Spirituality 101 Report: Healthy Boundaries
If people in your life are not toxic enough to completely eliminate, but you do have issues from time to time, it is time take a moment to pause. The point to having relationships is to connect on a positive level to share and enhance each others lives. If both are not benefiting from the relationship, it is in essence a unilateral relationship. It becomes easier over time for people to take advantage of you once they have gotten away with it in the past. Setting healthy boundaries is important in your spiritual walk as well. God demands equality in His world because all of His children are created equally in His eyes. If you are not commanding respect from the people in your life, you are letting God down. Lukewarm commitment to God does not yield any worthwhile fruit. God expects full commitment to bear witness to His blessings including commanding respect from those in your life.
It takes time and dedication on working to build healthy and rewarding relationships, but if you’re not willing to do the work, it is probably best to be alone. If you are the type that has to have someone around because you feel lonely or sad by yourself, I invite you to find your happiness and solace with God. The empty feeling you have when you are alone is the absence of God, nothing more.
As stated, setting healthy boundaries is imperative to your success on your spiritual journey. In analyzing the relationships in your life, you may find two common problems most people face. Either you lack the ability to articulate your feelings, or you lack the courage to stand up for yourself. The inability to express oneself can become frustrating. If both parties are unable to communicate effectively, a fight is inevitable. The problem then becomes an unsolvable riddle that leads to the demise of the relationship. Remember, it is not what you say, but how you say it, so be cognizant of how you communicate your feelings to others. Either those feelings of frustration can prevent you from expressing your feelings in the future, or you have always lacked self-confidence to articulate your wants and needs. Either way, if you do not have the courage to stand up for yourself, you will inevitably get taken advantage of time and time again. In this instance, you need to learn to say no to others. If someone asks you for something, you need to take the time to think if this serves you both. If you have doubts it is always acceptable to tell people you need time to think or meditate. In giving the distance and time, a new clarity is revealed. That clarity is God leading and guiding you on your path. Remember, those that take you off your path will be gone once you’re lost.