Have you ever been outside, perhaps hiking somewhere, and gotten really thirsty? I mean really, really thirsty? A good part of the American Southwest is desert and wilderness land. It is very hot, and it is very dry. If someone gets caught out there in the hot, blistering sun with no water, it can be a very serious, even deadly, situation. David knew what it was like to be thirsty, and he also knew what it was like to have a thirsty soul. Our psalm for today which David wrote, describes such a time.
Before David became king of Israel, he spent several years in the desert wilderness fleeing from King Saul. Out in the desert, constantly on the run, he and his companions knew what it was like to get thirsty. He knew how dangerous that could be. However, David knew that what was even worse than a physical thirst is a spiritual thirst, a thirst of the soul. When we are hot and thirsty, all we can think about is getting a nice cold glass of water, or some other thirst-quenching beverage. This was how David felt when he had spent even a short time without being in close communion with God (vs. 1-2). David longed for God’s presence like a wanderer in the desert.
We should be eager to be with the Lord in every situation, starting first thing in the morning, and all through the day. Hopefully this would be a pattern from an early age. David sought the Lord early in his life, from back when he was a little shepherd boy, looking after his father’s flocks. And now as an adult, he knew how important it was to also seek God first thing in the morning. That way the day starts out on the right footing.
Are we really longing for God? Do we seek Him earnestly, and pursue Him throughout our day? How close we are to the Lord will determine how our day, and really how our life will be. The fuel we give our heart and mind each morning greatly affects the remainder of the day. We need to seek God, both early and earnestly. David would wake up hungry for God, and he sought both his physical and spiritual sustenance from Him.
David found that when he satisfied himself in the Lord, when he was in a good and right relationship with Him, that it was like the satisfaction of having been at a fine banquet (vs. 5). And God isn’t stingy in handing out His blessings to those who seek Him. He doesn’t pass out crumbs. Instead, it is with “marrow and fatness”, or as we might say today, the choicest and best selections of food! David also knew that God’s love and mercy are more desirable and valuable than life itself (vs. 3). It is better to have found the Lord, and have a briefer life, than to not and have a long life (Mark 8:36-37).
While on the run in the wilderness, and even later when he was king, David found that there were some nights he just couldn’t fall asleep. Instead of fretting and stewing throughout the sleepless hours, he spent the time meditating on God (vs 6). He spoke here of being awake through the night watches. The night was divided into three watches. Someone awake through more than one was having a sleepless night. When this happens, we can meditate on God and His Word, and be in prayer. Consider sleepless nights to be opportunities to call out and cling to God, allowing His loving hand to uphold us.
No matter what the situation, or where it led, David committed to following God, and holding fast to Him (vs. 8). Many Christians follow God if it is profitable for them, but when difficult times come, they cease to follow. Despite being in a dry and thirsty land, David remembered God’s power, glory, and love. When we seek Him, we can be reassured that we are in a place of His care and protection, just like a baby bird under their mother’s wing (vs. 7).
We may find this world a weary wilderness, a dry and thirsty place. However, we can find God to be a satisfying source of perfect joy and happiness. No matter where we are, our desire should be for the Lord God, because only He can satisfy us fully.
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