I’m going to share a couple of things with you this morning that I know I have shared in times past, but they bear repeating.
My dad loved life. The things he did, he did with his whole heart. And he loved to eat my mom’s cooking. Everyone like eating at my house – Mom was a great cook. Anyway, daddy had a saying that there was only one way to ruin pie and that was to cut it. His meaning was clear, he didn’t want to share but he wanted to eat the whole thing. That pie was his “portion”.
That analogy has stuck with me for years. And when I found this verse in Psalm 119, the verse took on a greater meaning.
“Thou art my portion, O Lord: I have said that I would keep thy words.” Psalm 119:57 KJV
“The Lord is my share. I have promised to obey Your Word.” Psalm 119:57 NLV
King David saw the Lord as his portion. He didn’t just want part of God and His word, he wanted to consume all that God was and did. Another verse in Acts makes this testimony of David.
“ When God took Saul as king from them, He made David to be their king. He said, ‘David, Jesse’s son, will please My heart. He will do all I want done.’” Acts 13:22 NLV
Not only had David chosen God as his portion but the Lord found in David a man he could trust to do the right thing – to seek Him and follow his leading.
Was David perfect? No! but he was quick to repent. So now I need to ask you and myself as well, is the Lord my portion or do I have other things that would distract and steal my affection?
About 45 years ago there was a song in Christian circles by an artist Twilla Parris. It was entitled, “Secret Place”. The words of this song still minister to me today. It asks, will you let Him in your secret place?
What’s the thing that is keeping us from making the Lord our portion, that little sliver that we hold back? We need to let it go and let the Lord fill that secret place with Himself.
Following the Lord doesn’t mean that we won’t face obstacles, battles or persecution but it does mean that the Lord will walk with us through the storms, give us strength and peace and bring us out to a place of victory.
“I am your servant, Lord, and you have kept your promise to treat me with kindness. 66 Give me wisdom and good sense. I trust your commands.67 Once you corrected me for not obeying you, but now I do obey. 68 You are kindhearted, and you do good things, so teach me your laws. 69 My reputation is being ruined by conceited liars, but with all my heart I follow your teachings. 70 Those liars have no sense, but I find happiness in your Law. 71 When you corrected me, it did me good because it taught me to study your laws.72 I would rather obey you than to have a thousand pieces of silver and gold.” Psalm 119:65-72 ERV
Lord, I want You to be my portion – my whole portion. Reveal to me any “secret” places that I have kept back from You and give me the courage to let You shine the light of Your love into that darkness and bring me out into the warmth of Your healing. Amen!