"The Lord is my chosen portion and my cup; you hold my lot. The boundary lines have fallen for me in pleasant places; I have a goodly heritage" ~Psalm 16:5-6
I learned a little something about boundaries last week. I recently adopted a dog and overall he is a GOOD dog. He is house trained, he listens to the word "No," and he is just generally not a loud dog (which I appreciate a LOT early in the morning). However, I had to be reminded the hard way that he is still a puppy, still only a year old, and still has a lot to learn and mature into.
I thought I would do him a favor and leave him on the patio while I was at work, you know give him some room to stretch his legs so he wouldn't be stuck in a small kennel all day long. I wanted to give him freedom, I wanted to let him have more space, extend the boundary lines if you will. Then the storms rolled in…
You see in Houston we have a saying, "if you don't like the weather, just wait a few minutes and it will change." And so it did. I probably should have known it was going to be stormy and I probably also should have known that shepherd dogs do not like storms, but I didn't. I thought the sun umbrella I put up would be enough to shelter him but Rex (that is his name) didn't have the same reasoning. The storms freaked him out so much he dug up 2 heavy stepping stones and 2 brick garden borders, ripped up the bottom of my fence, and escaped into my neighbor's patio losing his collar in the process. This wouldn't be as impressive if it weren’t for the fact that Rex only has 3 functional legs…he was bound and determined to find a safe place and landed himself in a strange garden. Lucky for me he was back on my patio by the time I got home (I guess he didn't like it over there?), I was able to reach the collar with a ladder and a rake, and my neighbor didn't have any damage that warranted fixing (he ate some bushes…oy vey).
The Damage
Needless to say I went through every emotion in the spectrum. Joyful he was ok, angry at the damage, concerned that he wrecked my neighbor's property, and terrified of our future together. Could I handle a dog? Am I just a bad owner? Lots of tears flowed and when the tears subsided there was laughter. "He's a puppy," my dad reminded me, "he might just have to be in the kennel for a while."
Rex needed boundaries and I needed to give them to him. Not only that, the boundaries of a kennel would be good for him and my property, the home I have made before he came along. He won't be kenneled while I am at work forever. Eventually he will be allowed to stay out on the patio again, but that will come with maturity.
I remembered back to the life I had when I first came back to Church, there were a lot of boundaries I had to live within because of my past, because I was "new" again to living a life that reflected Christ. I had to re-learn everything; I had to start out at the infant stage again. But I didn't have boundaries because I was being punished. Remember I was in Christ as a believer and therefore not condemned (Romans 8:1), I was free (Galatians 5:1). The boundaries I had been given through convictions from God were to strengthen me, remind me of who I was in Christ and the power that came with. I had to mature, I had to grow up in my faith, and God used those boundaries to protect me and lead me.
The amazing thing is some of those boundaries have changed and moved. But I remember His protection and the purpose for those boundaries when they were initially set and it makes me all the more grateful of God's work in my life and increases my desire to obey His commands and submit to Him with my whole life.
"The Lord is my chosen portion and my cup; you hold my lot. The boundary lines have fallen for me in pleasant places; I have a goodly heritage" ~Psalm 16:5-6
Think on that verse for a minute... What a glorious thought, pleasant places, a goodly heritage. What a promise! To know that God has placed specific boundaries for our good, that are good for us, and that are specific to us. Don't look on His boundary lines as restrictions, but as guard walls from things you are not mature enough to handle yet. Let Him show you how good He is within the kennel (so to speak) so that when you are put out on the patio, given room to stretch your legs, you remember His faithfulness in providing for you, honor His creation around you, and give Him glory in your obedience to His commands.
Katey Hight
My blog: http://sneakersandphylacteries.blogspot.com/
My blog: http://sneakersandphylacteries.blogspot.com/
And just for fun, this is my sweet Rex :)
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