Taste and See

"Oh, taste and see that the Lord is good! Blessed is the man who takes refuge in Him!" Psalm 34:8

How do we taste and see that God is good?

I looked up the words "taste and see" in this verse. And the Hebrew root words for both words mean "to taste; figuratively, to perceive...perceive, taste." The Hebrew root word for "perceive" meant the same thing. Then I looked up the regular definition for "perceive" and it had two definitions, 1) to become aware of, know, or identify by means of the senses, and 2) to recognize, discern, envision, or understand.

This just showed me another way that God intricately works things.

So if we want to "taste and see" God in this sense, then we need to perceive God, and in order to perceive God we must:

• Become aware of Him in our lives
• Know Him
• We can identify Him with our senses (Yes with all five senses. Examples in the Bible: Moses saw God, the Israelites heard God's army go before them, the Israelites tasted bread from Heaven, Mary wiped Jesus' feet with her hair, and the sweet smell in the Holy Place in the Temple.)
• Recognize God in our lives
• Discern what is of God, and what is not
• Envision Him
• Understand His heart

That's quite the list. But if all of God's people would focus on doing these things, there wouldn't be any doubt that God is good---among believers and un-believers!

And imagine the things that would happen if we would use even two of our sense to know God better!

---Joy

A David Psalm

When you watch the news and hear about all the terrible stuff happening, does it freak you out at all? Does something like a plane crash make you declare, "We are never flying again," and then a car pile up makes you decide that you and your family are never leaving the house again?

When life gets scary, it is easier to put your trust in the physical things around you. This isn't a new problem, one that's only associated with our day and age, but a problem as old as time.

"The war horse is a false hope for salvation, and by its great might it cannot rescue." Psalm 33:17

King David addressed this problem several times in his psalms. He had seen his fair share of battles and bad things, and he knew that the things on this earth wouldn't save him. He compared this to putting his trust in a war horse. The war horse couldn't save him in his lowest hour, nor could it rescue him.

"Some trust in chariots and some in horses, but we trust in the name of the LORD our God." Psalm 20:7

David knew that the things associated with victory and safety in his day would never save him. They would never give him comfort and peace. They would never rescue him. David knew that he needed to trust in God. He knew that only God would fill him when life was scary, crazy, and hard.

Practical application: when those things start to suffocate you, start praying! Pray in the spirit, pray out loud, pray against the things that would frighten you. Declare the goodness of God. Claim His peace. Pray.

Sounds kind of like one of David's psalms.

---Joy

"The Inscription Reads"

And this is the inscription that was written: Mene, Mene, Tekel, Upharsin. Daniel 5:25

Daniel was brought before the king to interpret the inscription that had been written on the wall  because of his reputation. The king put it this way as he sought out Daniel, " I  have heard of you, that the Spirit of God is in you, and that light and understanding and excellent wisdom are found in you." Daniel 5:14
A pretty cool thing for the king to be declaring about Daniel in his hour of need.

Daniel on the other hand had different things to say about the king. He started his interpretation by reminding the king about Nebuchadnezzar and all that had transpired with him. He reminded him about how he had become full of pride, become like a beast until his heart attitude had changed, declared that God was the Most High God and that it was He who had given him his kingdom not his own efforts. After the reminder Daniel told him this key statement, "But you his son, Belshazzar, have not humbled your heart, although you knew all this. And you have lifted yourself up against the Lord of heaven."  Daniel 25:23

He knew! He knew what the right way was. He had made choices that put him in a place where a man's hand appeared and wrote on a wall. He knew in is heart that what it said wasn't going to be good. It says that 'his countenance changed, and his thoughts troubled him, so that his hips were loosened and his knees knocked against each other.' in verse 6.  He was afraid because in his heart he knew he had been doing wrong.

After saying this to the king Daniel then proceeds to read the writing on the wall. "Mene: God has numbered your kingdom, and finished it; Tekel: You have been weighed in the balances, and found wanting; Upharsin: Your kingdom has been divided, and given to the Medes and Persians."

'You have been weighed in the balances, and found wanting' How would you like this to be the inscription written about you? Daniel and Belshazzar had very different reputations and the key to that difference is found in Daniel's statement to Belshazzar in verse 23.  "... but you have not humbled your heart, although you knew all this.' Belshazzar made a choice not to walk in the way he knew in his heart was right while Daniel purposed to keep the ways of God. He chose to serve God no matter what.

As His people we know His word and the choice to be obedient to it lies with us. We know the right way and we need to choose to walk in it and to serve Him with all our hearts! The choices we make to do what we know is right will determine the inscription that can be written about us can be, 'Well done my good and faithful servant,' or 'You have been weighed in the balances and found wanting.'

Seek God's Faces

"You have said, 'Seek My face.' My heart says to you, 'Your face, LORD, do I seek." Psalm 27:8


My Bible has two footnotes for this verse. The first note is for the first "seek," and it says, "The command ("seek") is addressed to more than one person. The second note is for the entire verse, and it says, "The meaning of the Hebrew verse is uncertain."

From what we see in the verse and the footnotes, we can take the obvious context: God telling all of us to seek His face.

But there is more to it.

This verse is telling us to seek God's face, but God is more then just one. He is Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. The command is addressed to more then one person, because we need to seek the face of more then one person. This verse is telling each of us to seek the face of God the Father, Jesus the Son, and the Holy Spirit.

It's not enough to zero in on just one Person of the Trinity forever. You will learn a lot, but you will never really know Him.  However, when you seek all of God, you will come to know Him as never before. You will see His faces.

"Ask His Counsel"

In verses Joshua 9:3-6 we see where the people of Gibeon came up with a plan to trick Joshua and the people of Israel. 'But when the inhabitants of Gibeon heard what Joshua had done to Jericho and Ai, they worked craftily, and went and pretended to be ambassadors. And they took old sacks on their donkeys, old wineskins, torn and mended, old and patched sandals on their feet, and old garments on themselves; and all the bread of their provision was dry and moldy. And they  went to Joshua, to the camp at Gilgal, and said to him and to the men of Israel, "We have come from a far country; now therefore, make a covenant with us."

They had heard what had happened to Jericho and Ai and didn't want to go to war with Israel along with the rest of the inhabitants of the surrounding territories. They decided to trick them into making a covenant with them.  They thought it was a better plan for survival and the thing is, it worked. They were able to put one over on them by appearing to have traveled a great distance.

Then the men of Israel took some of their provisions; but they did not ask counsel of the Lord. So Joshua made peace with them to let them live; and the rulers of the congregation swore to them. And it happened at the end of three days, after they had made a covenant with them, that they heard that they were their neighbors who dwelt near them. Joshua 9:14-16

Joshua and the elders fell for the craftily laid plan because they believed what they saw with their eyes. They believed the  worn clothes and the worn sandals. They believed the mended wineskins and the moldy bread.  They believed the evidence in front of them and they trusted in their own ability to make decisions, but they forgot to do the one thing we all need to do whenever there is a decision to make. It says they forgot the most important thing, '...but they did not ask counsel of the Lord.' We as His people need to not trust in what we see or in our own ability but we must look to Him to lead and to guide our choices each day.  We must, 'Ask His Counsel!

The Secret Counsel of God

"The friendship (or secret counsel) of the LORD is for those who fear Him, and He makes known to them His covenant." Psalm 25:14

This is a cool verse! God is going to tell stuff to the people who have a healthy dose of respect and awe for Him. He will make covenants with them. He will give His friendship and secret counsel to them.

You see this all throughout the Bible. David was called a man after God's own heart. God made a covenant with him. Samuel was a prophet, and God confided His secret counsel in him. Abraham was called the friend of God, and God made a covenant with him. Elijah, Elisha, Moses, Joshua, Peter, Paul, Deborah, Simon, Anna, Jeremiah, and so many others experienced these things.

What did all these men and women have in common, that resulted in God choosing them?

They feared God. They had respect for Him. They loved Him. They stood in awe and humility before Him. They had real relationships with God. A true friendship. It was not mediocre or casual.

A lot of people think that kind of a relationship with God is dead. It's no wonder we hardly see the miracles of the days of old!

"For the Lord LORD does nothing without revealing His secret to His servants the prophets." Amos 3:7

However, Amos 3:7 clearly says God does nothing without first telling His people. Big things are going to happen, and God is going to be talking to His people about them. My question to you is, are you going to be in on God's secret counsel, His friendship, and His covenant?

---Joy

"Strike Three Times?"

Then he said, "Take the arrows;" so he took them. And he said to the king of Israel, "Strike the ground;" so he struck three times, and stopped. And the man of God was angry with him, and said, "You should have struck five or six times; then you would have struck Syria till you had destroyed it. But now you will strike Syria only three times." 2 Kings 13:18-19

Joash the king of Israel had come to Elisha and asked him for help. Elisha told him to get a bow and some arrows and had him shoot one of the arrows out the window. As he did this he spoke prophetically and called it 'the arrow of deliverance.' He then had him take the arrows and strike the ground. The king did it three times. Elisha was upset that he ONLY struck it three times. He was upset that he hadn't struck it five or six times because that was how many times he would strike Syria.

As I was reading this today it made me wonder. How many times would I have struck? How many times have I stopped short of receiving the fulness of His provision in my life because of the limits I put on God's ability to answer my cries for help.  Joash is the one who went to Elisha for help.  He knew that Elisha was 'the prophet of God.' He knew that they were in a 'Prophetic moment.' When Elisha spoke and told him to strike the ground he should have struck it and kept on striking it till he was told different. Instead he stopped short and because he did it had an impact on his ability to overcome his enemy.

How often do we give ground to our enemy because we like Joash forget to embrace the answer He gives us? How often do we like Joash stop short of receiving all that He wants to do on our behalf when we cry out to Him for help?

Its time that we as His people decide to do more than to 'strike three times.'  We need to "Go Big" and start believing and receiving all that He has made available for us.  Remember, do more than 'strike three times' today!