“Lord, You have assigned me my portion and my cup and have made my lot secure.” Psalm 16:5 NIV
In her book Keep a Quiet Heart, Elisabeth Elliot states, “I know of no greater simplifier for all of life. Whatever happens is assigned. Does the intellect balk at that? Can we say there are things which happen to us which do not belong to our lovingly assigned “portion” (“This belongs to it, that does not”)? Are some things, then, out of the control of the Almighty? Every assignment is measured and controlled for my eternal good. As I accept the given portion other options are cancelled. Decisions become much easier, directions clearer, and hence my heart becomes inexpressibly quieter.”
I’ll admit, this is a hard truth to appropriate. Yet there is much freedom and hope when we yield our future to God. The greater angst is found in trying to cling to things and individuals that are here today and gone tomorrow. It is that knowledge, that certainty that God is in control, that our reality and God’s sovereign purpose are not disparate but indelibly linked that generates a faith that can testify, “This is my portion and my cup,” even in the toughest times. Because our greatest portion is God (Lamentations 3:24). He is the One who redeems our earthly lot and secures it for eternity – therefore we have hope in Him.
Prayer: Lord, sometimes I wish certain things weren’t my lot in life, especially the heartache and pain. Help me to accept the good and the not-so-good as gifts from your hand, investments in the formation of my character, and spiritual growth. I thank you that whatever waters I pass through, they are meant for my eternal good and your glory. In your name I pray, Amen.
Thought: “When peace like a river, attendeth my way, When sorrows like sea billows roll, Whatever my lot, thou hast taught me to say, It is well, it is well, with my soul.” Horatio Spafford.