“Oh taste, and see that the Lord is good. How blessed is the man who takes refuge in him!”
–Psalm 34-8

I remember growing up how my sister loved to cook. She made great cookies, and we loved to eat them as soon as they were cool enough to eat. But one day, she decided to try her hand at making pancakes. She had never cooked them before, so I became her pancake guinea-pig. Those pancakes seemed about an inch thick, and they were raw in the middle. I decided I wasn’t a big fan of pancakes, and that decision stands to this day.

Unlike my sister’s cooking, the Lord doesn’t work on a trial-and-error basis. But unfortunately, many people have this concept of him. Instead of seeing a God of love who invites everyone to come to Him just as you are, they see a stern and unapproachable taskmaster. This concept of God leaves a bad taste in their mouths, just like the taste of raw pancakes.

But this concept doesn’t reflect what God is really like. Using the word “luv” (we’ll take our cue from text message-ese and misspell it), let’s look at some of God’s wonderful qualities.
The L stands for “long-suffering”. Two other words that might describe this characteristic of God are patience and mercy.

While patience isn’t a word that we Americans are too fond of, take a minute and think about the patience that God has had with all of us. Instead of punishing us for our sin, He sent His only son to die in our place.

That leads to the U in luv, which stands for “undeserved favor”. The Bible says that our righteousness is like filthy rags

in the sight of a holy and perfect God. In other words, we fall so short of his standards, that only His love can rescue us. This is exactly what He has done, and so we are the recipients of his undeserved favor.The V in luv tells us that we can face life with certain “victory”, for when we go through difficult circumstances, we know that He is right there beside us.

If you’re not experiencing God’s wonderful love, maybe you’re not looking at the second part of the opening verse. Like I said before, many people taste a God of their own making, and when times get tough, these people will get up and run. Just as my interest in pancakes died after tasting my sister’s cooking, they will soon decide they want nothing to do with the God of the Bible. But the second part of this verse invites us to take our refuge in Him.

Think of it this way: Have you ever had a long day, and just wanted to get home so you could let your hair down and relax? God is inviting you to come to Him in just the same way. But while He is holding the door open, you must decide for yourself whether you want to walk through it. I urge you to make your home in Him today, and rest in His love. Ask God to help you to discard any concepts of Him that may have held you back, and let Him lead you to a life of abundance despite the trials you will face.