My Field and The Good Portion

Hey!  Hayley of The Tiny Twig here, and I'm totally excited to speak a little on the good portion today.  Several months ago with baby boy number 3 in my belly, the Lord impressed this Scripture on my heart.

The boundary lines have fallen for me in pleasant places... Psalm 16:6a

I didn't always want to be a momma.  In fact, I didn't even really want to get married.  That may surprise some of you since it seems like I practically ran to the alter.  Three weeks after my 20th birthday, I uttered a litany of beautiful promises that I had every intention of keeping.  What a sweet 20 year old bride doesn't know, however, is just what those promises hold.  Those romantic words shape a life for you, one of dying to yourself daily. 

This beautiful and exquisite dying to one's self comes in many shapes and sizes.  For me, it comes in the form of a handsome business man and our 3 small sons.  3 boys, can you believe it?  One right after the other...all sooner than we would have planned.  But, oh, we wouldn't change a thing.  Our portion is good, it is so good.

And, while this life I lead may be more monster trucks and mud puddles than quiet times and long retreats--it is my good portion.  The boundary lines have fallen for me in pleasant places...  

This verse speaks of a field, an inheritance actually, about how the boundaries of this field fell in advantageous ways.  Maybe there was extra fruit in that field?  Maybe it was nice and flat, perfect for farming?  Maybe it had a mountain vista and sweet ocean air?  

The boundary lines in my life have fallen for me in pleasant places.  You see, He knows me.  He is shepherding my heart, with each boundary line he draws.  He has been so good in blessing me with this life.  All I have to do is look at the 3 tiny men that look just like their daddy.  

Living within the boundaries of this life--and this season--may prove frustrating at times.  It's all sippy cups and wiping noses and stepping on legos.  It's staying in more than going out.  

It's driving...a minivan (truth be told, I love that thing).

And that's the thing.  You can look at your field in one of two ways.  You could choose to see only out over the boundary lines--and look to what you don't have and who you won't be and how you weren't made.  OR, you can look within the lines of the field the Lord has blessed you with--and see the fruit that grows there, the landscape that is ripe for the harvest, and the beautiful views.

That field?  That field and our sweet Jesus is the good portion.