As I sit here and write, my lack
of taste is evident. I have been dreaming about a pazooki since my husband
brought home vanilla ice cream midweek but my lack of taste makes it all
irrelevant. What is a gooey, half baked chocolate chip cookie, topped with
melting ice cream, when you cannot taste it? Colds are the current state of our
home. We started the week prior with the stomach flu and moved on to colds this
past week but God has been so merciful throughout it all. We have been resting
and resting and waiting for our health to return, which is just what God has
been teaching each new day.
Taste is a vast part of life. It is an experience that weaves itself in to memories. A warm cherry
pie may take you back to childhood and the kitchen of your grandmother or a
summer picnic. Taste may drive you to fill your full tummy with yet another
sweet delight or an extra scoop of mashed potatoes. Foods are longed for because
of their saltiness or sweetness. But when taste buds are out of sorts, the
same desired food means nothing despite its appealing lure.
Taste and see that the Lord is good. Psalm
34:8
Have you tasted God's goodness?
Truly savored the forgiving grace of God? The insurmountable blessings all
around you? The joy. The peace. The love. The patience. The kindness. The
faithfulness. The gentleness. The self control. Have you undeniably experienced
God?
When you experience the goodness
of God, you are not the same. Tasting
God is more than an alter call or hand raise or prayer. It is a change of
heart and true forgiveness to those who have wronged you. It is an act of faith
and quieting of yourself. It is learning to trust. It is waiting and resting
and restoration. It involves sacrifice. It touches every part of your body, healing as it moves.
For some, God reveals himself in
dramatic ways and meets you with blinding bright lights and for others it is a
one on one encounter. From there, you are left with an experience you cannot
deny but may not know what to do with. And you go about your day as usual.
To begin to acknowledge the
goodness of God is similar to healing from a cold. It does not happen
overnight. It takes time. It requires waiting. Resting is essential and
listening to the advice of those who have ears that hear.
Praying that your senses would be
opened to experiencing God and that the goodness would overflow to others, as
well. Praying that you would quiet your heart and schedule to truly bask in the
presence of God because busy and overcommitted ears are hardly open to hear.
Praying that if you have made a commitment
to follow Christ that it would be more than a decision but an ongoing
relationship, ever growing.
Here's to tasting and seeing.