I’m always looking for a lesson. Maybe it’s the teacher in me, but I always hear this whisper inside asking, “What can you learn here, Andrea?”
Maybe it’s more than the mere fact that I am a teacher by trade. Maybe it has something to do with “The Teacher” in me, as in the Holy Spirit. One thing I’ve learned for sure is when you are raising kids, you are constantly teaching and learning.
Right now I am teaching my one year old what to eat and what not to eat.
Most days I say things like, “Yummy cucumber, chew it up and put it in your belly.”
Or, “No buddy, you can’t eat that marker.”
Needless to say it’s normal and necessary for a one year old to put everything in his mouth.
He wants to experience it all.
But I can’t let him eat markers and dirt, and plastic. I have to teach him what to taste.
To taste is to experience the sensation of flavor.
A man named David knew a little bit about “tasting” in a spiritual sense.
His writings throughout the book of Psalms are windows into his heart and mind. They are merely Gospel glimpses of what life with Jesus is like. Even though he never met Jesus. His heart was stirred up by the Holiness of God and he wrote all about it in Psalm 34.
“I will bless the Lord at all times; his praise shall continually be in my mouth.”
David is saying, “When you bless the Lord and carry words of worship in your mouth, you’ll taste the Christian life.”
“My soul makes its boast in the Lord, let the humble hear and be glad.”
Here he is shouting, “The only credit I can give is to my Father and when I do that, others will see and taste His goodness.”
“Oh magnify the Lord with me, and let us exalt his name together.”
This is David’s invitation. “Let’s make God the most important part of our lives. Let’s make his name known.”
The next few verses go on to tell us about David’s deliverance from his fears and the radiance of those who seek God’s face.
In verse 8 he commands us to “taste and see that the Lord is good.”
Isn’t it so hard, y’all?
The day in and day out grind of life can get the best of us, and tasting the goodness of the Lord is sometimes the last thing we think about.
Hustle, hurry, move, get it done. This way of living is so easy to slip into.
The Holy Spirit in me moves me to the slow life.
To slowly prepare my lunch. To look a little longer into the eyes of a stranger. To sweep my floor for the 19th time, with a thankful heart.
Some days I think I just chew up all the goodness and quickly swallow. I forget to taste how good this life really is. I forget about Jesus.
Friends, what we really need most is to REMEMBER.
We are forgetful people. We forget why we are here. We forget the Gospel, and because of this, we miss out on moments the Holy Spirit wants to engage with us. He wants to be our teacher. And like all master teachers, he will teach us to taste.
One of my favorite parts of my job as a literacy teacher is showing my kids how to taste stories. To go beyond the lines on the page and ask questions that engage their mind. I want them to walk in the shoes of the characters and feel what they feel.
Maybe if I can teach them to love books, then one day they will fall in love with the Creator of the Greatest Story? Maybe they will accept David’s invitation to taste and see that the Lord is good? Maybe my readers will be future gospel teachers and disciples of all nations? Some days I think about these things as we are segmenting sounds in words and using our best voices to read with expression.
Let’s start remembering…
To taste and to see the Greatest Story we know.
We can start this simple practice by seeing needs around us.
The woman who needs a hand at the grocery store.
The man who just lost his wife and sits alone most days.
The mom who just wants to talk because she’s been home with her kids all day.
The little boy who just wants to eat dirt.
The difficult person in your life who may need you more than you know.
Let’s put down the dirt, the markers, and the plastic food and really taste this Christian life.
Rise up early, read the Word, journal your thoughts, and all the people you say you’ll pray for, really pray. They need more than the praying hands emoji.
You will surely be radiant, dear friend. Now go make the Gospel beautiful.
After 2 years of love, tears, joy and struggles, I finally listened to God and walked out of my relationship with my boyfriend. It was oh so hard considering I was comfortable in the unhealthy relationship I helped create. I finally took that step of faith and let go just 4 days ago. I have emotionally exhausted myself this past weekend. I didn't understand why I was in such pain and distraught after finally listening to God. Wasn't I supposed to feel better? Last night, just after 9pm, I was questioning God in my heartache. God told me to read Psalm 34. I turned to it, and saw "praise" everywhere. I thought, "Surely I misheard God. I want to feel better, and He's telling me to stop and praise Him. What??" I read a couple more chapters seriously believing I misheard Him. Finally, I remembered that I am to praise Him in the hard times just as much as I do in the good times. My bed time during the week is 8:30, but you better believe I was praising God at 9:30 last night. When God says jump, I will jump for He sees the end of my story.
ReplyDeleteThank you so much for posting this! I'm so grateful to have a personal relationship with Jesus Christ, and for every supportive follower He puts in my path.