Boundaries... not so scary after all!

Boundaries.... not such a scary thing after all!
As a long time people pleaser I used to get pretty squeamish about the word boundaries..... It made me pretty nervous. I mean, boundaries are restrictions right?? They are meant to put up a wall betwween you and another person and that means your being unreasonable and mean... right??
Recently I'm learning this is not true at all. I am falling in love with boundaries and the life and  freedom God intends for us when we install healthy boundaries in our lives.God did not intend for us to live our lives at the whim and ever changing feelings of those around us. He meant us for so much more. If we are constantly worried and stressed about the people in our lives and what they might think of what we are doing, we leave no room for a Heavenly Father who is all knowing and loving. Living how others think you should is never easy or fun, and actually impossible. There are many people in our lives, if we try to please all of them we run in circles like a dog chaisng it's tail but never really getting there.
I choose to live within healthy boundaries. I fail sometimes but more and more I am making better choices. I choose to listen to my Heavenly Father over any other voices. I choose to hope. Hope is a wonderful thing. On your darkest days hope is a choice to see a better tomorrow. Hope is the choice to trust the promises of God and not listen to the lies of the Great Deceiver. God gives us hope, thru his Son. We need to choose that hope.