Boundaries

In order to be able to pass through life having a healthy relationship with your fellow man, you need boundaries, boundaries that mark your private ground and your property. As defined on the back cover of the book, a boundary is "personal property line that marks those things for which we are responsible" and, further more, boundaries "define who we are and who we are not."

Dr, Henry Cloud and Dr. John Townsend explain the concept of boundary and help answer questions that many Christians usually ask themselves. In setting boundaries and being a good Christian, we sometimes find ourselves in a paradox-type situation: it is clear we need our private space and our private property, but won't this bring us closer to the selfish unchristian way? Basing their answers directly on the Bible, the two writers help us find a common ground between the two concepts and help the Christian define and build boundaries between himself and the world, while still being a good Christian.

The book establishes the need for boundaries in one's life, but, at the same time, explains how boundaries can be worked upon so as to achieve the right level. Over flexible boundaries at one end and rigid boundaries at the others are the two extreme limits between which the problem of boundary settings lies. How to achieve the right level for the boundary is a question we have always asked ourselves and to which the book attempts biblical answers. The front cover in fact gives us the whole idea of what this book is about: "when to say yes/when to say no to take control of your life."

Keen in showing some of the common Christian misconceptions about boundaries, the book is set to develop a basic set of rules that will help one develop some healthy limits between him and the outer world.

Bibliography

http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg/detail/-/0310585902/102-7?v=glance&s=books&vi=reviews http://www.familychristian.com/shop/product.asp?ProdID=276