It’s summertime in Alabama, where I live. The days are heating up. There are times when it is so hot and humid you will feel like you are breathing water. As we enjoy the outside activities that go along with this time of year, the desire and need for more liquid increases. Bottled water sales will multiply as the season changes. When we are thirsty, all we can think about is, where can I get a drink? Much of our energy is spent seeking to fulfill our desire to quench our thirst. While fulfilling our desire for our physical bodies is important, there is a greater need we should be concerned about. That need is for our spiritual bodies that live forever.
In Psalm 63:1, David speaks about his soul being thirsty. He feels as if he is so far removed from God that he is in a desert, a dry and thirsty land where there is no water. He is crying out to God, seeking Him early in the morning. He is longing to feel God near, and the first thing on his mind when he awakens is to seek God. The image here is that he desires God so much that unless he meets with Him, his soul will dry up. David is declaring that he will meet God first in the day. He would seek God while the distractions of the day were still at bay. He would seek Him before his attention could be diverted to other things or plans that would control his day.
Psalm 63:1 “A Psalm of David, when he was in the wilderness of Judah. O God, thou art my God; early will I seek thee: my soul thirsteth for thee, my flesh longeth for thee in a dry and thirsty land, where no water is;”
In Psalm 42:1-2 he again reminds us of his desire to be with God. He uses the mental picture of a deer that is so thirsty he is panting for water. When I think of panting, my mind goes back to a dog named Chief. He was a pet we acquired from the animal shelter for our boys. He loved to run and play with the boys. There never seemed to be an end to his energy, but he did take water breaks. He would be panting so hard I wondered how he could lap up the water. He would seem exhausted, but after lapping up all he could hold, he was refreshed and ready to go again. He would only lie down to rest after he had fulfilled the desires of his masters, the boys.
How different and fulfilled our lives would be if we desire God the way He longs for us too long for Him, so much that we can’t wait to meet with Him each morning. What if we panted after Him and could not be satisfied until He filled us? How much better would our day be and if we started our day satisfied and full of Him? How much easier would our decisions be if we started each day filled with His wisdom? I wonder how many things happen to us each day that God places in our path because He wants us to pant after Him.
I’m not talking about getting up each day and taking a sip of God out of habit or duty. I’m talking about drinking enough to satisfy the soul, enough to sustain you through a hot, dry day—a day when the world feels like a desert. Have you longed for God lately so much that you were willing to give up sleep, food, or recreation time just to be with Him?
Psalm 42:1-2 “As the deer panteth after the water brooks, so panteth my soul after thee, O God. My soul thirsteth for God, for the living God: when shall I come and appear before God?”
If you haven’t experienced this desire to pant after God, start seeking Him early when things are quiet. The more you seek Him, the more you will long for Him, and the sweeter your time will be. There is nothing like the feeling of being full and satisfied. Those feelings usually make me want a nap and there’s no better rest than resting in Jesus. Once you have experienced this refreshing filling from God, you can’t be satisfied with anything else.
