Psalm 34:1-8
The Rev. Adele K. Langworthy, preaching
Thanksgiving Week, November 27-30, 2024
I love how taste and sight are matched up in verse 8 of Psalm 34 to show how we can fully and gratefully appreciate the goodness of the Lord.
Our sense of sight plays a large role in our perception of flavor, influencing our expectations and interpretations of taste based on the appearance of food. What we see can influence how we taste something!
Now maybe I am influenced by the memory of the festive atmosphere and tasty food at the Thanksgiving potluck this past Sunday, but I do think there is something to be said about how food is presented and the enjoyment of it. Michigan State University professor Sungeun Cho and graduate student Ed Szczygiel, I think would agree with me, according to Michelle Neff’s reporting of their research. They concluded that the first sense we use when we eat food is our vision or sight. We look with our eyes at the food on our plate or on the shelf at the store. Our mind thinks that the look of something tells us how the food is going to taste.
Their research found that we use sight to do an initial quality assessment. Sight is used to determine if the food has been properly cooked, if it is fresh with no brown spots, if it is desirable to eat, and if we should purchase it.
Over the years, scientists have found that even the color of food can change our perception of food and how it might taste. For example, people perceive that if something is green, it is fresh and has better nutrition.
Other areas of appearance that we use with our sense of sight include size, shape, carbonation, temperature and viscosity. Research has been done around the physiologic and psychological aspects of color cues. For example, one study found that people perceive hot chocolate to taste better if they drink it out of an orange cup compared to a different colored cup. (I think I may need to do a taste test to validate their research.)
As we come to the Thanksgiving table, whether it is turkey with all its fixins or another main course with side dishes to enjoy, our eyes will dance with the various colors and presentations of the food that enhance our eating experience.
Many of us will enjoy, this Thanksgiving, food that is both beautiful to the eye and delicious in the mouth; but all of us can enjoy the spiritual food of God of which physical food is but an appetizer. We can all feast on the Lord! The Psalmist writes in verse 8 of Psalm 34: O taste and see that the Lord is good. If we set our eyes on looking for God, we will find Him — though for some of us it may take longer. As is written in verses 4 & 5, I sought the Lord, and he answered me, and delivered me from all my fears. Look to him, and be radiant; so your faces shall never be ashamed. If we are looking for God to be at work in our midst, we will experience him. And when we see God in action, we will taste his goodness, leading us to praise God. I will bless the Lord at all times; his praise shall continually be in my mouth. My soul makes its boast in the Lord; let the humble hear and be glad, as is written in verses 1 & 2.
Annahita Parsan was born Iran. She had a good life, and it got even better when she fell in love, married, and gave birth to her son, Daniel. She writes, “Like so many people whose lives feel perfect, I had little appetite for God. But all that was about to change.
“Death came like a thief one morning soon after Daniel was born. My husband was killed in a traffic accident, and in an instant my life was robbed of joy. … for the first time in my life, my mind turned to God. I asked, What have I done to deserve this?
“In time the pain dulled a little, and I remarried. But from the first night we were together, my new husband revealed himself to be a violent, abusive man. My life was once more plunged into pain and sorrow.
“I gave birth to a daughter, Roksana, but my husband’s beatings continued. And when he got in trouble with the authorities, I had no choice but to join him as he fled across the mountains into Turkey. It was a terrible journey. We weren’t equipped for the snow, and soon my fingers, mouth, and toes were black with frostbite. And when I realized that Roksana was no longer breathing, my thoughts once more returned to God. Why are you punishing me this way? … I had no idea that God was right there with me.
“Hours later, as we sat by a fire in the custody of Turkish police, I got my first real glimpse of God. Roksana was alive. It was a miracle. Throughout the next four months that we spent locked up in a Turkish prison, God was right there. He kept me safe from many dangers, and I know he was there too in the kindness of a stranger: a businessman, once imprisoned alongside us, who helped secure our release … But it wasn’t until I was far away from Turkey that God started to reveal himself more clearly. One day two men knocked on my apartment door. They wanted to talk about Jesus, but I was too scared of my husband to talk to strangers. They returned the next day and handed me a Bible. I knew I should have thrown it away, but something made me want to keep it. So I hid it where my husband couldn’t find it. The next time he beat me until my body was bruised and sore, something compelled me to give the Bible a look. It spoke to me, and I started to speak to God. If you really are there, God, please help. … With the help of the police, I was able to leave my husband. My children and I were relocated to another city and offered emergency shelter by nuns. As I listened to them talk and sing about loving and following Jesus, something awakened within me. Could I ever learn to love and trust you too, Jesus?
“Years passed before I had an answer. I was back in Iran, having returned to visit a dying relative. The authorities were suspicious as to why I had left Iran in the first place, and I knew I couldn’t tell the truth about my escape without facing a return to prison. After three months of court hearings and interviews, I stood before a judge, waiting to hear his verdict. Powerless and desperate, I turned fully to the One who had been beside me throughout it all. I promised God I would give my life to Christ if he could deliver me from this ordeal.
“Right then, as I prayed, he freed me from the enemy’s grip. The judge, who saw that I was crying, had mercy on me and let me go free. The very next day, I was back in Sweden—God had rescued me and brought me safely home. From that day on, my life has been his.”
May we be like Annahita, who, seeing God at work, was able to taste God’s goodness, and who, in turn with an open heart reached out to God with an open mouth to give Him thanks every day for his deliverance and goodness, as if life was always a Thanksgiving Feast – for that it is!
Write a comment: