O taste and see!

Psalms 34:8  Oh, taste and see that the LORD is good! Blessed is the man who takes refuge in him! 

For many, God remains a theory—an idea borrowed from tradition, deduced from the cosmos, or tucked quietly into the corners of a creed. He is believed in from afar, but is rarely encountered. Even among believers, it’s not uncommon to live with a distant reverence for God while lacking a vibrant, personal communion with Him.

But Scripture offers something radically more intimate. God is not an abstract concept or a distant force. He is a Person—a loving Father who walks with His children, speaks to them, and invites them into His presence. The invitation is not to believe in a shadow or serve a principle, but to know Him. To experience Him. To taste and see that the Lord is good (Psalm 34:8).

This is not a poetic metaphor—it is the reality of the spiritual life. Just as we use our physical senses to engage the world around us, so we are equipped with spiritual faculties—quickened by the Holy Spirit—to perceive, respond to, and delight in God. His presence is not imaginary or symbolic. It is real—closer than the ground beneath our feet.

Have you settled for knowing about God without truly knowing Him? Is your faith limited to forms and facts instead of fellowship? The door to His presence stands open—not just in the life to come, but right here, right now.

Today, don’t settle for simply thinking about God. Taste and see that He is good. Reckon upon His reality—draw near in quiet trust and let your spiritual senses awaken. You were made for this: to encounter, enjoy, and walk with the living God.

This is the kind of vibrant faith that births revival—not manufactured in crowds, but ignited in hearts that have truly tasted His goodness and seen His glory. When even one soul is set ablaze by the presence of the Living God, the spark can become a wildfire. May that flame rise in you today. May revival be fresh and new within you, rooted in a firsthand taste of the One who is altogether good.

Copyright 1999-2025 Worthy Devotions. This devotional was originally published on Worthy Devotions and was reproduced with permission.

How to display the above article within the Worthy Suite WordPress Plugin.

[worthy_plugins_devotion_single_body]

The Bible seems virtually redundant on the theme of courage. More than 125 exhortations for God’s people facing overwhelming trials and dilemmas, resound against fear, notwithstanding how natural that response may seem. Courage based on faith is the universal attitude for saints in all situations. Our omnipotent (all-powerful), omniscient (all-knowing), and omnipresent (everywhere) Father says, and repeats, “Fear not! Be of good courage! Be strong and courageous!”

As my wife and I have been redeployed to the United States for a season we’ve traveled over 150,000 miles since 2020. Vehicles which deliver the kind of distances we travel need regular oil changes to stay reliable. So, our vehicles have enjoyed innumerable pit stops.

As we continue to inspect our hearts and take spiritual inventory of our lives during this month of Elul in preparation for the fall feasts, we should stay particularly aware of Yeshua’s prediction in Matthew 24:12, “The love of many will grow cold.” He warned that a sign of the last days would be abounding lawlessness and that callousness and hardness of heart would characterize the end times. The evidence of this is everywhere.

Traditionally in Jewish spirituality, these 40 days of prayer and repentance beginning the 1st of Elul to Yom Kippur parallel the 40 days that Moses spent on the mountain [Exodus 34:28] pleading God’s forgiveness for Israel’s sin of creating and worshiping the golden calf. Interestingly, Psalm 27 is read each day of the month of Elul, along with the shofar blast in preparation for Yom Kippur (Day of Atonement).

As we continue our study for Elul, a month set apart for repentance in preparation for the fall feasts, we find a message hidden in the four Hebrew letters spelling the name of this special month. Alef-Lamed-Vav-Lamed form an “acronym” for a well-known passage in the Song of Solomon: Ani l-dodi v-dodi li or in English, “I am my beloved’s and my beloved is mine.”

I happened (on rare occasion) the other day to see a CNN headline, “Health Officials Brace for Three Major Viruses this Fall”. Immediately, I thought, “Not again!” Yet, scouring the headlines, it now appears that several colleges are instituting mask mandates even though there isn’t a case of illness yet. While the world is being prepared for an “outbreak” of disease, I’m hoping we may learn a lesson from history so that, perhaps, we’ll see an “outbreak” of revival!

As we enter this season of Teshuva (Repentance) during the month of Elul, we enter a unique season approaching the Fall Feasts. This month initiates a 40-day countdown to Yom Kippur (the Day of Atonement), and is traditionally known as the time the King would visit His people.