TasteAndSee | Kristi's Morning Devotional

Did you see the goodness of God yesterday? Were you safe on the highway? Did you receive a little expression of kindness unexpectedly? Was there something special to make you smile?

Those are expressions of God’s goodness.

As I was preparing to share with you this morning, I remembered something that my dad would often say. “The only way you can ruin a pie is to cut it. Just give me a fork and let me enjoy the whole thing.” We’d laughed but somehow we always knew if we had given him that fork and the pie he would have finished it all. He loved my mom’s pies.

That’s my lead in to today’s verse on the goodness of God.

“O taste and see that the Lord [our God] is good! Blessed (happy, fortunate, to be envied) is the man who trusts and takes refuge in Him.” Psalm 34:8 AMPC

Taste and see how good God is.

The goodness of God is tangible. It’s something we can sense, something we can experience and it is good – so good.

“You prepare a feast for me in the presence of my enemies. You honor me by anointing my head with oil. My cup overflows with blessings. ⁶Surely your goodness and unfailing love will pursue me all the days of my life, and I will live in the house of the Lord forever.” Psalm 23:5-6 NLT

King David said the Lord’s provision was like a feast, and that goodness and mercy (unfailing love) were in hot pursuit of us all the days of our lives.

The goodness of God provided manna from heaven for the Israelites in the wilderness. The goodness of God multiplied the loaves and the fishes from the little boy’s lunch. The goodness of God turned water into wine at the wedding of Canaan.

The goodness of God is tangible.

The goodness of God said to the thief on the cross “today you will be with me in paradise”. God wants us to know, to taste, to experience His goodness.

“How great is the goodness you have stored up for those who fear you. You lavish it on those who come to you for protection, blessing them before the watching world. ²⁰You hide them in the shelter of your presence, safe from those who conspire against them.
You shelter them in your presence, far from accusing tongues.” Psalm 31:19-20 NLT

My prayer is that we all will know more of God’s goodness this year.

Oh, taste and see that the Lord is good!

Sunday we sang the song “King of My Heart” by John Mark McMillan and Sarah McMillan. The past two mornings I haven’t been able to get those lyrics out of my mind.

“Let the King of my heart
Be the mountain where I run
The fountain I drink from
Oh, he is my song

Let the King of my heart
Be the shadow where I hide
The ransom for my life
Oh, he is my song

‘Cause you are good, good, oh
You are good, good, oh
You are good, good, oh
You are good, good, oh”

God is good, good, so good!

“I trust your love, and I feel like celebrating because you rescued me. ⁶You have been good to me, Lord, and I will sing about you.” Psalm 13:5-6 CEV

“Shout praises to the Lord! He is good to us, and his love never fails.” Psalm 107:1 CEV

“You surely don’t think much of God‘s wonderful goodness or of his patience and willingness to put up with you. Don’t you know that the reason God is good to you is because he wants you to turn to him?” Romans 2:4 CEV

God’s goodness is incomparable!

He displays His goodness so that people will be drawn to Him and put their faith and trust in Him.

I’ve been reading the book of Jonah. It’s a short book and a good read. It isn’t just about Jonah being swollen by a great fish, although, that is also evidence of God’s goodness. It’s about God offering salvation to 120,000 people who were about to be destroyed because of their wickedness.

Jonah got to Ninevah, after being vomited up by the fish, walk a day’s walk to the center of the city and said this:

“After walking for a day, Jonah warned the people, ‘Forty days from now, Nineveh will be destroyed!’

⁵They believed God’s message and set a time when they would go without eating to show their sorrow. Then everyone in the city, no matter who they were, dressed in sackcloth.” Jonah 3:4-5 CEV

It goes on to say that the king heard what was happening and he repented and called for a fast for the entire city. Then God “saw that the people had stopped doing evil things, he had pity and did not destroy them as he had planned.” (Jonah 3:10)

Jonah got angry because God was gracious to these people. God was and is merciful, kind, and good. He told Jonah how much He cared about the people.

Not just the people of Ninevah – God cares about us, even when we are living in rebellion and contrary to His word. It’s His goodness that draws us to Him. His love is everlasting and His goodness lasts to all generations.

The image I am using this morning reminds me of this verse:

“O taste and see that the Lord is good. How happy is the man who trusts in Him! ⁹O fear the Lord, all you who belong to Him. For those who fear Him never want for anything.” Psalm 34:8-9 NLV

Come – taste and see that God is good, good, so good!

Tag: TasteAndSee

Taste and See

Good, Good, So Good