Blog Break

MWB will resume Monday 08-25-2025
Stay in The Word
Miles of Smiles, Beverly 

All I Need

Most of us remember a few years ago that "the" virus robbed people of their taste and smell. The inability to smell may have been a blessing at times but unable to smell fresh-brewing coffee ... well, I heard that one a lot! I've noted that the taste buds of this older-me differ from the younger-me: foods I once did not find tasty, now I find quite pleasing. The foods I avoided in my youth were usually foods I foolishly refused to taste at all! I wonder what spiritual blessings we are currently missing because we refuse to "taste and see that the LORD is good" (Psalm 34:8)? Solomon challenges us to "Cast your bread on the surface of the waters, for you will find it after many days" (Ecclesiastes 11:1 AMP). There are risks and uncertainties in the decisions we make, and those risks also include loss of immense joy and peace and gladness. Unlike a food that we might find repulsive or tasty, there is never risk in trusting God with every moment of our days. Paul writes that "we have our hope set on the living God Who is the Savior of all people, especially of those who believe" (1 Timothy 4:10). Get that? No risk when our hope is set on the living God; what we taste of His goodness never disappoints and it satisfies beyond anything we can imagine! Is the evidence of God's goodness evading you - I pray it is not! I'm so thankful this older-me has learned to taste-and-see, and I've found the tasting one of life's greatest joys! Over and over, God has proven Himself ... all I need.

Taste and See!

Personally, I've never been one to "taste" new things; those who know me know this all too well. We are encourage in Scripture "Oh, taste and see that the LORD is good" (Psalm 34:8 ESV). I suggest there are many - even Believers - who are missing so much of God's goodness simply because they are not "tasting" of it. Solomon writes, "Remember also your Creator in the days of your youth, before the evil days come and the years draw near of which you will say,  'I have no pleasure in them'; before the sun and the light and the moon and the stars are darkened and the clouds return after the rain, in the day when the keepers of the house tremble, and the strong men are bent, and the grinders cease because they are few, and those who look through the windows are dimmed, and the doors on the street are shut—when the sound of the grinding is low, and one rises up at the sound of a bird, and all the daughters of song are brought low— they are afraid also of what is high, and terrors are in the way; the almond tree blossoms, the grasshopper drags itself along, and desire fails, because man is going to his eternal home, and the mourners go about the streets." (Ecclesiastes 12:1-5 ESV). In other words, you best be tasting God's goodness now! There will be a time when our eyes grow dim, our hearing becomes dull, our strength diminishes - yes, old age is the way of life. The writer encourages us while we are young to enjoy what God's goodness brings to our days - joy and peace of heart. God offers unimaginable sweetness to all who who will just ... taste and see!

One Memory

Without much detail, these are days of reflection for me - reflecting on and remembering the the last fifty years. I'm tickled I can still remember! God actually encourages us to remember. He says in Deuteronomy 8:2, "Remember all the way which the LORD your God has led" ... in Numbers 15:40 "Remember and do all My commandments" ... in Joshua 1:13 "Remember the word of the LORD" ... in 1 Chronicles 16:12 "Remember His marvelous works which He has done." I'm fairly confident we all can recall when the budget was tight or you received some bad news or your spirit was low; then, at just the right time you were reminded of God's faithfulness - perhaps it came in the form of a letter, a phone call, a text, a card, a song on the radio, a sunrise or sunset. During these days of personal remembering, those are exactly the kind of memories that have caused me to rejoice: simple, unexpected, powerful moments that fueled my spirit as a new bride, a mother, and now as a grandmother. We read in James 1:17, "every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of lights, with Whom there is no variation or shadow due to change." He Who has been my dwelling place through generations (Psalm 90:1) will continue to be that marvelous dwelling place for generations yet to be. When old age comes and and I remember little, may You O LORD be my ... one memory.

Soul Satisfaction

There are thing I know about that I'd rather not ... know about. For example, the fact that there are creepy-crawly thing [most likely] living inside my house - I'd rather not know or think about that! The psalmist begins Psalm 107, "Give thanks to the LORD for He is good, and His mercy is everlasting. The redeemed of the LORD shall say so, those whom He has redeemed from the hand of the enemy" (V.1 NASB) and he continues "They shall give thanks to the LORD for His mercy, and for His wonders to the sons of mankind! For He has satisfied the thirsty soul, and He has filled the hungry soul with what is good." (V.8-9 NASB). Have you ever considered the thirst and hunger of your soul - that insatiable longing within you? Truth is, there are many thirsting and hungering souls that walk this earth - continually among us - that just don't know there is One Who offers full and eternal satisfaction. Perhaps you've heard the phrase "ignorance is bliss" - well, no it is not. Ignorance is never our friend and it is certainly never a friend to the soul of man: "There were those who lived in darkness and in the shadow of death. Prisoners in misery and chains, because they had rebelled against the words of God and rejected the plan of the Most High" (V.10-11 NASB). Darkness, the shadow of death, the misery of imprisonment and chains, nor rebellion and rejection do not diminish the immeasurably abundant mercy of God Who is "good and forgiving, abounding in steadfast love to all who call upon you" (Psalm 86:5 ESV). A simple and humbling of the human spirit brings satisfaction to the ever-thirsty and continual hunger for the the soul of man. A personal relationship with Jesus is truly ... soul-satisfaction.