"Do not move the ancient landmark that your fathers have set." (Proverbs 22:28, ESV)

“You can be anything you want! You can do whatever you feel! You can define yourself however you’d like! Don’t let ‘them’ tell you who you are! You are what you determine yourself to be!”

The words sound so lovely, but they lead to pain. The idea that we are entirely self-determinate beings, deciding for ourselves what our limits are, what our preferences are, and even what our genders are (if any) is a fallacy. We can and should, of course, strive to be as faithful as we can with what God has allotted to us — I want to be the best version of Nate Holdridge I can be — but God has drawn boundary lines each one of us is called to live within.

This striving, the attempt to live outside the boundary markers God has drawn, inevitably leads to pain. Any endeavor to be something we weren’t designed for has drawbacks. It is only in connection to God — through the cross — we can find real rest for our souls.

The reality is that in Christ the lines have fallen to us in pleasant places (Psalm 16:6). As surely as sparks fly upward, you may have been born into adversity (Job 5:7). You may know many who were born into privilege, into peace, into a healthy environment. Do not begrudge them, for in Christ Jesus you have new boundaries drawn for you. He is your treasure, and you can spend your life exploring the vast newness that is yours in Christ. He has blessed you, if you are His, with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places (Ephesians 1:3).

I am limited. My gifts, my abilities, my education, my experiences — they are all limited. I want to be the best version of myself, so I try to be faithful with everything I’ve received, but I can only go so far. I have distinct boundaries given me by God. Rather than try to move them, rather than try to get rid of them, rather than try to act as if they don’t exist, I receive them. I rejoice in them. I celebrate the boundaries of God, for God is good. Therefore the lines He has drawn is for my highest good.