Psalm 34:8, New Living Translation

“Taste and see that the LORD is good. Oh, the joys of those who take refuge in him!”

Have you tasted the goodness of the Lord? Have you opened your heart to Him and truly let Him in? If you have not, I challenge you to taste and see that the Lord is good! Humanity longs to be loved and they long for affirmation. Often times, it is looked for in the world. Yet, when looking at each place or person in the world, we are left wanting more… needing more… hurting more… broken more… Our disappointments stack up and it is difficult to see any light through all the dark. This broken path leads us down a trail of hopelessness and a desire to give up. But, my brother and sister, there is good news! God doesn't waste anything! Though we don't understand why we go through what we go through, God allows us to go through these things to refine us, to make us stronger, to make us wiser, to help us to recognize that "I can't do this alone."

Alone is not where God ever intended for us to be. We were created for relationships...we were created for love. "We love each other because he loved us first." (1 John 4:19, NLT) I think it is important for us to know that we should first seek God, to be in relationship with Him. It's in seeking that we truly find love, forgiveness, healing, acceptance, salvation, hope, confidence, freedom, peace, joy and on and on. It's in the seeking that we find, and we receive. Jesus tells us in Matthew 7:7-8, (NLT), “Keep on asking, and you will receive what you ask for. Keep on seeking, and you will find. Keep on knocking, and the door will be opened to you.  For everyone who asks, receives. Everyone who seeks, finds. And to everyone who knocks, the door will be opened.”

Are you seeking? Are you knocking? If so, don't stop! It may not seem like there is any movement from Heaven, but that is what Satan wants you to believe so that you give up the fight! Psalm 121:3-4 (NLT) says, "He will not let you stumble; the one who watches over you will not slumber. Indeed, he who watches over Israel never slumbers or sleeps.." God does not sleep and neither is He dead! He is working on your behalf.  

I know that it can be difficult to read this and accept this. From my own life, I didn't think that God heard my cries. But the truth is, He did. I just hadn't come to the end of myself yet. I hadn’t hit "rock bottom" yet. I needed to come to the point where I couldn't do it anymore, especially by myself. I was tired, I was feeling hopeless, and I wanted to give up. Unless God showed up, I didn't feel that I could go on anymore. It's in His love that I found freedom, peace, joy...the abundant life that Jesus talks about in John 10:10. You know, the one that says our enemy comes to kill, steal, and to destroy...but Jesus said, I have come that they might have life and life more abundantly. My brothers and sisters, we have that abundant life, right here, right now! We just have to take hold of it.  

How do we do that? First off, the knowledge we have in our head needs to drop about 12 inches to our heart. I knew I was a child of God. But there were times when I still questioned, "Am I really a Christian? Am I really saved? I feel like a fake Christian." But God! His Holy Spirit quickened my spirit, the information went from head to heart, and I knew, I am a child of God! There is power and authority in the position He has given me if I rest in Him and I rest in my position. All of a sudden, I knew that all the negative thoughts I had, the negative feelings I felt, the difficulty of doing life I had had, that was all Satan. And as a child of God, I didn't have to take that anymore! God my Father, is doing a deep work in my heart, and He is still working on me! The truth of the matter is, He wants to do this for all of us, because He loves all of us! He gave His one and only Son for all of us! So, taste and see that the Lord is good! And don't stop tasting the goodness of God in your life! Don't stop looking for God in your life!

I am expecting God to do great and beautiful things! Not just in my life, but in yours! I may not witness it firsthand, but that is ok! I know who I serve! I know who I love, and He loves me, and He loves you. And I know that what He has done for me, He will do for you if you are willing to let Him in.

One of my husband’s favorite scriptures says, " Now all glory to God, who is able, through his mighty power at work within us, to accomplish infinitely more than we might ask or think." (Ephesians 3:20, NLT)

I dare you let Him in and watch the amazing things He does for you!