Quotes about Relationships

But we can't enable bad behavior in ourselves and others and call it love. We can't tolerate destructive patterns and call it love. And we can't pride ourselves on being loyal and longsuffering in our relationships when it's really perpetuating violations of what God says love is.

Remember all the work you've done to draw boundaries was not about controlling someone else's behavior. It's about paying attention ad being hones about how someone's poor behavior and lack of responsibility is possibly controlling you. And when people close to us are acting out of control, that's when we run the greater risk of lacking self-control. When a relationship shifts from being difficult to being destructive, it's the right time to consider a goodbye.

Tackle issues not people. Am I trying to prove my point or improve the relationship?

Proximity and activity don't always equal connectivity.

A note from Jim on goodbyes: There's a big difference between waiting for a breaking point and establishing a breaking point. A goodbye shouldn't sneak up on us because if we set boundaries with consequences, breaking points are established ahead of time. As boundary violations occur there will be changes in the relationship so that you can protect yourself from hurtful patterns and behaviors that you are no longer willing to tolerate.

We need to keep a gauge on our hearts so we can process, clarify, and understand our lives and relationships more deeply.

packages of perfection; relationships come in packages of potential.

Finally, if some situations or relationships feed our insecurities, maybe we need to take a break from them for a season.

meant to shove love away. Quite the opposite. We set boundaries so we know what to do when we very much want to love those around us really well without losing ourselves in the process. Good boundaries help us preserve the love within us even when some relationships become unsustainable and we must accept the reality of a goodbye.

No, it's not wrong to need people. But some of our biggest disappointments in life are the result of expectations we have of others that they can't ever possibly meet. That's when the desire to connect becomes an unrealistic need. Unrealistic neediness is actually greediness in disguise. It's saying, "My needs and desires deserve to tap into or possibly even deplete yours." This will never set a relationship up for success.

If the person you are trying so hard not to disappoint will be displeased by a no, they'll eventually be disappointed even if you say yes.

Oh, let it be so noted about my life! That my words, my love for those who love me — and even more, my love for those who don't love me—reveal that, yes, I have been with Jesus.