Thirsty?

Today’s Passage Psalm 37  – 43

As the hart panteth after the water brooks, so panteth my soul after thee, O God. Psalm 42:1

I remember when I was a boy, the neighborhood that I grew up in was involved in an unorganized baseball league and we would challenge other neighborhoods in our town to play us. I remember one very hot, summer afternoon we were playing Lake Riviera, our arch rivals.  The temperature was in the 90’s with high humidity.  It was a real scorcher.  I don’t remember who won or lost that game, but I do remember that out of all of the dozen or so guys on our team only one had enough sense to bring water.  I recall he had one of those Coleman jugs that contained about a half gallon or so of water.  At first he did not want to share; but under the threat of death from his teammates, he finally yielded and shared his treasure.  It was as close as I ever came to identifying with the rich man in Luke 16, who desired just a drop of cool water.

In the passage referenced above the Psalmist tells us that he had that kind of a thirst, not for water, but for the things of God.  Jesus said, “…if any man thirst, let him come unto me, and drink” (John 7:37), and “blessed are they which do hunger and thirst after righteousness, for they shall be filled” (Matthew 5:6).  Amos referred to a thirst for the “hearing of the words of the Lord”. (Amos 8:11)

We tend to get thirsty when we have been without hydration for a while.  America is dehydrated spiritually, and I bet there are a lot of folks out there who are thirsting for God; and they may not even realize what they are thirsting for.  They have been drinking from the wells of this world for a long time, but have not found satisfaction.  The people of God are not helping the situation because they too have abandoned the well of the Word of God and have been sipping at the fountains of the devil.

Are you thirsty?  As God’s people, our desire should be for God’s will and God’s Word.  We should thirst after it.  How long has it been since you took a good, long, satisfying drink from God’s well?  How long has it been since you offered a cup of God’s Spirit to the thirsty people of the world around you?