Taste and see that the LORD is good; blessed is the one who takes refuge in him.
-Psalm 34:8 (NIV)

I love being at the grocery store on days when they are giving away free samples of food. My stomach gets fed and who knows? Maybe I’ll discover a new favorite I wouldn’t have considered otherwise. It’s really a brilliant marketing strategy. The companies are basically saying, “We believe we have a good product. To prove that, give it a taste.” They are challenging the shoppers to take a chance and try it for themselves.

In Psalm 34, the author David is sharing that the Lord is good. And if you don’t believe it, then he says to just taste and see for yourself.

I think it’s interesting which of the five senses was used in this verse. Putting your faith in something you just have to hear, smell, touch or see is a relatively safe gamble. If you hear something that’s irritating, you can cover your ears. If you smell something disgusting, you can pinch your nose. If you touch something unpleasant, you can wash your hands. If you see something unattractive, you can look away. Yeah, there might be some short-term discomfort with each of those scenarios, but no harm, no foul.

But when you actually taste something, you are taking a chance. What you eat is either going to be beneficial for you, or it is going to harmful. If the result of the test is bad, it might leave a gross taste in your mouth or make your stomach hurt. Or, if you’re not so lucky, what you ate could even poison and kill you. And that’s the thing with tasting… Once the act is done, there’s no turning back.

Whether you’ve thought about it before or not, tasting is serious business.

That’s why it’s so important that we understand the psalmist’s word choice here. He didn’t say to simply listen, sniff, feel or look… There’s no real risk involved there. He said to trust the Lord, go out on a limb and taste his goodness directly.

You see, you’ll never know just how delicious that food is on the shelf next to you is until you take that first bite.

Likewise, God is daring us to give him a try so he can prove that he is good indeed. He’s declaring, “Don’t take my word for it… You’ve got to experience it firsthand. Trust me completely with your life. Follow me obediently with your heart, soul and mind. Surrender your will exclusively to me. I stand by my product… I guarantee you won’t be disappointed.”

Just taste and see.