Dear all,
I hope that you are well and that you have been able to enjoy the summer weeks and spend some time with family and friends. September is now upon us and as individuals and as a Church family, many of us will no doubt return to our usual routines, roles and responsibilities in the coming weeks.
In Psalm 34, we find words of encouragement as we prepare to begin the new academic year. There’s much to ponder in this Psalm, and the whole Psalm is worth reading through, but here I’ll just share some well-known words from the reading:
O taste and see that the Lord is good;
happy are those who take refuge in him.
9 O fear the Lord, you his holy ones,
for those who fear him have no want.
10 The young lions suffer want and hunger,
but those who seek the Lord lack no good thing.
The Psalmist invites readers to experience God for themselves. Even though there’s been real hardships and difficulties, God’s salvation, deliverance and abundant life have once again brought transformation. This experience is on offer to all and the psalmist invites all to experience it for themselves: taste and see! Then they will understand for themselves the goodness of God and will be radiant (Isaiah 60:5), happy (v. 8) and will be fully provided for (vv. 8-9). We notice that in these verses, and all through verses 4-10 of this Psalm, the key word is ‘fear’. While there are a few references in the Old Testament that suggest actual fright, usually fearing God connotes reverence for, trust in, and dependence upon God. This dependence is what is in sight here and it is expressed as taking refuge in God (v. 8) or seeking God (v. 10).
As we embark on this new academic year, I pray that we will all experience God - ‘taste and see that the Lord is good’! In all our worship, mission, service and church activities, let us walk forward with confidence and courage, depending upon God, taking refuge in him and experiencing for ourselves his goodness, grace, radiance, joy and life in all its fullness.
With much love,
