My Good Things

Sometimes I struggle with wanting to define my place in the world. I am probably trying to be in control, take the reins of life and know definitively--"this is my role; this is who I am; this is where we live and will put down roots." Sometimes I extend this into a desire to tell the future--"where will we be in 10 years? are we having any more children? will I go back to work one day? when? and what will I be doing?"

I have come back to Psalm 16 twice this week, and it has been sweet to me. I see so many nuggets in it, but I will focus on one aspect today.

"'You are my Lord; apart from you I have no good thing. ...
Lord, you have assigned me my portion and my cup;
you have made my lot secure.
The boundary lines have fallen for me in pleasant places;
surely I have a delightful inheritance" (Psalm 16: 2, 5-6).

What is my assigned portion? What assignment has God given to me personally at this point in time? Apart from Him, I have NO good thing. So, no point in striving after things of this world, things that are apart from Him. The portion He has assigned to me has also been put in my lot. He's made my lot secure. He's drawn a boundary around where I need to be right now... these pleasant places... a delightful inheritance!

It helped me today to ask: what is my assigned portion? I came up with this short list: home (and I'm lumping husband in with this!), children, and writing.

I think this question is a good one to ask at different seasons in life. God is so personal with us, so individual, that He can reveal our sometimes shifting portions in their time. I want to sit still and relish the security of being where He has me.

"Therefore my heart is glad and my tongue rejoices; my body also will rest secure" (Psalm 16: 9).