Curds & Honey

Last night I stumbled upon a Holiday Scripture Writing Plan. I’ve never seen one of these before, but I liked the idea and decided to start early. 

Along with writing out Day 1’s verses, I added my own Bible journaling aspect to my writing. If you’re not familiar with Bible journaling, google it – there are some beautiful pieces out there.

The verse that stood out to me was Isaiah 7:15. “He shall eat curds and honey when he knows how to refuse the evil and choose the good.”

I’ve been a part of an amazing Bible study based on the book Good or God, by John Bevere. So the concept of “good” has been in my mind a lot lately. In the process of the study, God has opened my eyes to a few situations I deemed “good” but were actually deceptive. I was pretty shocked at the revelations.

So when I read verse 15, the word “good” stood out to me, but of course “curds and honey” also stood out . . . The verse is talking about Jesus, and I honestly don’t ever remember reading it before.

What do curds and honey have to do with anything? And what do they have to do with refusing evil and choosing good? My thoughts stayed on this scripture and I woke up this morning thinking about it again.

What do curds and honey have in common?

Curds are the curdled part of soured milk. Gross. But it’s also what makes stuff like cottage cheese and cheese curds. A lot of people like curds, but it takes some bad, some discards, some souring, some “evil” to make the curds.

And honey? Bees are involved, and they sting. There’s also wax and a hive and danger and a process to obtain the honey and make it “good” to eat. There’s “evil” (or negative) involved.

Evil might seem like too strong a word to use when talking about curds and honey, but you get the point. There’s a negative aspect to producing something good and beneficial.

If we aren’t willing to go through the process, to withstand the evil days, then we will not stick around to enjoy the good. As well, if we focus on the negative or the process, we might not choose to see the good. Even once the process is complete, there is still “refuse” (a part to throw away) and a part to enjoy.

Today, look past the sour, the sting, the danger and the smell. Refuse the evil and choose the good. Eat curds and honey. Enjoy the day.