“Oh, taste and see that the Lord is good; blessed is the man who trusts in Him!” (Psalm 34:8).

I was talking but not tasting.

My mother-in-law, Miriam, offered to make sandwiches for lunch. Of course, who can turn down a homemade sandwich? Munching through the still-warm grilled cheese sandwich, I mumbled something about how delicious it was and casually mentioned it would be even better if it had ham added to it.

That stupid comment aside, I noticed her sheepish smile. “It has ham in it, Nate.” Once I stopped talking, I could taste what I was already eating. Yep, you guessed it. The Holy Spirit used that as a teachable moment. I thought, “If you’d shut up and enjoy the sandwich, you’d have tasted its full flavor.” God immediately brought Psalm 34:8 to our conversation. “Oh, taste and see that the LORD is good …”

I love how God invites us to be still, get quiet, and rest in His presence. Once we taste His serenity, even in the middle of our hectic schedules and adverse realities, we realize His amazing goodness. But we have to stop ourselves. With my sandwich, I had to stop talking to truly taste the ham. With God, I need to quiet my mind, get alone with Him, and feast on His savory Word. The Holy Spirit invades such times with the home-cooking aroma of heaven. That is when I must resist the temptation to insert myself and start spouting nonsensical stuff as Peter did on the Mount of Transfiguration. God’s still, small voice reminds me, “This is My beloved Son—hear Him.”

Everyone seems to have stories to tell. Overflowing media venues are proof of much talking and little tasting. Yes, stories, like parables, can provide earthly applications to spiritual truths. But I wonder if our propensity to share doesn’t stunt our spiritual taste buds. God may share His unique “sandwich” just with us, for our spiritual need and growth, at that moment.

In those quiet “sandwich” moments, I get more insight as to Who God is and what He is trying to impart to me if I stop thinking and responding. He faithfully fulfills His promise, “Open your mouth wide, and I will fill it” (Psalm 81:10).

Savoring His feast is far better than talking with my mouth full.

This is an updated edition of a post originally published on Nate Stevens.

Featured Image by Clément Falize on Unsplash

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About the Author

A lifelong student of Scripture, Nate Stevens has also enjoyed a banking career in a variety of leadership roles. He is the author of Matched 4 Life and Deck Time with Jesus as well as a contributing author on several of the Moments Books (Billy Graham Moments, Divine Moments, Spoken Moments, Christmas Moments, Stupid Moments, Cool-inary Moments, etc.). He writes online devotionals for ChristianDevotions.us and SingleMatters.com as well as articles for several other publications. Additionally, he leads Fusion, a Christian singles ministry he co-founded. A popular speaker and teacher at conferences, seminars and Bible study groups, he speaks on a wide variety of topics. He currently lives near Charlotte, North Carolina, with his beautiful wife, Karen, and is a proud dad of two awesome kids, Melissa and Mitchell.

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