Corona Devo 292

Taste and see that the Lord is good.  ~Psalm 34:8

The food, dishes and delicacies that have graced our tables over the past few days have been a cornucopia of flavors and memories too.  Some new recipes showed up while others that we have come to expect each year mixed and mingled to create delicious gatherings with family and friends.

As I sit back and pat my belly, I realize that the extensive spreads are a parable for the blessings in our lives.  Some traditions resurfaced (like favorite recipes) this year, and we also did a few things differently than ever before (much like adding a new dish to the table next to our stand-bys).  The result was different from years past, but enjoyable in it's own way.

Taste and see that the Lord is good.  ~Psalm 34:8

Don't believe the hype.  The news media wants us to lament and be depressed about every day and month of the last Year, but don't believe the hype.  Think it through for yourself.  There were changes (most of them mental!), but there were many good memories as we review as well.  Don't let other people and outlets tell you what the year "tasted" like.  Step back and decide for yourself.

A lot of things/activities/events were halted in the past Year, but the lack of activities-rush brought us back home, to our families and loved ones.  In many ways we came back to the tried-and-true dish of family-time.  The recipe differs for all of us, and no one's is perfect, but indulging in it produces memories, family-ties and extends traditions.  Many of which we were no-longer-serving due to pre-Corona busy-ness.

Taste and see that the Lord is good.  ~Psalm 34:8

I keep reading how terrible the Year has been, but my heart tells me a different story.  Our family has had chapters of fear and discouragement, but far more chapters on hope, trust, and even joy.  Many of us have developed and strengthened our spiritual backbones, and I do not want to go back to the bland spiritual life I was serving to myself and others pre-Corona.  Change (worry/fear) woke up our souls and drew us back to the God who set our lives in motion with a purpose.  We needed some spice and flavor in our spiritual walks and 2020 sure brought that out.  I am grateful for this new recipe of faith in my life.  We were made to have flavor and zeal for Christ and in serving Him.

Taste and see that the Lord is good.  ~Psalm 34:8

The side-dish of online schooling is nothing I would have ever dreamed of serving to our Nation's children, but we have watched our kids mature in problem solving, technology, and life as they adapted-to and became accustomed to learning in this environment.  Online school also came with a few pleasant garnishes that I wasn't expecting, such as the reduction of social pressures and the development of time-management for our kids.  It is still not our favorite dish, and each of our children cannot wait to feast on in-school learning once again, but I would be remiss if I did not acknowledge what they have learned in and outside of the classroom in the past year.

Taste and see that the Lord is good.  ~Psalm 34:8

Family time, family time, family time.  This component went from possibly having an appetizer-role in some of our family lives to becoming the main dish over the past Year.  We were always together all of a sudden.  But God is good.  His plans for us are good.  They may get dropped in our laps differently than we expected (an all-world lock down!), but He is always at work to better us.  Family time will do that.  It will reveal the yucky-recipes that you'd rather not share, while at the same time perfecting them with the simmering of personalities: each person stirring the pot and adding flavors to doctor it up.

We need each other's input/seasoning to become more palatable to others.  Alone, we often think that we are a gourmet dish, but that is rarely how others would describe us.  Family time can bring heat like an oven, or cold shoulders like a deep freezer, but the extremes produce functionality in us.  

Family time is the most important component (after Jesus) in our lives.  If our marriages and children can function/adapt/be teachable, then the rest of life's recipes and side dishes are edible.  If we get the main dish right, the table is set.  

Taste and see that the Lord is good.  ~Psalm 34:8

2020 has had many new things for us to swallow, and we (understandably) choked on some of them.  But like a buffet table full of heaping dishes (traditional recipes and first-time-tries) if we look back over the Year, I hope that when we get honest we will not say that our souls starved.  

Don't believe the hype.  It has not been a bad year.  Review your blessings: be grateful for the traditional "recipes" that we were able to enjoy, and also for the new ones that we added in.  Our life-tastebuds are easily influenced, but ultimately we alone will decide if 2020 will leave a sweet or sour taste in our mouth. 

I pray that we can realize the nutrition in some of the new things that we tried in 2020.  I thank God for sprinkling sweetness in with the bitter, and for teaching me a deeper way to say Grace.  

Taste and see that the Lord is good.  ~Psalm 34:8

Blessings,

sarah
https://sarahsundy04.blogspot.com/