In 1989, Carlo Petrini started a movement known as "Slow Food". The movement exists to counter the world's ever-increasing dependence upon fast food. The preservative-laden, mass-produced fast food meals are neither good for us, nor for our environment, argue Petrini and his comrades.
They encourage people to eat foods grown locally and to preserve cultural cuisine. In addition, Slow Food undertakes what proponents call “taste education.” This process helps people rediscover the joys of eating food made from fresh, quality ingredients.
Many people are insulted by the idea that their taste is not what it should be. But anyone who is deeply invested in the culinary world knows that some tastes must be developed, and as long as our cravings are satisfied with processed, prepared foods, we will never be able to appreciate more delicate, nourishing fare.
In a similar way, many people have lost their taste for the things of God. Innumerable rivals compete to satisfy the hungers of our spirit, and as long as people continue to eat and drink from the world's offerings, they will not be able to see the appeal of the nourishment God offers them. As John Piper writes, "If you don't feel strong desires for the manifestation of the glory of God, it is not because you have drunk deeply and are satisfied. It is because you have nibbled so long at the table of the world. Your soul is stuffed with small things, and there is no room for the great. God did not create you for this. There is an appetite for God. And it can be awakened."
Scripture commands us: "Taste and see that the LORD is good…” Psalm 34:8a
If you are not sure whether you have ever tasted the goodness of God, stop and think about what might be dulling your spiritual senses. Has your craving for the praise of men, the sophistication of the world, or mind-numbing entertainment deadened your hunger for God? It may be that by removing yourself, at least for a time, from whatever has killed your spiritual hungers, you will be able to taste the goodness of God in a way that you have never known it before.
If you have tasted God, and you know his goodness, do not be satisfied with anything less. Peter puts it this way, "Like newborn babies, crave pure spiritual milk, so that by it you may grow up in your salvation, now that you have tasted that the Lord is good." 1 Peter 2:2-3
With Love,
Mike