Lord, You alone are my portion and my cup; You make my lot secure.  The lines have fallen for me in pleasant places; indeed, I have a beautiful inheritance. Psalm 16:5-6 NIV/ESV

As David hikes up to a higher vantage point and looks out on the landscape of his life, he compares the many blessings he has received from the Lord to a choice piece of land with spacious boundaries – the sight of which he warmly describes as a beautiful inheritance.  With the eyes of his heart, he sees God as both his portion (present) and his lot (future).

Lands, whether an entire nation or your own home-sweet-home, are almost always fixed – limited in size and clearly defined.  But the wonders of God’s love and abundance of His blessings are boundless and without borders – something graciously given as a present possession, yet something we expectantly long for as a future inheritance.  There is both joy now and joy to come for “in His Presence, there is always fullness of joy” Psalm 16:11.

And it seems rather fitting that David’s son, Solomon, is the one who writes a song about another kind of inheritance from the Lord: “Behold, children are a heritage from the Lord, the fruit of the womb a reward” Psalm 127:3 ESV.  As parents, we tend to think about leaving our children an inheritance, but God says that, in Him and through Him, they are our inheritance.  As the lines of His love intersect in marriage, our boundaries branch out into an acreage of endless possibilities and infinite impact through His giving of children.

Since I recently celebrated a fairly significant birthday, both David and Solomon encouraged me to rejoice in the Lord as my portion and my lot, to give thanks for the blessings of a faithful and godly wife, and to gaze upon our beautiful inheritance of children and grandchildren.  Indeed, the lines have fallen in pleasant places and I have no greater joy than to see my children walking with the Lord.  For as they faithfully follow the Lamb wherever He goes, the lines expand exponentially and the borders of the property entrusted to us ever increases.

I guess I’m writing this to tell my children, including my favorite son-in-law and favorite daughter-in-law, and my grandchildren how much I love them, believe in them, value them and long to see God’s plan continue to unfold in their lives.  You are my inheritance from the Lord.  As we keep our hands to the plow by the power of the Spirit, may our land be fertile ground for the seed of His Word, be marked by the well-worn paths of His love and bear much fruit for His glory.

Perhaps today is a good day to value your priceless inheritance?

I will sing the Lord’s praise, for He has been good to me.  Psalm 13:6 NIV