In a world that pushes autonomy, the idea that our lives and bodies are not our own can feel countercultural—even uncomfortable. The messages surrounding us tend to encourage self-focus with phrases like “It’s my body, my choice” or “You do you, boo.” While these may sound empowering, they can distract us from the truth. We were created not for ourselves but for God’s glory.

Over the past three years, I have endured a painful season of hurt and betrayal by people close to me. What made these incredibly painful experiences is how blindsided I felt by the other person's actions.

I am one of the hosts for our Girl Listen Up Podcast…In one of our episodes, we talk about friendships and our personal experiences with them. In the episode, I share how I went through a season of loneliness. Since someone out there could relate to my story, I wanted to go more in depth to encourage you.

For the past six years, I’ve struggled with dips into depression and anxiety in my fight against PTSD. In recent months, I’ve felt stronger, happier and healthier. I wondered what has been the most helpful to turning my thinking around – back towards God?

How could it end after that renewing of our commitment to one another? And after we had discovered so many gifts and abilities of our members? To add to the angst is my own personal experience with loss.

I am often not good at establishing, or maintaining boundaries. There are times when I feel like boundaries are “selfish” – a way to protect my interests when I “could” or “should” be doing something for someone else.