My soul thirsteth for God, for the living God: When shall I come and appear before God?
Psalm 42:2 (KJV).

REFLECT:
The feeling of thirst or being thirsty could be experienced on various levels and to different degrees. However, no matter what level we are at with dealing with thirst, all we want to do is to quench that feeling of thirst.

In a situation where this becomes impossible to achieve, we become very frustrated, especially if one has been in such a situation for a long time.

A parched throat and severe dehydration in a wilderness or drought situation is never a pleasant experience or place to be in. This sort of situation could be a life-and-death issue. Such situations call for drastic measures like an SOS (save our souls) emergency call to be sent out for help, as well as a rescue plan to be carried out.

When the help and relief we finally need comes we are so happy and thankful for it. On the other hand, in a scenario where unfortunately help was not available or was too late in coming and as a result, lives were lost, the grief may be too much to bear.

The above scenario describes a severe case of thirst which may apply to both the physical and spiritual dimensions of life. A lot of the time we always dwell on the physical and leave the spiritual out of the scene, which should not be.

We must always bear in mind that the spiritual hold greater sway in the grander scheme of things for it influences and determines what course the physical world should take. Therefore, just as in the physical we have severe spells of droughts and thirst, and we also have the same kind of situations in the spiritual.

Now, on the other hand, there are situations where experiencing deep thirst could be very rewarding. This will be explained in detail as we progress further.

So, what does this mean, and how can feeling deep thirst be a rewarding experience? In this case, it may become a catalyst for a new experience that may engage Divine destiny on a greater level. Our Bible verse for today reveals such an experience.

In this Bible verse (Psalms 42:2), we can identify a deep thirst the soul is experiencing. At different points of our lives, our souls could go through a period of drought, where we are craving nothing but the presence of God. Most times, this craving may be orchestrated by God our Heavenly Father through the Holy Spirit. This is different from just feeling physically thirsty and needing water to quench the thirst. It goes deeper than that.

In such a case, the Lord might want us to come into a new spiritual experience with Him, and like the Apostle John the beloved, the Lord may be saying to us, “Come up hither, and I will shew thee things which must be hereafter.” Revelations 4:1b (KJV).

Hence, we as believers need to be very spiritually sensitive, with ears open to hear when God is speaking, beckoning, and trying to get our attention to do something.

Another reason for such a deep soul thirst is that the Lord may want us to focus on issues in our lives, which may be leading us down a wrong path. Here the Holy Spirit tries to probe our hearts, and we begin to feel a kind of conviction. With this kind of thirst is an urge to want to make things right with God. There is a kind of urgency in our hearts to set issues straight and make peace with God.

This kind of thirst is usually when a person encounters Jesus for the first time and is convicted by the Holy Spirit to surrender their lives to Jesus, which is termed the new birth experience. Another reason that this kind of thirst may occur, could be in the case of a backslid Christian whose life is far from where they should be with Jesus.

The third kind of thirst comes from a place of a deep intimate relationship with God. Whereas as a worshipper and a lover of God, our hearts cannot have enough of God. We want more of Him, and we want to give ourselves completely to Him. This is a place that the Bible describes as “deep calls unto deep. “Psalms 42:7.

The fourth kind of thirst may arise from the anguish of the soul. A point where our soul is going through a lot of distress, persecution, and troubles that the devil is bringing our way, and we want immediate help and answers from God.

This is where we are looking to God for an intervention, but there seems to be a delay, and help is not coming as fast as we want it to. It is like what was explained in the opening paragraph of this reflection. The aspects of deep, acute thirst that is caused by drought or when a person is in a wilderness situation.

In this case, what do we do? We make up our minds to hold on to God’s Word and promises. Tuck ourselves into God and decide to stay in Him, knowing that He will come to our rescue just like He has promised. Hebrews 13:5 & 10:23.

So which thirst do you identify with? This is the time we must pause and reflect deep in our hearts, for us to be sure, and be certain to discern what point we need to relate with God so that He can work in us to satisfy our thirsty souls.

Our ability to identify what our souls crave; will depend on how much we relate with the Holy Spirit so that He can point us to the accurate need of our souls.

Ebimobo W. Obasi

PLEASE PRAY ALONG:

Satisfy My Thirst, LORD!

FATHER GOD, thank You for the good plans You have for me. You have provided every opportunity for me to receive and walk in the best that You gave mankind which Your Son JESUS died on the cross that I may have. Please give me the grace to always come to You when I am thirsty and need You to satisfy my soul. I receive Your satisfaction for my thirsty soul, and I am ever so grateful to You LORD! IN JESUS MIGHTY NAME AMEN!