A Change of Taste

Proverbs 23:12 “Apply yourself to discipline and listen to words of knowledge.”

For years I have gained and lost weight repeatedly.  I realized at this point in my life I needed to change my strategy.  In October 2012 I decided that instead of focusing on losing weight, (which I needed to do at 300 pounds), I was going to focus on becoming healthy. I began to study how many calories I needed daily, and foods I needed to learn to wean my way off. 

Going into the year of 2013, Yolanda saw how serious I was about my health journey, so she supported and surprised me with my first juicer/extractor on Father’s Day 2013.  I spent the next year researching for the right nutrients to prepare for my new health journey.  One of the ingredients I found to better my blood pressure and heart were raw beets. 

The beet was a taste that I could not stand when I first used it in my extractor.  Even with the sweet fruits and carrots, you could still taste the beets in the mix.  But I knew that if I could incorporate beets in my diet, in the long run my health in the cardiovascular area would be great.  My father died of a massive heart attack in 2002 and I was headed for the same fate going in the direction I was going.

Whether I liked it or not I made myself drink beets in my juice every morning. It became so routine that I eventually forgot I didn’t like the taste.  And to this day, I crave the taste of the beet in my juice.  On the days I run out of beets and must do without, I’ll make a juice with the sweetest fruit, and it tastes so good. But because of the relationship I developed with the beet, I miss it and have the feeling like I’ve fallen short on one day bettering my heart against disease.

This is the way we must be with the Word of God.  Our sinful nature keeps us from enjoying the taste of the fruit of God’s Word. In other words, some of us can’t develop an interest in the bible when we first begin to read it. Others of us have a problem with the messengers in the church and refuse to hear the Word coming from them.

Whatever the case, that taste in spirit may be bitter like that beet on my first encounter. But keep adding that taste to your Spirit daily in your life. Eventually you will find that the pages of the bible began to turn just a little bit better.  It’s not that you are more interested, but it is because your spirit has grown stronger and It is allowing you to ‘receive’ God’s gift of knowledge and power.

You see with me and health, the beets began to heal me in ways I could not understand. And before I knew it, my doctor visits about my blood pressure were the best I’ve had since I was a teenager.  This same blessing will come to you in the form of a transformed life.

​When you make the time to get into God’s Word, you allow His healing power to strengthen your spirit so that it will tame your flesh and keep it from denying you your blessing in a God-led, wisdom-filled life! That bitter taste will turn into the best flavor, and you will crave the blessing of the fruit every day for the rest of your life.  In fact if you miss a day without the taste of the Word, you will know it and correct it.
May God continue to bless and keep you safe, healed and directed in His Son Jesus Christ,
Amen

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