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

Saturday night we sometimes treat ourselves to chocolate; “Just three pieces each,” we declare, “and we’ll have some more another night.” An hour later and the whole block has gone. Another night we might open a bag of cashew nuts with the declaration that we will only have a handful each. Three handfuls later we lock the remainder away where they are not easily accessible to discourage further pilfering. Does this sound familiar in your home? Maybe you are more disciplined but you know the feeling that goes with foods that are more-ish.

While many people still want to debate the existence of God many others have discovered that He can be known, loved and enjoyed. Perhaps those who find Him the most more-ish are those who have suffered in some way in this fallen world. They have tasted Him in a way that others have not and long for more of His intimate and comforting fellowship. The Psalmist knew this well when he penned, “As the deer pants for the water brooks, so pants my soul for You, O God. My soul thirsts for God, for the living God. When shall I come and appear before God?” (Psalm 42:1, 2). He longed to be in God’s presence. Peter wrote of this longing for the Lord, “… as newborn babes desire the pure milk of the word that you may grow thereby, if indeed you have tasted that the Lord is gracious” (1 Peter 2:2, 3). This comes from the heart of one who really knows the Lord Jesus. Again, the Psalmist writes, “How sweet are your words to my taste, sweeter than honey to my mouth” (Psalm 119:103).

The writer of Hebrews tells us that some taste the word of God and find it unpalatable and reject it and Him. They never know what it is to have intimacy with the Lord (Hebrews 6:4-6). They choose to love the world rather than God.

Those who have truly received Jesus Christ as Lord and Saviour discover that He is a true friend who loves them and desires to share their life in every aspect. Their appetite for His company and fellowship cannot be satiated. Chocolates and nuts will eventually fill us up (even if our taste buds still want more) but we will never get to a place where we have had enough of the Lord Jesus Christ. On the contrary, the one who has received more of Him will have an even greater thirst for more. On the one hand He satisfies our every longing but on the other hand He becomes even the more more-ish.

“O God, You are my God;
Early will I seek You;
My soul thirsts for You;
My flesh longs for You
In a dry and thirsty land
Where there is no water”
Psalm 63:1