Respecting Boundaries

 

    Setting boundaries is easy.  It is declaring where you are willing to and not wiling to go.  It is holding up the boundaries that may be difficult for some people.  There may seem to be a little wiggle room that makes you forget momentarily why you set the boundaries.  You may feel pressure from other people.  That is a challenge for most people.  
    Not everyone will respect your boundaries.  Some people will try to push right past the line and not care that it is there for a reason.  It may prove to be difficult to repeat yourself over and over again about what your boundaries are and why, but that is what we have to do to honor God.

    The Hebrew nation Had conquered a lot of land, but it was just a portion.  They still had to take the land from the Philistines and Geshurites.  It was a vast amount of land.  Joshua was advanced in age at this point.  It would have been easy for him to say, I am retiring you go on do what you want.  

    Half of the Manasseh tribe, Reubenite Tribe, and Gadite tribes had their land.  They were still with the nations to get the other tribes their nation because they were respecting the boundaries laid out before they began this long and hard journey.  

    The Levites honored the fact they they did not get any land because they lived dispersed among all the tribes.  The nation had been at this for a long time.  It would have been easy to say I am done fighting, lets just redefine the boundary lines and settle for what we have.  However, that was not part of God's plan.

    The journey had come a long way, but it was not over yet.  They still had further to go.  God knows how impatient humans are.  He allowed them to rest and rejuvenation.  Then He reminded them of His promise to them of the land, so that they would not just settle with the status quo.  Boundaries can help us keep moving, stay focused, and not settle in life.

Joshua 13