over the words I wrote, it was plain they were not my own. I don’t believe I could have been as kind and understanding. I also would not have dared approach the topic at hand due to the prevalence of fear of the potential loss of a relationship to one I dearly love.

But I did have the conversation, with my notes in front of me just in case I could not remember everything, and to this moment, I have a hard time recalling my the words. I know that He was with me guiding me and leading me to share what needed to be said so that another would see the outcome of the path they were about to embark upon in their life. Thankfully, by God’s grace, I was received graciously. Though I am sure there were probably some hidden emotions and a good bit of anger expressed later; but for the moment, it seemed all had gone well.

After several days have passed,  I can see more clearly why God invites us to come to know Him.  In my faithfulness to Him, my action of doing what He led me to do, I can see where each person involved was the receiver of outcomes which have proven to have greater value and a more positive impact on their lives. It was because I listened and followed where I was led to have this difficult but necessary conversation.   I am so grateful that we have a Father who loves us more than we can fathom and that His hand is covering us as we walk through this world!

I never understood how or why to place boundaries in my life until I began to get a taste of how much God loves me.  It is this revelation where He empowers us to stand for what is good for the whole. This has opened the door to a new way of living for me that I never imagined.  Jesus Christ has His hand outstretched to us inviting us to know Him deeper.  He used boundaries in His life, drawing others to Him through His loving acts.

Photo by Joshua Cowan on Unsplash