Stepping into the pages of a new Margaret Feinberg book for me is like opening a gift from a friend. I can’t wait to discover what’s inside. That was exactly what happened when I had an opportunity to be a part of her launch team for her newly published book, Taste and See: Discovering God Among Butchers, Bakers, and Fresh Food Makers.

What I most love about Margaret’s writing is that I know I will always discover something new about God’s Word or some aspect of it that will draw me into a treasure hunt to uncover even more of Him.

In Taste and See Margaret shows how prominent a role food plays throughout the Bible and points us to how it helps us grow hungry for Him and savor his goodness in our lives. Consider that the book of Genesis “unfolds like a feast with fruits and vegetables everywhere.”

We know that we are dependent on food, but have you ever considered God intended it for pleasure as well? He didn’t need to give us “between 2,000 and 10,000 taste buds, each one harboring 50 to 100 receptors that distinguish between five main flavors.”

We live in a busy world and most of our lives reflect it. Instead of the time once spent around a table enjoying foods made in our kitchen and conversation giving us connection, we are more commonly grabbing food on the run that we picked up at a deli, ordered from the local pizza shop, or purchased at our favorite fast-food chain.

Margaret helps the reader see once again that “something beautiful happens when we gather around the table.” She also points out how often we see Jesus in the midst of enjoying a meal, on his way to one, or providing for one by turning water into wine or multiplying loaves and fish.

Listen to her words and how they resonate:

“Around the table, we discover something about longing. We recognize our need for someone to look us in the eye and truly see us, for someone to lean in and listen to us, for someone to nod and acknowledge that we’re not alone.”

Margaret zeroes in on “six foods God uses to reveal and heal our deepest hungers.”  But if you know anything about Margaret, you know she will not simply read up on them. She travels to spend time with the people who know these foods the best and learns about them firsthand with those intimately acquainted with every aspect of them.

Each of six chapters in the book focuses on one of these six foods and she caps off the chapter with some recipes highlighting the food you have just learned about. Margaret reminds us that God wants to satisfy our hunger including “the deepest hunger of our hearts.”

In addition to the book, you might want to enjoy an accompanying Bible study that includes DVD’s, a leader’s guide and a study book. Tucked in each session is an extra recipe to try and activities to bring home the truths of the study.

Yes, I loved this book and all I learned and how it drew me into deeper insights into hunger both for natural food created by God and spiritual food He offers me if I will but take time to “taste and see.”

“God is waiting around every table, in every pantry, in every backyard garden. You just need some fresh ingredients, some time, and a friend or two. No matter where we find ourselves, mealtimes can become sacred spaces of supernatural satisfaction. When we invite God in, he satiates our hunger to know and to be known, to understand and to be understood, to love and to be loved. In community, God touches our physical appetites and spiritual affections.”

Margaret Feinberg