A Devotional for Today (8/21/14)

“O taste and see that the Lord is good! Happy is the man who takes refuge in him!”

Psalm 34:8 (RSV)

John Piper—perhaps one of the most impactful and influential pastors of our time—has based his entire ministry at Desiring God on this idea of Christian Hedonism: “God is most glorified when we are most satisfied in Him.”

Whether or not you agree with the premise, one thing is certain: The Christians of today do not savor God in the same way that the Jews (or even the early Church) did. Ever so frequently, we create this “inflatable God”. He takes the form of whatever we want—our Father, some peoples’ greatest enemy, the Judge, a God of theological terms that you can barely pronounce—and that is simply unavoidable. Am I saying that God is not the Father or the Judge, or that theology is not that important? Of course not. What I am saying is that when we find ourselves so caught up in trying to satisfy our skewed perceptions of God, we forget to find our pleasure in Him. We forget to, as the psalmist says, “taste and see that the Lord is good.”

We have wonderful ways of experiencing God today. Small groups, Christian living books, following our favorite pastors on Twitter—these are all ways that we can keep ourselves focused on God throughout our week. But sometimes we get so preoccupied in it all that we forget to do one of the most important things Scripture calls us to: Enjoy God for who He truly is.