Boundaries #2
Dr. Henry Cloud and Dr. John Townsend note this first crucial guidance in their 10 Laws of Boundaries:
- The Law of Sowing and Reaping- Our actions have consequences.
From time to time, I assess some situation in my life and quickly discover that the math works out. For instance, when I eat too many calories and stop exercising, I gain weight and get weaker. When I eat lean and clean food and engage an exercise routine, I trim down again and move toward better fitness. When I avoid a difficult task, it doesn’t get done and I start to worry about it. When I identify the steps and tackle it head on, I knock it out quicker than I imagined and the worry dissipates.
1 + 1 = 2
Almost always, this is how it works. In relationships as well, we typically reap what we sow. When we put ourselves in someone else’s shoes to consider life from their perspective, we speak and act towards them with a heightened sense of understanding. Usually, this is eventually recognized and reciprocated. In those instances when it is not, we at least know that we have done our best.
What are you sowing and reaping? What consequences are your actions producing? Take a moment to articulate and be proud of the good ones. If you identify a result you don’t like, consider how you might improve your approach.
Worth Repeating
You have to sow before you can reap. You have to give before you can get.
-Robert Collier
