O Taste And See

I was recently speaking to someone who expressed some concerns about a, “youth fun night” church event she and her family had attended. She stated that she disapproved of the secular music that was being played, and the dancing the young people were doing. She said that because the lights were down low, the atmosphere was similar to a night club. She said it, “just didn’t feel right”, until the very end, when they finally played one worship song to close the evening.

After our conversation this verse in Psalm 34 came to my mind…

Psalm 34:8 KJB, “O taste and see that the LORD is good: blessed is the man that trusteth in him.”

When people come to the church, I believe they are coming because they desire to “taste” something different than what they have tasted in the world. We have the privilege of introducing them to the difference they are seeking…Jesus Christ.

It’s easy for us as Christians, to fall into the trap of thinking that by mimicking the ways of the world, we will somehow win people over. Jesus never used worldly tactics to convince people. He always spoke words of truth, and He lived by the words He spoke.

We must believe in our hearts that once people taste what Jesus has to offer, their lives will be changed. The lives we live, will be the first taste of Jesus that many will see. If we do not show them “something different” they will not know how amazing our Lord is. They will not know of His love, grace, and peace. They will not know that during the tribulations of life, He will carry their burdens and heal their broken hearts. If we do not help them to taste and see that our Lord is good, they may never know the joy of eternity in His presence.

Father,

Thank you Father for the difference Your Son Jesus has made in our lives. Help us not to conform to the ways of this world, but instead to be transformed by the renewing of our minds (Romans 12:2). Teach us to make knowing you and showing the world who Jesus is a priority. Help us not to be afraid to be different, so that we can share the beauty of that difference with others.

In the name of Jesus. Amen.

Author: Dawn

The love of Jesus will never fail you. Thank you for visiting my blog.

49 thoughts on “O Taste And See”

  1. Unfortunately we do see the watering down of the truth to appeal to a wider group of people.
    Really good reminder that we as the church give others a taste of Jesus. We need to always be aware of that responsibility of reflecting Christ to those around us.

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  2. Amen! Loving the posts that are ending in prayers. Yes, the Lord is good – let us taste and see. I do agree that we should not mimic the world – come to think of it, why would light want to mimic darkness 🧐🤨. Thank you for the reminder to be uniquely different 😘

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  3. Excellent , Dawn. We experienced something similar. A priest invited the parishioners to the rectory for a party. When we arrived, we found the parishioners gathered, drinking alcohol, and listening to the priests singing hit songs on their karaoke machine. We left the party. We left Catholicism too.
    May the Lord continue to give us supernatural strength to minister to hurting people without blending in with the world’s values.

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    1. Thanks Sally! That must have been a shocking sight to see. I often notice that some Christians get excited when they talk about their days in the world before they knew Christ. But nothing compares to the greatness of knowing Him. I have friends that used to be Catholic but chose to leave that denomination. Thanks for sharing.

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      1. In His Word God gives us a “prescription” (not a description) of the New Testament Church principles. If people who claim to know His Word would implement and follow it, we would have a different world. Thank you for sharing. Blessings, Elfriede

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      2. Thanks Elfriede. Your comment reminds me of this verse…
        James 1:22 NLT, “But don’t just listen to God’s word. You must do what it says. Otherwise, you are only fooling yourselves.”

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  4. Wow….Hey Sis, so I’m currently in the planning process for a Lock-In at my parents church next weekend, and you post this. Even though there’s no plan for secular music to be played, other than if we’re examining the power that lyrics play in influencing our behaviors and shifting mindsets, this message spoke as a reminder to me of how IMPORTANT these ministry opportunities are.

    There’s a shift taking place in ministry. Abba is making us more aware of what really needs to be done, and helping us to be more sensitive and obedient to the leading of the Holy Spirit! I’m in prayer for this Lock-In at a deeper level, that the Lord would break up the fallow ground of our young people’s hearts, so that His word would take root and His righteousness would manifest in their daily lives..

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    1. I’m thankful to hear that you are working to help capture the hearts of young people for Jesus! Examining the effects of lyrics sounds like a great idea. I know for a fact that when I was younger many of the sins I committed was because of the music I indulged in.
      We need more leaders out there like you who are willing to be lead by the Holy Spirit instead of the world. I pray God blesses your event greatly. That’s cool your parents have a church. 😊🙏🏿

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    1. Thanks Maggie! I’m glad my posts inspire you. Your posts are inspiring too. I was truly inspired by your recent testimony post. I am glad we are connected now. 💕💕

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  6. In the book of Psalm David also dance unto the Lord, just because we do dance doesn’t make us a bad person, or the young people that way either, God looks at the heart, while we as humans only see the outside of a person. God changes all of us from the inside out. Great post Dawn, we live in a falling world with God’s help we can share the message of Christ to all who is willing to hear, and not all will truly hear and believe, we are to plant the seed in their hearts

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    1. Thanks Eileen! And yes I agree all dance isn’t bad. David did dance and give praise to God. Because that was David’s heart to do so and God was His focus as He danced. I just think we must be aware because some things do cross the line that are allowed in our churches today. Like you say only God can see the heart. But we need to at least teach and guide. I know many churches also have praise dancing too which is beautiful. But ballet and some other forms of dance are also very nice.

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  8. What is distinctive about being a Christian is actually not what but who-Jesus. When we gather together, we need to share Jesus with each others but also to those who don’t know him yet. If we lift up Jesus, proclaim Jesus, the Holy Spirit will do the work in the hearts of every one there including those who don’t know Jesus.

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    1. Very true. You make a great point that Jesus must be lifted up when we gather together. I think praying for creativity in ways to reach people is a great thing to do. The Holy Spirit will do the work for sure. ❤️

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      4. Praying is vital to our relationship with Christ. Billy Graham was amazing. He drew people to Christ by preaching the pure and simple gospel truth. You can tell he was a man who prayed.

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  10. At our church, we have a young persons night the first Sunday of every month. The lights are low and there is smoke etc… I attended once and enjoyed the celebrations, as we worshipped and praise God. God knows my heart, I enjoy every minuite I have with Christ even if smoke is involved. The aim of the meetings were for young persons to come just as they are and it’s up to Jesus to do the rest. I have heard of persons who found these gatherings quite relaxing and felt comfortable asking questions.

    Your post does have me thinking Dawn, thank you for sharing. I will be mindful of the impact of these celebrations as well, as in no way would I want to reflect Christ in a negative way.

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    1. Thanks Ann! It’s so interesting you mentioned this because my last church turned down the lights low and there was sometimes smoke during the regular Sunday worship. I kind of always wondered why? I figured it was the new thing to do. But because of my personal relationship with Christ I was able to connect with Him and still worship. But I’m not sure what a first time visitor who had no relationship with Christ would have thought. It’s good the young people can come as they are. We just have to make sure they meet Jesus when they get there and create an atmosphere that promotes that. Thanks for sharing your experience. ❤️

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  11. Yes, the way it’s done is vital. We don’t offer alcohol etc, just good ole tea/ coffee and yummy cakes. I remember looking for new faces within the crowd and praying that the message of Christ would be the focus. I totally get what you are saying my sister.

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  14. True words! Conformity can never be the way to go. We can’t win souls by carnal means/approaches. Throughout the book of Acts, the disciples/Apostles didn’t devise subtle means of winning souls. Their teachings weren’t filled enticing words of man’s (worldly) wisdom. They simply stuck to the pattern that was handed down to them by Christ. Unbelievers were influenced by their good conducts, Christ-like living and their demonstration of power. This should be our style today as believers. Thanks for sharing.

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    1. Thanks Ayansola! For some reason in our modern times, many Christians are turning to conformity. But we must keep our eyes on Jesus. He is our Great Example. Thanks for sharing the reminder from the book of Acts. 😊❤️

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  16. Amen sister! Thank you for sharing.. I know I use to listen to secular music but I decided to start listening to worship music. That worldly music is something else to be honest I have no idea what half that music talking bout because it’s a bunch of jibber jabber lol but I agree with the parent it should of been worship music through out the whole night…

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    1. I know I listened to rap and RB all the time as a teenager and even in my early to mid twenties, and that music convinced me that sin was ok. I listen mostly to praise and worship now because I discovered that the RB takes my mind down a different path. So I rarely listen to it. Per the person telling me the story the atmosphere at the youth event was very bad. So I think the worship music would have been best.

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  17. Pingback: O Taste And See — Drawing Closer to Christ – quietmomentswithgod

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