My Soul Thirsts For You

O God, you are my God; earnestly I seek you;
my soul thirsts for you;
my flesh faints for you,
as in a dry and weary land where there is no water.
So I have looked upon you in the sanctuary,
beholding your power and glory.
Because your steadfast love is better than life,
my lips will praise you.
So I will bless you as long as I live;
in your name I will lift up my hands.
My soul will be satisfied as with fat and rich food,
and my mouth will praise you with joyful lips,
when I remember you upon my bed,
and meditate on you in the watches of the night;
for you have been my help,
and in the shadow of your wings I will sing for joy.
My soul clings to you;
your right hand upholds me. (Psalm 63:1-8 ESV)

God keeps bringing me back to this verse lately, and it is quickly becoming one of my favorite psalms. Every time I read it, a new part jumps out at me.

David wrote this psalm when he was in the wilderness, where he would have known and felt real thirst and real hunger. Instead of complaining about the physical needs that he surely had, he realized that his thirst for God was even greater, and more important than his thirst for water, because God's "steadfast love is better than life". Despite any physical needs David may have had, he decided to bless God as long as he lived. He knew that by praising God, his soul would be satisfied "as with fat and rich foods". He meditates on God "through the watches of the night", which would have been all night long, thinking about God's goodness and remembering how He has been David's help in the past. He is not anxious about his needs, because he knows that the Lord is good. He says "in the shadow of your wings I will sing for Joy" when I think about being in the shadow of His wings, I think of being right next to him. In a very physically close and intimate place, close to His heart. It is a place of trust and protection. He ends this section by saying that his soul clings to God. His soul will not be separated from the Lord, and that his right hand upholds him.

In my own life, I do not have this intimacy with and trust for God that David demonstrates in this passage. When I come across struggles or have needs in my life, I try to fix them on my own, and I complain about my lack. I feel anxious about my needs and my inadequacy I don't trust God to provide, and I let my fears divide me from the Lord, instead of drawing me to them. I need to simply let go and trust that God will open the doors that I need and provide for me. I need to be so secure in his steadfast love to know that even if he doesn't provide what I think I need, to trust that it doesn't even matter, because his love is better than life. I need to rest in my bed and remember all that he has done for me and all that he has been for me, and trust that he will continue to provide and protect me. I need to praise him through everything, knowing that he is good and his goodness satisfies. I want to thirst for him the way that I thirst for water or hunger for food. I want that thirst to be even stronger than my physical needs. I want my soul to cling to God, through everything.

God, you are good, and you are holy, and your love is truly better than life. Thank you for always providing, always being my savior through everything. God I thank you because I realize that as long as I have you, Lord, I have everything that I need. I pray that you would help me remember that fact throughout my day. I repent for my lack of trust in you. I know that although I surrendered my life to you years ago, I still struggle to give everything to you. I still have difficulty surrendering every area of my life to your will. I know that you will provide for me in every way. You provide strength to fight temptation and sin, and you provide peace for my anxiousness. I know that You will provide for my physical and financial needs as well, so I do not need to be anxious. I surrender this day to you, Lord. Let today be a day that I seek your will above everything else, and rest in your peace. Let me bring you praise in everything that I do, singing your praises in the shadow of your wings. I love you Lord, Amen.

Created 10 months ago