Feeding from the word each day is like chocolate eclairs that you long for and know you cannot have.  I LOVE CHOCOLATE ECLAIRS......  Life is so empty without that fill up each day.  The moments of solitude with Him and His words give you clarity and a new reason to face the day knowing that you are not alone.  It is the nourishment that our spirits need to carry on in this world.  If you do not taste you become like everyone else slow, sluggish, no zest for this wonderful life He has given us.  The Word was witten for us to rejuvenate our spirits and to know that He lives in each and everyone of us.  It is the battery of life.

This may be gross, ugh!!! but here goes.

I recently had my first colon cleansing and let me tell you....  I think it took off 30 lbs(maybe 5) but I feel so LIGHT, full of energy... The word each day takes off all of the weight of the world and lets you breathe.....lets you enjoy this life knowing that you are doing what our Father wants you to do in His most precious name....'

TASTE AND SEE THAT THE LORD IS GOOD !!!!!!!!!!!!!
Love you Mike

Mike,

The problem is, reading the scriptures is like reading a recipe book!  We can talk about which "recipe" is the best all day long...it is only when we "taste" and see that we know. In my understanding that verse implies moving well beyond knowing something to experiencing someone.  When we taste and see that He is good then all the rest flows "naturally" from that.

Many go to Seminary and loose God because they are merely learning to lean on their own intellect and the understanding of others; they substitute the recipe for the meal.

Best regards,
Craig

I agree Craig! Reading can indeed be nothing more than reading. But reading God's word is a BASIC part of the experience of getting to know God, and spending time with him. Resolving to spend time in God's word daily is a key that unlocks the experience of knowing God! Can the person who does not know God get to know him w/o reading his word? I would say, likely not.

In this blog I tried to summarize a HUGE part of my life in a very small space. As is usually the case, what I accomplished feels very inadequate. BUT if you get just a small taste of what I've experienced since beginning the practice of daily devotions (real devotions, not perfunctory ones that allow me to check off a box)...then perhaps I've accomplished what I set out to accomplish. Or maybe I just wrote this whole thing to remind myself!

All true and lovely, Panda!! Isn't it amazing how deep the scriptures are?? One can read the same passage once a year for 50 yrs and get a new message from the Lord every year, or 50 different messages! Scripture is alive!

..here you go, Cher! lol

That is a good (if not a little gross) analogy Mstovall!! lol, thanks!! And yes, I wonder why those who have publicly professed Christ would privately ignore him......but again, I did so for a long time. I don't judge anyone in this, I only feel a bit sad as I ask somewhat rhetorically, "why?"

I agree too Mike!  ;-)  I'm merely pointing to the same truth from a different perspective.  You hinted at with when you said real devotions, not perfunctory ones that allow me to check off a box. Which is the difference between coming to the scriptures from a relationship rather than trying to earn one through them.

I read the Bible before I became a Christian; it did not lead me to Christ.  When Christ became Lord, the Bible began to live.  When I got into "quiet times" and "daily devotions" in the check box sense, my relationship began to grow cold.  Try scheduling a "quite time" with your wife with a specific preset montage of scripted activities that you'll do every time and it will do the same thing for your relationship with her.  As I know you know, there is more to relationship than simple determination and commitment...life is spontaneous not structured legalism.  :-)  I know you know...just don't want other folks to learn those hard lessons the hard way like me.  :-)

1 Corinthians 14:26 in action Mike.  :-)

Thanks Mike!  Appreciate you brother!
Craig

Again thanks for the clarifications Craig! Ensuing comments often bring out far more than what was originally shared in a blog. Especially on this site!

Interestingly, I'd read scripture aplenty prior to my spiritual "renaissance". But the difference was, when I began to read early in the morning, daily, w/o distraction, and w/o any other purpose than to experience God myself, everything changed! It's very difficult to put into words...other than to say, I made a point of meeting God every day in his word. I started at 15 min., and gradually that worked up to more than an hour every morning. I was making myself late for work, b/c the time would fly by so quickly and I just wanted more!! How do you package this "news" in a way that is easily shared??? Well, that's what I tried to do above - by encouraging those you love to make time for God through his word! (But as I also said, like most of my blogs, this one could easily have been written to myself as a spiritual mile marker of sorts!)

Yes, and thank you for adding more detail too!  What happened to you is outside of my own experience since I was the one looking "everywhere" for the Peal of Great Price.  The Bible was just another book to me, like any other religious writing in the world of men...each claimed the mantle of truth.  I approached each determined to ferret out the truth through intellect and experience.  Neither lead me to the truth; it was only after calling out to "the Living God" in a field one day, saying "I know that you are but if you don't show yourself to me I'm not going to find you!" with many tears by the way, that he did just that...about a month later.  When I then knew that Jesus was the real deal, then I believed the Bible was too...not the other way round.

So what I learned today is a reinforcement to the fact that we cannot box God into a formula as to how He will lead someone to himself.  Thanks so much for commenting further Mike!

Yours in Him,
Craig

oh no! Marcella, how COULD you??? lol

Disclaimer: Friends, the picture immediately above is not the feast I am encouraging you to taste!!!!

Rich, Rich, Rich... you KNOW it is...the last picture that is, NOT the first! lol .. The pic in the blog is a first rate steak dinner, man. Food fit for a king!  :-)

M i k e......
You go around showin us pictures of God's food, and I want more than a taste.  My lips are just drooling. 
Very good blog. 

I like Marcella's steak too

Yes, Reb! Only God (and his word) can fulfill that hunger! I'm prayin you stay in that place of seeking and submission.

Teral, that is so awesome to hear. I feel a small sense of relief every time another brother/sister informs me of that. Thank you!

Deb...I've never read all the way through. I just don't read like that. I've always picked a book and settled there for a few weeks or more at a time. No rushing God!

Oh, what's this? Joey and Marcella gettin in trouble again? Craig getting into the act too? :-O That's ok, thanks for keepin it light around here, fellas!

Jewlz, thank you! You keep me going!

Joey, nobody really knows what "scrapple" is. I know some of the things they put in it, and that's enough for me to know that I should stay away.

Rebekah, Doyle & Bren....thanks!! 

Sherlock, thank you sweetie, I'm soooo glad you enjoyed it. Also glad you're feasting with me!!! =)

(So it isn’t just me!) No Mike, it isn't just you!

I remember my late husband's father saying "What's the deal with studying the bible, read it once and be done with it" His wise ole mama said "Vernon if you read it once you would know that isn't enough" and the matter was settled. (Pauline, can't wait to see you in heaven!)

I had a chessie cat grin on my face last night as my husband asked if he could turn on the bedroom lamp fearing it would it disturb me. ( I wouldn't have complained if he brought in floodlights because he had his bible that I bought him in 2001 when we met again and his glasses. He had lasik surgery in 2004 and has just had to go back to reading glasses lately. He doesn't care for them but he never looked so handsome as to see him studying the bible. I went to sleep completely contented to allow God to teach him straight from the feast. I see changes daily. I don't need to do a thang! 

Yvelisse....cool, we may have to talk more about Sunday school ideas!! (I teach 1st-2nd grade, and use candy as a reward for good listening and answering my impromptu verbal questions about the reading - not exactly the "feast" I wrote about here, lol.)

Liz....LOL! Comment...perfect!

King...no worries, this meal isn't fattening. In fact, it's quite healthy!!  :-)

I just love you to bits!

[star!]

"...for thou savourest not the things that be of GOD but those that be of men."

Mike, a steak dinner like the one you pictured looks savory to me. Now if you had posted liver and cabbage, uh, no. I don't like the way it looks and certainly not the way it tastes.

Matthew 16:23 (KJV)  But he turned, and said unto Peter, Get thee behind me, satan: thou art an offence unto me: for thou savourest not the things that be of God, but those that be of men.

In these words Jesus spoke is the heart of why we do not read the Word. We do what we love. We avoid what we do not. We would not dare take the Lord's name in vain but think nothing of offending Him by avoiding Him.

Am I the only one who has friends you only see when they need or want something? What kind of a friend am I to Jesus? Do we hang out all the time or do I try to work him into my busy schedule if I have time? Is my behavior such that makes Him proud to call me friend or is my "friendship" offensive?

In the past couple years I've learned to like drinking water. A lot of water. For health reasons. I actually enjoy it now. Water is a kind of wonder drug. It does the body good and the body responds very well to it.

And so it is with the Word. Once we realize our spiritual need the discipline at first will become a joy in time. The simplest thing we can do will do wonders in our spiritual life.

Indeed, Mike, happy is the person who takes refuge in the Lord (and His Word). For they have left the security of their way and are trusting The Way.

BUT.....

We do not force-feed this truth to others. We allow the Holy Spirit to wean others from the worldly diet just like he did with us. Take a bottle from a baby and he will cry. Steal a kids happy meal and he won't be happy. Nag an overweight friend about weight and the friendship could end over weight.

I remember as a little child my dad was going to make me eat cabbage. I finally got it in my mouth and swallowed it. And then threw it up. And I have never been able to eat that kind of green slimy stuff since. Would I ever had been able to develop a taste for these kinds of food? I don't know. But because of that bad experience I am pretty sure I never will.

So Mike, we set the table, invite others, and when they have tired of eating slop and are ready for a real meal, it is there for them. Until then, they will push, squirm, and do whatever to get the most they can from the trough. Does seem like a no-brainer, doesn't it? And yet we did the same thing for way too long.

The Pig And The Dove

Oh, how I used to love my slop
I enjoyed it and thought I would never stop

Eating the leftovers of another
Getting nourishment from my brother

Never preparing myself a meal
It was just easier from others to steal

In the barnyard I was first to eat
Seldom did I ever get any meat

Angrily pushing others away
This had always been my way

Because only the strong survive
As into the slop I would dive

But one day something changed
My entire body was rearranged

No longer a pig I was a human
I didn't know what I was doin

The once treasured trough now stunk
The once sweet aroma now was like skunk

Watching others push and shove
And then I noticed a quiet dove

It flew from the fence and into a window
I felt like there was something it wanted to show

Looking in the window I saw a meal for a king
A banquet prepared not lacking anything

Those gathered round invited me in
Even though I was sure they knew where I had been

For the first time in my life I ate food just for me
Without fighting or shoving like it used to be

I tasted new things that tasted so good
I tried to eat as much as I could

The others just smiled and began to share
Where I just came from they once had been there

I could return there if I really wanted to
Or I could stay if I that was what I wanted to do

Now I plant seeds and serve the table
I willingly do whatever I am able

Occasionally it is my turn to feed the pigs
I watch them root with their noses dig

Content they are in doing what they always did
The truth of their circumstances from them are hid

One day at the table I saw a dove fly in
Smiling knowing another was coming from where I had been

.....peace.....