When only Christ will Do
Psalm 42 – (1) As the deer pants for the water brooks, so my soul pants for You, O God. (2) My soul thirsts for God, for the living God; when shall I come and appear before God?
Can you say this? I guess I mean more than if you are able to verbalize it. Do you identify with it? Are you hungry for the presence of God. Is satisfaction in Christ something that you experience on a regular basis, or do you find yourself running to other streams to drink you fill. The world has so much to offer us, and much of it can be described as the good gifts of God. Are you content with the gifts, or do you have an insatiable thirst for the giver.
These are all questions that I am asking myself right now. I am struggling with the lethargy in my own heart and soul. I can say that I “want” to want Christ passionately and desperately, but that is different than saying that I want Him.
Are you following me? What I mean is that as I read a text like this, I can almost feel the palpable sense of desperation that the writer had for communion with God. He was not simply satisfied with the benefits and blessings of His God. He craved the presence of God Himself. Don’t get me wrong; the blessings of God are beyond compare, but if we are content with them….find our satisfaction in them rather than in the giver, it is idolatry, and we must repent of a misappropriation of worship. God alone deserves our affections of worship and true contentment.
All of this brings me to a quest of sorts. I have to see Jesus. I want to do whatever it takes to push through the degrees of separation that have me seeing Christ as through a bar filled with smoke. I want to be drawn up near to Him to savour the sweetness of His closeness. I want to hear from Him as one man hears his friend. I have had his gifts, and I will not be satisfied with them when only He will do. My thirst for Him is increasing. Is yours? Do you thirst for him as the deer who has been running from the hunters for hours and hours thirsts for the refreshing water from the brook? If not, shouldn’t you?
Join me by meditating on these verses over the coming days. As we approach Thanksgiving, wouldn’t it be awesome to praise Him for the nearness of His presence and the touch of His hand rather than simply the gifts that He gives.
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