Are you too attached to those you serve?

A friend & I were talking today about serving people.  She made a comment that I thought was really insightful.  She said how easy it was to get so attached to the children in the daycare she used to administer.  The kids didn't have much.  The desire was to take the kids home and feed them and care for them  - to do more than just work with them in the day care.  But that wasn't possible.

I wonder how many of us servants struggle with our calling because we have such a desire to do more than we are capable of doing.  I think this could effect the strength of our service.  If we are pushing ourselves so hard to fix the problems of other people, are we wearing ourselves out prematurely?  Do we put unrealistic demands on ourselves?

How attached are you to your "span of care"?  Is your attachment impacting your effectiveness?  What are the boundaries you've set up to keep yourself strong?

I wonder if Henry Cloud & John Townsend have anything to say about this in their book, Boundaries.  Perhaps I'll pick it up and read it again to see.

** If you've read "Boundaries" or a similar resource on setting boundaries, submit a comment.  We could all benefit.