“Taste and see that the Lord is good. Oh, the joy of those who take refuge in him! Fear the Lord, you his godly people, for those who fear him will have all they need.” (Psalm 34:8)
The quote has been in one of my Bibles for years:
Our souls will long for more. If you need further proof, one only needs to watch a few minutes of TV commercials. Thanksgiving has not even come and we are already being thrust forward into Christmas and Black Friday.
Ads bombard us to buy more, buy expensive, and to stretch our budgets further than they are able to go. It is all in the hopes of experiencing delight and satisfaction.
The quote stayed with me even as I went food shopping for Thanksgiving, selecting favorite foods to delight my family. They each seem to look forward to a different part of the meal – stuffed mushrooms, the turkey thigh, cranberry sauce, sweet potatoes using a restaurant recipe, and sausage stuffing – are among requests.
Three truths emerged as I shopped:
- We all will have cravings. Our souls will yearn for something to fill us up. “I long, yes I faint with longing to enter the courts of the Lord” (Psalm 84:2, NLT). The psalmist had come to learn only God can fill the longing, the empty place meant for Him alone.
- We all will search for satisfaction. We find quality of life and contentment when our search leads us to God alone. “My soul thirsts for you; my whole body longs for you in this parched and weary land where there is no water…Your unfailing love is better than life itself, how I praise you!” (Psalm 63:1b, 3, NLT).
- We need to taste and experience the comfort of our Savior. “Taste and see that the Lord is good. Oh, the joys of those who take refuge in him!” (Psalm 34:8, NLT). In so doing, we come to discover “we will have all we need” (verse 9) and ” we will lack no good thing” (verse 10), for He will fill and satisfy our longings with Himself.
As we sit at our tables, may we taste the love of Christ,
savor His Presence alone,
and our souls be fully satisfied.
Today I am joining … #DreamTogether and Moments of Hope and Inspire Me Monday and Glimpses .
Amen, Joanne.
Love that quote and yes a big AMEN!
Thank you, Jennie. It is a quote that convicts me every time I read it. May you & your family have a wonderful Thanksgiving!
This goes along with what I was reading in Psalm 119 this morning (I’m on the the third section)–about opening our eyes so that we can see the wonderful things in God’s law. It’s not occured to me before that there is beauty in God’s law, and that sometimes we have to pray that he opens our eyes.
What a beautiful prayer for Thanksgiving: “May we taste the love of Christ,
savor His Presence alone,
and our souls be fully satisfied.”
Blessings to you, Joanne!
I needed to read this today. My soul has been restless and I tend to start looking for something I love to do to satisfy myself-home decorating, etc. I need to recognize it as needing more quality time in God’s presence. Thank you!
Dear Joanne, thanks for the gentle reminder to keep first things (our walks with the Savior) first during the holiday hustle.
Prayers for a blessed Thanksgiving for you and your family!
I love the quote and the three truths you gleaned from your shopping experience. May we crave more of Jesus every day.
So good. Have a beautiful and blessed Thanksgiving!
Praying for you my friend and your sister-in-law. Please give her my love. And, tell your Mom the southern girl from NJ sends a big hug! And those little girls? Just love on them real ‘good.’