We all have things that we don't like the taste of. Some of them are things that conjure up memories from the past that we'd rather leave behind. Some are things we've tried before and really don't like. But some are things that somebody else has told us we don't like. We haven't actually tried them, but we've become convinced that we don't like the taste. Often this means that we miss out on something good.
I think we do the same thing in other areas of our life as well. Why don't people attend church? Why don't people accept Jesus as Savior? Could it be that they have heard that Christians are a hypocritical, judgmental group of weak-minded fools? They just know that religion tastes bad and they're sure they won't like it.
The author of Psalm 34 is challenging his readers to "taste and see that the Lord is good." This is good advice for us today as well. The taste of our faith will be shaped by a personal experience with Jesus. If our experience is based on a superficial, every-so-often effort on our part, then we will have a tasteless, flat faith. If we are to taste the full, rich life that God has for us, we will need to invest more in the "tasting" effort!
