Psalm 63:1 - June 26, 2009

Ps 63:1 A psalm of David. When he was in the Desert of Judah.
"O God, you are my God, earnestly I seek you; my soul thirsts for you, my body longs for you, in a dry and weary land where there is no water." NIV

This psalm reflects the passion that drives a person into the deeper places with God. What is it that drives a person to seek earnestly after God? What is it the moves a heart to whole hearted pursuit of a life time of encounters with the living God? Hunger!!! Jesus spoke of this same hunger in Matt 5:6 as he encouraged the church, “Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they will be filled.” The powerful principle contained within these words is that there is a reward that awaits the person who pursues God and He will not withhold it from the ones who are truly longing and reaching after Him.
David’s desert experience has become an image that is paralleling his spiritual life. The heat and thirst of the desert, the weariness that comes from these surroundings has crept into his very being and his soul is burning with a desire that is as unquenchable as his natural thirst in the desert. “O God, you are my God, earnestly I seek you;” There are times in our natural lives when the longings of our heart become so deep that the very core of our being aches for something more. Only a few people in the whole context of mankind ever rightly diagnose this ache as a deep longing for more of God but that is the real nature of the void inside each one of us. We were created to enjoy a deep fellowship with God that was forfeited in the Garden of Eden and ever since there is something inside that will only be satisfied through a fervent pursuit of and encounter with the living God. David’s description of his longing is so intensely real inside of him that he expresses both the thirst of his soul and the longings of his natural body as he cries out to the Lord.
Each person is on a journey towards God. There is a drawing power, a deep inner appeal that is calling out to each one of us inviting us back to the only true source of satisfaction in life. The scriptures promised us that the Holy Spirit would be poured out on all flesh! God has extended His Spirit into the earth to touch the conscience and soften the heart of man. His desire is red hot towards us and He is working to awaken Holy desires in even the most stubborn hearts. Many are resisting this appeal but other hearts are stirring. Other hearts are moving in response to this inner call. They have allowed themselves sufficient time to listen to its voice by pulling away from the dulling distractions of this world that harden our hearts to the hunger within us. They have been awakened and are beginning to recognize their thirst the way that David did and the result is that the inner being comes in contact with the depth of our own inner longings. For those who discern these longings the heart is awakened to spiritual hunger and the soul begins to reach out to the living waters that come only through relationship with the Almighty God! Take the time today to discern the hunger within you. Take time today to turn away from the dulling influence of earthly desires and fix your heart on heaven’s waters that can truly satisfy the hunger within you.