Thursday, May 8, 2025

Thirsting for God in the Wilderness




“You, God, are my God, earnestly I seek you; I thirst for you, my whole being longs for you, in a dry and parched land where there is no water.”

Psalm 63:1  

There are moments in life when the soul feels parched—dry seasons where comfort, clarity, and direction seem far off. David’s words in Psalm 63:1 come not from a palace but a desert. Yet even in that barren place, his deepest desire was not for rescue or revenge, but for God Himself.

Spurgeon called this “no accidental thirst but a conscious, resolved, and determined seeking after God.” David wasn’t looking for blessings—he was seeking the Blesser. His soul craved God with the intensity of physical thirst in a desert.

“As the deer pants for streams of water, so my soul pants for you, my God,” echoes Psalm 42:1–2. And Jesus affirmed this hunger in the Beatitudes: “Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they will be filled” (Matthew 5:6).

Brueggemann notes that this is “raw and urgent faith,” born not in comfort but in crisis. Coggan reminds us that this desert is not just geographic—it’s also the wilderness of the soul.

Matthew Henry adds, “The more we have of God, the more we still desire him.” When all else is stripped away, the soul’s true longing is revealed: to know and be known by God.

Prayer:

Lord, in every wilderness of my life, let my thirst drive me not to despair, but to deeper desire for You. Be my satisfaction, my strength, and my song.Amen


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