Taste and See

"O taste and see that the Lord is good..." (Psalm 34:8).

Have you ever had the experience of trying to describe the taste of something to someone? A pie? A cake? A steak? Or maybe some exotic food like alligator, buffalo or armadillo?

Recently I ate a dessert that was brought to our house by a church member. I must say it was exquisite. My mother-in-law came downstairs and, upon seeing the desserts, asked if they were any good. My response (though I at first was tempted to say they were lousy so that I might horde them for myself) was that they were incredible. Then came the series of questions I knew would follow. "So what is it? What does it taste like?"

I tried by best to explain exactly what it tasted like, but I eventually gave up. I ended by telling her this: "Oh, they are good. I'm certain if you eat some, you'll definitely like it."

David wrote numerous Psalms. These songs were often about the Lord, either who He is or what He had done. Time and time again he sought to describe the matchless God to the ones who heard the song or who might read it. But in Psalm 34, there's an invitation.

Instead of simply hearing another man declare the might, the worth, the awesome nature and work of the God of the Universe, David invites the hearer (or the reader) to taste for themselves and see that God is good. Why would anyone be content to hear others speak to the majesty and magnitude of the Lord when they themselves could experience it firsthand?

So often you'll find individuals, whether teenagers, young adults, median adults or senior adults, who like having a leftovers kind of spirituality or even Christianity. They live off the leftovers of yesterday when Jesus Christ was the preeminent One in their life and was revealing Himself over and over again in wonderful ways. Others live off the leftovers of someone else who is and has experienced the presence and power of Jesus Christ in his or her life. And the invitation gets extended once again. Why be content to feast off of leftovers when God wants you to dine at the table with Him eating prime rib?

"O taste and see that the Lord is good..."

Whether our family would have seen Micah do as well as he has or not, the Lord is still good. But in our present situation, we have certainly tasted of His goodness and see firsthand that He is good.

After 5 weeks and 3 days, Micah came home on Sunday morning. Hallelujah! We were not expecting him to come home before Monday. Yet I have found in many difficult situations that the Lord does sometimes give you what you want as a demonstration of His grace and goodness. Sarah desired desperately to be able to have Micah home by Sunday so that we might celebrate Ethan's birthday altogether. Of course she didn't want him to come home too soon or if it were unwise. The fact that we did come home Sunday may seem to be a small thing. Nevertheless, we see in it the goodness of the Lord by which we are able to taste and be reminded of that very goodness.

Micah continues to do well at home. I believe everyone is excited about his homecoming. Isaac and Ethan have been gentle and loving toward their little brother. Sarah is getting some (but not much as you can imagine) needed rest. While we are having to administer IV antibiotics while home, I wouldn't trade being here for being back at Duke. We had great care and great doctors, but, like most of you know, there is no place like home (thank you Dorothy).

We continue to be thankful for the Lord's goodness in touching Micah, His sovereign control of our situation and difficulty, providing so generously and abundantly through a multitude of people, rallying believers all across the globe to pray for our family and so much more. As a matter of fact, Bay Leaf has quite a mission presence in Kenya, Africa. Last night one a church member who recently returned from a mission trip there shared that on Mfangano Island there are believers praying for our family.

Thank you for your prayers and your continual prayers. Sarah and I are amazed daily at the goodness of the Lord. We know there are many praying for us and much of His goodness which we have seen is directly tied to the prayers of His people.