Boundaries

I've been writing a lot lately about pruning, the cutting off from my life those things that are not edifying or productive to whom God has created me to be.

In my twenties I learned a lot about boundaries.  I learned how to discern what was harmful and how to keep it from my life.  I learned the Biblical grounds for self respect and how to communicate assertively.

Now in my forties, I've come to a new conclusion:  I don't want to spend my energy discerning what is harmful and having to weed it out from my life.  I want to spend my energy discerning what is good and only allowing the good in.  It's a much more positive approach and I think would require much less energy.  Conserving energy is a good thing at this age. 

Yes, good things require growing pains at times, but is the process producing positive energy, is it growing our spirits or killing them?

How would our lives be different if we only allowed the good things to have power in our lives, if those were the only things in our lives granted permission to come and to stay.    Then it has earned a place at my table.  I think our world would have so much powerful, good energy, we would see radical change!

Jesus kept the negative energy out of His life, but I think it's maybe because He was so focused on letting the positive in.  That's how I want the second half of my life to be.  Instead of taking the energy to focus on what is bad and weed it out or not allow it in, let's use our energy to focus on what is good and welcome it.  It is much more positive to have to dwell on what is good than to have to focus on what is negative, and I think it takes less energy from us to focus on the good and grant it a dwelling place in our souls than to focus on what is bad and weed it out.