What are you Thirsting For? Pt. 2

“O God, You are my God; I shall seek You earnestly; My soul thirsts for You, my flesh yearns for You, in a dry and weary land where there is no water.” Psalm 63:1 (NASB)

As we saw last week, God delivered the Israelites from Egypt and led them on a long trek through the wilderness, headed toward the Promised Land. It was a time of testing, that He might humble them and know what was in their heart (Deuteronomy 8:2). He led them through a wilderness with a “thirsty ground where there was no water” (Deuteronomy 8:15) and provided water from a rock, so that they would look to Him and trust in Him. But they didn’t. Their minds were on things of the earth, and most of them perished in the wilderness without seeing the Promised Land.

This week we’re focusing on one Israelite in particular who lived hundreds of years later: David. You probably know that David wrote many of the psalms in the Bible, and interestingly, one of them, Psalm 63, was written while he spent some time of his own in the wilderness.

Actually, David had two stints in the wilderness. After he had slain the giant Goliath as a youth and warred with the Philistines, the people of Israel loved him and sang songs about him. This made King Saul angry and jealous, and he sought to put David to death. David had to flee for his life and hide out in the wilderness (1 Samuel 19-26). Years later, after he became king, David’s life was in danger again because of his son, Absalom. When Absalom conspired to overtake the throne, David fled Jerusalem and hid once more in the wilderness (2 Samuel 15). Commentators aren’t sure which time Psalm 63 was written, but the circumstances were similar nonetheless. He was on the run, fearing for his life, forced to seek the cover of the wilderness.

It would have been natural for him to thirst, and not just for water. He could have thirsted for the comfort of his home, for revenge, or for his throne. Like the Israelites of old, he could have grumbled and complained: “God, why did You bring me out of the shepherd’s field and anoint me king of Israel, only to bring me out into this wilderness to die? Why did you promise me a throne, only to have me flee at the hands of an enemy?”

But David’s heart was in a different place. Despite his needs and his circumstances, he had one central thirst—God. He said, “O God, You are my God; I shall seek You earnestly; my soul thirsts for You, my flesh yearns for You, in a dry and weary land where there is no water” (Psalm 63:1). When his focus could have been his own life, he focused instead on God. When he could have been complaining, he was praising. “Thus I have beheld You in the sanctuary, to see Your power and Your glory. Because Your lovingkindness is better than life, my lips will praise You” (63:2-3).

What’s the difference between David and the Israelites who were delivered from Egypt? David wasn’t perfect; he certainly committed his share of sins. But where the Israelites thirsted for something physical, something tangible—which can never completely satisfy—David knew what his basic need was. He thirsted for the spiritual; he thirsted for God.

What an awesome example, one that should prompt each of us to ask, “Which am I?” We all have earthly needs, but the question is whether those needs are at the core. Is a thirst for the physical, the temporal, and the earthly at the core, or is a thirst for God at the core? When we thirst for Him first and foremost, we will be filled. And He will supply all those other needs according to His riches and glory.

Heavenly Father, I pray that You would give me a deep and abiding thirst for You. No matter what my needs or circumstances, I pray that You would be my focus and my praise. In Jesus’ name, Amen.