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Psalm 34:8 – O taste and see that God is good: blessed is the man that trusteth in him. (KJV)
Prior to holidays or special occasions for which she was baking, my mother bought staples for making all sorts of treats. Borden® Eagle Brand® Sweetened Condensed Milk was my dad's favourite. With Elsie® the Borden® Cow smiling out invitingly from the wrapper, how could he resist? Besides, it was very sweet to taste. Daddy stood by Mom as she worked, and with eyes a-twinkle and a silly smile, he would open a can. Then, with a small spoon, he would take one taste at a time, savouring the treat. The flavour of the treat was comforting and gave him pleasure, but it was not healthy for him.
In today's verse, David draws our attention to tasting and seeing that God is good. Like Daddy tasted and savoured the baking milk, David tells us to taste and see the Lord's goodness. It seems that every Scripture has some sort of promise to taste. The Lord's goodness is so flavourful and rich that we can barely take it all in, so we take small tastes. Believers can savour God's Word, word by word, like Daddy savoured the sweetened milk spoonful by spoonful. However, the beauty of God's Word is that it teaches us who God is, and brings health to our spirit life. If our spirit life is healthy, then our physical health will improve. Each taste of God's Word is pleasing. It saves and forgives us from our sins, instructs us, and comforts us in trials.
We know that Christ is the connection between God's Word and our spiritual understanding. What is intangible to others, He makes tangible to believers through His Holy Spirit and Scripture. Sometimes, we feel like we are fighting an unseen enemy. Yet, when Jesus shows us how the enemy works, we can approach the situation with the power and protection of Christ. As we taste the Scripture, we never forget its flavour, and the Holy Spirit brings the knowledge and ideas to apply to each challenge. The longer we read, listen to, and pray God's Word, the more faith that we build as we see Christ, God's Word, working in our lives.
Are we savouring the sweetness of Scripture? Are we making a quiet place to pray, read, and worship? If we aren't, let's praise His holy name and pray that He will remind us to do so. He is so good to answer these prayers as we look to the light of Christ to draw us toward Himself.
Prayer: Dear Lord, we appreciate that You instruct us to learn of Your Word and see that You are good. Thank You for teaching us line upon line and precept upon precept, one taste at a time, as we savour Your goodness to its depths. Amen.
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Lovely stuff, full of memories and promises, Karen. Thank you.
Good one Karen.
Your writing warmed my heart. Thank you.
Good morning Karen,
Just a little note to tell you that I enjoyed your devotional this morning. Good words that we should always savor God’s words.
Thank you for writing.
Blessings.
Karen, I really appreciated your devotional today! I was right there with your daddy opening the tin (although I don’t believe I ever tasted it right out of the can). Your comparison of that smooth richness and tasty samples resonated with me when it came to tasting, savouring and being nourished by the Word! I particularly appreciated your prayer.
Dear Karen,
Thank you for the great reminder of savouring God’s word to improve our faith and follow his light and shine it for others. I liked your story about your dad standing beside your mom as she baked and tasting the sweetened condensed milk. Good memories of our family help us each day to build good memories with God. May you be joyful and taste the good word.
Dear Karen,
You have written a great analogy of the sweet taste of milk your dad had experienced, and the sweetness of the Lord’s word that we can experience one taste at a time by devouring His word. Digesting and following the words of scripture is very enriching to our lives and is something we can do each day through reading our Bible.
Thank you for another of your most meaningful writings.
I use a Bible reading guide from the Canadian Bible Society and discover passages I have never before read and “quotes” the origin of which I did not know. Great tool, and available online.