Exposure of Boundaries Brings Blessings

Yesterday
Mainly I had class. Came home to work on a thousand and one Internet tasks. Jaime enjoyed her violin lesson, went to the gym, and class, but all that in reverse order. We finished a movie we had watched half of, I went to bed, while Jaime worked on other stuff.

The Daily Bible - Genesis 31-33
Jacob leaves Laban. Rachel steals her father's household idols, then sits on them to protect her life. What does that say about idols? The idols weren't protecting Rachel and she sure wasn't honoring them by sitting on them.

Jacob returns to Canaan. Jacob sends gifts ahead to his brother Esau, almost as if to restore the birthright and blessing he stole so many years ago; 200 female and 20 male goats, 200 female and 20 male rams, 30 female camels and their young, 40 cows and 10 bulls, 20 female and 10 male donkeys! Before meeting his brother, Jacob wrestles with God and receives a blessing. His new name is Israel.

Boundaries in Marriage - Applying the Ten Laws of Boundaries to Marriage
Law #10: The Law of Exposure
This law is all about communicating our boundaries to each other. I like to compare this to the invisible fence. Dogs without a leash have a shock collar, but if they aren't taught the purpose of it, introduced to it, they might just run and keep running. (I don't know much about shock collars, but I figure once you get past a certain point it dies out.) Boundaries need to be obvious, introduction of boundaries to your spouse removes a lot of painful learning. If everyone came to the marriage with an awareness of their boundaries this would be easier. But many people aren't sure what their boundaries are, where they are, or how they are offended. As they recognize a boundary has been made, crossed, or otherwise, they need to vocalize this to their loved one.

If the boundaries are not vocalized, exposed, and clarified, then spouses will withdraw because the painful shock they receive has no connection. They will simply say, "That hurt and doesn't make sense. I'll find another way to deal with this need (want, problem, or pain)."

It is better to learn and understand boundaries, facing some initial pain, than to walk around banging into things in the dark. Turn on the lights and find the boundaries, open up to one another compassionately and expose the landmines, bridges, rivers, moats, alligators, walls, and whatever you have erected for your personal protection. Then as the relationship develops and trust is built, it is possible to downgrade the fortresses, allowing for more access to the sensitive areas and for more healing and blessings to come through one another.

Prayer
Thank you God for continuing to partner with humanity in spite of our sinfulness. Thank you for making us holy so we can come into your presence. Tear down our defensive walls and let us experience you blessings. God come into our presence daily. Let us know you and enjoy your presence. Thank you for Jesus and all that he has done on our behalf to honor you!