I will bless the Lord pat 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. Oh, magnify the Lord with me, and let us exalt his
name together! I sought the Lord, and he answered me and delivered me from all
my fears. Those who look to him are radiant, and their faces shall never be
ashamed. This poor man cried, and the Lord heard him and saved him out of all
his troubles. The angel of the Lord encamps around those who fear him, and
delivers them. Oh, taste and see that the Lord is good! Blessed is the man who
takes refuge in him!
(Psalm 34:1-8 ESV).
Let’s also concentrate
on the last verse of our reading today: Oh, taste and see that the Lord is
good! Blessed is the man who takes refuge in him! (v. 8). There are so many
experiences in our fifty-six years together that I might be able to share that
would affirm the truth of this verse. The Lord has been so good to us. It is a
marvel to me that God would have blessed me with such an incredible partner to
walk through this journey with. While there have been some parts of the journey
that have challenged me to the breaking point, each time as I have come to
recognize the complete trustworthiness of our God. I have found Him to be more
than enough. That trust has provided more than mere refuge from the storms; it
has also “worked together for good” (cf. Romans 8:28).
Perhaps a story from
the beginning will illustrate this best. You may recognize the location of the
picture I’ve chosen for today. It is the Apple Barn in Pigeon Forge, Tennessee.
It was taken in the fall last year. Both Mary and I look a bit older than we
did the first time we traveled to the Smokies. After all, that was well over
fifty years ago! That first trip was taken with Mary’s family. We were engaged
at the time. I was concerned that her North Carolina grandparents, aunts and
uncles, and cousins would not approve of this young Italian boy she had given
her heart to. And, I had no idea of the depth of love and acceptance that they
would extend to me.
My first view of the
Smoky Mountains should have provided a clue as to what the Lord was about to do
in my life. As we traveled the highway through Memphis toward the mountains,
every rise on the horizon brought me to think, “Is that the mountains?” After
all, never having traveled further than College Station from Galveston, I had
no idea what a mountain looked like. Of course, I had seen a few photos, but in
1968, photography was not nearly as good as it is today. No photograph could do
justice to the magnificent of God’s creation of that beloved place. Somewhere
east of Nashville we crested a hill and the mountains seemed to just appear,
dwarfing the horizon. I was so taken by the majesty of that sight I had to pull
off the highway and stop to just look. Mary simply said, “Those are the
mountains.” Remember… “O, taste and see that the Lord is good!” That was the
beginning of the great gifts God would give to me with her beside me. In these
five decades our family has increased. Our children have married, beginning
their own journeys. Our grandchildren have been added to the family tree. Each
of them displaying the goodness of our God.
There are those times
when I drift away from the truth that this is just the beginning of the
goodness of our Lord. There is so much more to come! Then I can come full
circle to the truth that the greatest gift of all, the gift of grace through
Jesus’ sacrificial atoning work in my life make all of this possible. That all
began with meeting Mary at the A&W in College Station, Texas, over half a
century ago!
Happy Birthday, Mary! We
have just begun to see the greatness of our God… eternity will hold so much
more!
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