Yum....

Do you mull things over, finding yourself deep in thought, unaware of everything else at the moment because this one thing is your focus? If you are one who turns things over and over until you get a better understanding of the object you are considering, then you are one who mulls or ponders. To ponder means that you consider something deeply and thoroughly. It involves the mind, but it also relies on the involvement of the emotions in the process. It comes from a Latin word that means to "weigh". Some of us might say that we are "reflecting" on an idea - we are simply pondering that idea (weighing the pros and cons). I find I do a great deal of pondering or mulling in the wee hours of the night when I am awakened. My mind begins to work on ideas or issues - some evading both my attention and the 'fix' all day long. In those moments alone in thought, am I really alone? I don't think so - because God is with me in those wee hours!

I ponder every morsel of wisdom from you, I attentively watch how you've done it. I relish everything you've told me of life, I won't forget a word of it. (Psalm 119:15-16)

God's wisdom is to be pondered over and over again - that which comes from his Word is given to be considered and reconsidered time and time again. We must learn to "put to the test" the ideas we have running through our minds, those things that are affecting our emotions, by "weighing" them against God's Word. There is no better "scale" to measure our ideas against! Part of pondering is the idea of directing our attention toward whatever it is we are considering. There is focus - not just haphazard consideration - but determined attention toward the object of our reflection. Are we really committed to "using" the counsel God gives to make decisions about our life? Is it more important to us to  "use" what God gives than to have all the riches in the world? If so, then we are likely going to reflect upon the Word more and more!

What is the respect we have for the counsel of God? Is it a standard by which we "ponder" on life's decisions? The Word must become the standard by which we make decisions. It is the process of "pondering" that actually brings us to a place where we "learn" the Word. This allows us to have the Word available when we need it - not forgetting it. God's Word is not taken into our minds in huge quantities. It is pondered in small "morsels". A morsel is a small bit - some call it a tidbit. It is like a bite-sized candy bar - just enough to give you a taste, but not enough to send you into a diabetic coma! God's Word is "bite-sized" - specifically so we can take it in and actually 'use' what we take in. We take it in one morsel at a time - pondering the morsel until we find deep satisfaction in it. That is how it begins to be something we come to relish.

When we relish something, we have developed a "taste" for it. Many don't have a well-developed "taste" for God's Word. Perhaps this is because when it is mixed with so many other things we "take in" right along with it, we don't get a full appreciation of the "taste"! I like coffee. My sister likes honey in hers. I like a little creamer and sweetener in my coffee. We have each developed a different "taste" for our coffee. Does the coffee change? No, just our appreciation for the taste of that which is produced by either the focus on the coffee or the additives! We need to develop the ability to ponder. Pondering is not easy because we have so many distractions in our days. When we develop our habits of "intake", is it to consume or to appreciate what we consume. We often consume in quantities that are not easily digested - God desires that we take his Word in bite-sized morsels. In the morsels, we develop a "taste" for his Word - an appreciation of the hidden truths deep within. So, ponder with me today. Enjoy the morsels God gives. Develop a taste for the good things God reveals in his Word. Great delight is found not in the consuming of the Word, but in the pondering of its taste! Just sayin!