The Soul Thirsts

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How many times have I seen and read the ancient text of Psalm 42?

 “As the deer pants for the water brooks, So my soul pants for You, O God. My soul thirsts for God, for the living God; When shall I come and appear before God?”

This week alone I have come upon this verse at least half a dozen times, once in a book by A.W. Tozer, another in a morning devotional, once in a Sunday morning sermon and several times from radio bible teachers.

This sudden repeated occurrence of such verses in such a short time has made me take heed… has made me evaluate… has made me meditate… has made me ponder…    

God knows all my days.  He knows what will be included in those days? He knows what my eyes will see and my what my ears will hear.  He knows the thoughts and intents of my heart.   God… does He not cause all things to work together to bring something to my attention?

“As a deer pants for the water brooks, so my soul pants for You, O God.”

Pants… What does it actually mean in the Hebrew?  It means to desire, long for, to cry out for (Joel 1:20).  The root of pants is "to flee" or be "untamed".  

What are some of the physical effects of one who pants?  What do their muscles do?  Where do their eyes search?  What is the beat of their heart like?  What are the thoughts within their head?In what sense are they untamed?  Are they untamed to the world or God?  To whom do they cry out and long for?  Why do they pant and what has caused them to pant? 

Do they pant because of a lifestyle of  “self” such as self-sufficiency, self-governing, self-pity, and self-centeredness? Do they pant because of the emptiness in their own life?  Do they pant because they are afraid and weary?  Do they pant because of heartbreak? Do they pant because they thirst and hunger for justice? (Matt 5:6) Do they pant because they have found themselves at the dry wick of complacency? Do they pant because they are hounded, intimidated, manipulated, hunted?   Do they pant because they feel as if something is trying to dampen, cheapen, gray and cool the coals of their faith?

“Answer me quickly, O Lord, my spirit fails;
Do not hide Your face from me,
Or I will become like those who go down to the pit.”  Psalm 143:7

Do they pant because of sin?

Do they pant because no matter where they look in this uncertain world, they find nothing in which their soul can rest? 

Have they become distracted or side tracked? Have they put their eyes on people and the opinions of people more then on God? 

Have they found their faith has turned into some kind of religion of rote, rule, routine and law?

“Create in me a pure heart, O God, and renew a steadfast spirit within me.”  Psalm 51:10

Have they forgotten to REVERE and FEAR God and in doing so have fallen into the muddy worldly ruts of  “This is the how things are to be done.”?  I say where is the Spirit and Truth in that?  

I say where is the “dynamis” that Paul spoke of:

“For when we brought you the Good News, it was not only with words but also with power, for the Holy Spirit gave you full assurance that what we said was true.”

Think about it....  going about things in a routine religious manner... is that open to our God who is unorthodox and is unorthodox in ways?  He says there is a narrow door to which we can enter heaven and that is through His SON, Jesus Christ.   This is God who is ONE God but three people in one- He is Father, Son- Jesus Christ and the Holy Spirit.  This is God who spits in the dirt and puts it on a blind man's eyes and cures his blindness and raises the dead with by just the words of His mouth.     

He works beyond our own reasoning does He not?

"Trust in the LORD with all your heart And do not lean on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge Him, And He will make your paths straight.…" Proverbs 3:5-6

Acknowledging Him had very little to do with leaning on our own understanding.  In fact when we lean on our own understanding, I find we shut Him off.

Do they pant and thirst because they have tasted the Lord is good?

“Give thanks to the LORD, for he is good! His faithful love endures forever” Psalm 136:1

“The angel of the LORD encamps around those who fear Him, And rescues them. O taste and see that the LORD is good; How blessed is the man who takes refuge in Him! O fear the LORD, you His saints; For to those who fear Him there is no want.” Psalm 34:7-8

Do they pant because He knocked on the door of their heart and they opened it to find a new revelation of GOD?
  

“Bless (affectionately, gratefully praise) the Lord, O my soul; and all that is [deepest] within me, bless His holy name! Bless (affectionately, gratefully praise) the Lord, O my soul, and forget not [one of] all His benefits— Who forgives [every one of] all your iniquities, Who heals [each one of] all your diseases, Who redeems your life from the pit and corruption, Who beautifies, dignifies, and crowns you with loving-kindness and tender mercy; Who satisfies your mouth [your necessity and desire at your personal age and situation] with good so that your youth, renewed, is like the eagle’s [strong, overcoming, soaring]!”

Psalm 103:1-5

Souring!  Souring because God is fulfilling the thirst in their soul.

To they pant because they are stubborn in their ways?

"Son of man, listen to what I say to you.  Do not join them in being a rebel.  Open your mouth, and eat what I give you." Ezekiel 2:8

Does the soul pant in a world that is not it’s home? Does it pant to know God more intimately?   Does it pant to live in the purposes God had intended and ordained - for they have heard personally the words of the Lord in their soul, things such as:

“I know all the things you do, and I have opened a door for you that no one can close. You have little strength, yet you obeyed my word and did not deny me”?

 As a Christian there are many experiences that cause us to pant for the Lord.  Even though these thirsts differ and greatly, I have found one hunger and thirst always necessary as we live here in these earthly bodies.   That is a hunger and thirst for the Lord.  He is the love we can’t do without. 
  

"Because God has made us for Himself, our hearts are restless until they rest in Him.”

-Augustine of Hippo

“For it is not mere words that nourish the soul, but God Himself, and unless and until the hearers find God in personal experience they are not the better for having heard the truth.  The Bible is not an end in itself, but a means to bring men to an intimate and satisfying knowledge of God, that they may enter into Him, that they may delight in His Presence, may taste and know the inner sweetness of the very God Himself in the core and center of their hearts.” -A. W. Tozer

He made us for Himself and it’s in Him our soul is satisfied.

“For he satisfies the thirsty and fills the hungry with good things.”  Psalm 107:9

 (Read this Psalm sometime.  It’s beautiful.)

SURRENDER

“The strongest position one can be…

 is complete surrender unto God.”

Do you believe COMPLETE surrender unto God is our strongest position?

If this quote doesn’t find a place in our heart then we must ask ourselves why don’t we agree with such a statement?  And we must also ask what then echoes in the catacombs of our heart?

This quote finds or does not find a place in our heart based on the understanding of LIFE and who is LIFE.   For the one who is LIFE transforms our heart and creates a LIFE.

Our existence is like a written journal we keep tucked underneath our armpit as we walk the streets and a tower that chime the hours of our days.  This weathered volume we try to keep safe and hid, is held by the deficiencies of human frailty. And one day we will drop it.   Down it will fall to the cold pavement, its worn leather cover will unsnap, the pages will quickly fan and spill from it’s tattered bindings.  The pages will be trampled… scattered into the wind… memories and thoughts will drift into reflective puddles where the ink will bleed from them.  The perfume scent will leave them and they will be as important as Sundays discarded paper in Monday morning’s garbage.

“Lord, make me to know my end, And what is the measure of my days, That I may know how frail I am. Indeed, You have made my days as handbreadths, And my age is as nothing before You; Certainly every man at his best state is but vapor. Selah.  Surely every man walks about like a shadow; Surely they busy themselves in vain; He heaps up riches, And does not know who will gather them.” Psalm 39:4-6

“It is better to go to the house of mourning, than to go to the house of feasting; for that is the end of all men, and the living will lay it to his heart.” Ecclesiastes 7:2

Like the bar fly is able fool many people we can’t fool God and what is really written in the secretive pages of our life.

We walk physically as well as spiritually.  We physically speak but we spiritual speak as well.  We mentally think as well as spiritually think.  There are landscapes in which we physically live and spiritual landscapes in which we live as well. 

One might spiritually walk streets where fear, anxiousness, depression and doubt thrive.  Another might walk the same physical streets but spiritually live where there is resurgence, renaissance, hope, peace, enthusiasm, clarity that comes from the warm tangible assurance of God’s governing love. 

One might live under a spiritual dictator of slavery of hate, addiction, lies, deceit, slander, and blind self- ambition.  Another might live in God where there is love, joy peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control.  NOTE: Galatians 5:19.

One might have a poor side of town and rich part of town in their soul.  One might have unstable “spiritual” currency while another has a stable “spiritual currency no matter what the times or season.

19th century American writer Henry David Thoreau, wrote "It is not what you look at that matters.  It's what you see."  

Reminds me of that U2 song entitled "Beautiful Day".

 

Ever honestly ask what are the landscapes of my heart? How do they affect how I see the experiences in life?

I don’t see a city in my heart. I see a secluded private place.  I see long golden wheat grasses bathed in the warm of the sun.   I see tall green thick bark trees where great eagles nest and softly chant.  I see the most perfect mountain in the spring topped with snow.  And amongst all this majestic scenery stands a lowly cabin signaling a warm welcome meal from its stone chimney for the occasional friend and guest.  Does the challenging experiences affect my landscape? Do they change my landscape... I am certain they have and do at times.. some for the better and some for the worst, that is why I and everyone else need God. The bible says, "And he (God) is not served by human hands, as if he needed anything.  Rather, he himself gives everyone life and breath to everything, and he satisfies every need."  Acts 17:25 

 I find experiences come and go... they can't be our temporary god in which we look at life.

Here are some of the verses that have helped me lately keep such a landscape in my heart... 

“Keep your life free from the love of money, and be content with what you have, for he has said, “I will never leave you nor forsake you.” Hebrews 13:5

“A tranquil heart gives life to the flesh but envy makes the bones rot.” Proverbs 14:30

Who gives me a tranquil heart? Jesus says, "I give you peace, not as the world gives.  Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid." John 14:27 

Do not toil to acquire wealth; be discerning enough to desist.  When your eyes light on it, it is gone, for suddenly it sprouts wings, flying like an eagle toward heaven.” Proverbs 23:4-5

“God bless those who realize their need for him, for the Kingdom of Heaven is given to them.” Matthew 5:3

“God blesses those whose hearts are pure, for they will see God.” Matthew 5:8

"And to make it your ambition to lead a quiet life: You should mind your own business and work with your hands, just as we told you." 1 Thessalonians 4:11

I have found living in the quiet moment at a task with the the peace of God as your guide is much better then trying to imagine what is next moments ahead will be... especially when they are a bit "Trying".

Along with asking, "What are the landscapes of my heart?, other questions to ask ourselves, are... "Why did I pick those particular landscapes?"  Was I being honest with myself when I choose the things in my landscape.   And if I was being honest, what subconsciously drove me to pick those things for my landscape? 

-->IS God transforming those landscapes of my heart?  WAS God transforming the landscapes of my heart and has He stopped?  What changed?  What got between me and God?" 

If God has not transformed the landscapes of your heart….  then you may be standoffish, cold and hold what I share as… fiction.  But just because one doesn’t want to believe something is true doesn’t make it untrue.   

What is your typical perspective and response on the things of God?  Do you throw all things “god” and “God” in the same organizing bin?  Are you cynical or indifferent?  Do you regard the things of God as old fashioned, religious, cultish, ritualistic and just plain creepy and weird?  Are you curious?  Are looking in the windows of “this” and “that” hoping to get a glimpse of God?  Are you hoping He is for you and not against you?  Are you one who says, “If I can’t see it, I can’t believe it.”? Well you can’t see air or the wind and yet it is there and all around us. 
 

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I have found our feelings and opinions keep us restricted from God.  It is only when we surrender ourselves to Him can He awaken and transform our heart.
  

In the book of Ezekiel God says:

“I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit within you; I will take the heart of stone out of your flesh and give you a heart of flesh. I will put My Spirit within you and cause you to walk in My statutes, and you will keep My judgments and do them.” EZEKIEL 36:26-27

In the book of Revelation God says:

“So I advise you to buy gold from me--gold that has been purified by fire. Then you will be rich. Also buy white garments from me so you will not be shamed by your nakedness, and ointment for your eyes so you will be able to see.” REVELATION 3:18

In other words we have “invested” or “entrusted” our soul to God, to became a “new” person… a new creature…to see things differently ... because God is now living inside of us.  It wasn’t about “us” but Him living "in us".  And God's word has been like refined gold  proven in the trials of this life. 
  

“Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things have become new.” 2 Corinthians 5:17

“All this newness of life is from God, who brought us back to himself through what Christ did.  And God has given us the task of reconciling people to him.  2 Corinthians  5:18
 

We have all walked in those dark spiritual landscapes but God is willing to change the landscapes of our heart if we let him.

“Through you I am saying to the prisoners of darkness, ‘Come out! I am giving you freedom!’  They will be my sheep, grazing in the green pastures and on the hills that were previously bare.  They will neither hunger nor thirst.   The searing sun and scorching desert winds will not reach them anymore.  For the LORD in his mercy will lead them beside cool waters.” Isaiah 49:9-10

--> Jesus, who knows all hearts, knew there would be many who would not come out of darkness, for they loved the darkness more then the light who is God.  I tell you don’t be like them who condemn their own soul by not surrendering to God.  Your life is but a vapor and shadow.  Note: John 3:19 

“For God says,  ‘At just the right time, I heard you.  On the day of salvation, I helped you.’   Indeed, God is ready to help you right now.  Today is the day of salvation.” 2 Corinthians 6:2 

 If Jesus, who created your soul, has a plan for your life, aren't you missing the point of your life if you aren't giving it to him to guide?

 
Jesus said, "If you try to hang on to your life, you will lose it. But if you give up your life for my sake, you will save it." Matthew 16:25
 
We in our own means are reckless and careless with our "short" existence on earth.   We in our own human understanding give little care for our soul which is eternal.

Jesus says, "Come to Me, all you who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.  Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls.  For My yoke is easy and My burden is light.”  Matthew 11:28-30

 But to have what God wants to give us we must give ourselves back to the one who created us and this is not just a once type of thing but a daily and sometimes and hourly thing.  
 

The strongest position one can be…

 is complete surrender unto God.