“One must put up barriers to keep oneself intact.” (Neil Peart, Geddy Lee & Alex Lifeson)

In 1981 you would have found my buddies and I belting out these familiar words from my favorite Rush song, ‘Limelight’. Neil Peart told stories with his songs- timeless messages that still ring true.

Years ago when I first heard Andy Stanley speak about the necessity of establishing borders in one’s life to serve as guardrails, those long ago lyrics came to mind.

They may have been referring to different areas in which to apply barriers but they were both advising the same principle: protect your integrity by instilling limits. It’s a formula so basic, you’d think that all of us would have grasped and applied it from the get-go.

Not me. 

Only in my fervent effort to develop the seed of self-control that lives within each of us into a full-grown established and invincible “muscle” did I learn that not only had I neglected to establish borders in my life, I wasn’t even aware of the necessity in doing so. Or if I was unconsciously aware of it, clearly I was not now nor had I ever been, strict about adhering to them.

I had a tendency toward impulsivity and living in the moment, arriving wherever it carried me, which often led to use of poor judgement.

Andy Stanley says this is living on the edge, to which he adds: “As we all know, if you live on the edge, it’s just one tiny mistake and it’s a disaster.”  

Um, yep. Disaster. I’ve been there. I don’t wish to return.

But wishing doesn’t cut it. It takes action.

Building and maintaining any muscle- both physical and spiritual- requires effort and vigilance. Yes, it may be my natural tendency to crave that which is high intensity and teetering on the very edge- so much so that I actually started breathing a little harder and getting excited just typing those words- but that’s just one facet of myself.

By taking control of those impulses and harnessing them in a way in which their power can be most constructively utilized, that tail no longer wags this dog.

Just because something doesn’t come naturally to you doesn’t mean it’s not available for you to learn.

By the same token, just because something does come naturally to you doesn’t mean you must default to it and allow it to control you. Instead, push past your default, acknowledge and respect its existence and seize the control it takes to utilize its power in a manner that serves rather than compromises you.

You have the power to do so. You always have.

That’s going to mean instilling some barriers– a guardrail or two which we may bump against but then recover from when we get too close to the edge rather than that one-way trip to the bottom of the abyss that flying by the seat of our pants may land us in.

Intensity is a rush. But keeping oneself intact carries a rush of its own.