A DRY AND THIRSTY LAND

Scripture for the day: Psalm 63:1-2 O God, you are my God; early will I seek you; my soul thirsts for you; my flesh longs for you in a dry and thirsty land where there is no water. So I have looked for you in the sanctuary, to see your power and your glory.

Thought for the day: I fear we are too often pleased with a glass half full when the Lord has intended that we have one full to overflowing. Look again at the Psalm from which these words have come. David is hiding in the wilderness of Judea, being pursued by king Saul, forced to be constantly on the move for fear of being taken and killed. Water in this "dry and thirsty land" is more precious than gold. The man who controls the water supply controls the life-blood of the entire region and those who cannot tap into that supply perish, pure and simple. Food too is at a premium in such a place and David and his fighting men suffered from lack of nourishment and insufficient drinking water. Now, I don't know if you've ever gone very long without food, but I can tell you from experience that hunger is a frighteningly powerful force. Hunger will drive people to do things they otherwise would never have considered. And thirst is worse. Thirst will drive a person insane with desire. He will do almost anything to obtain the life-giving sustenance he needs. If there is even the hint of water a thirsty man will face dangers he would otherwise have run from. He will take whatever time is needed, do whatever work is necessary, sacrifice whatever treasure he has for the simple joy of having life prolonged by a drink from some cool fountain of water springing up from the parched earth.

I have a feeling David spent some time searching every ravine, every cave, every dry streambed for any trace of this precious liquid. And then he sat down to write this Psalm and likened his desire for the Lord to this overwhelming craving for the water of life. And why? Where did this compelling desire for the things of God come from? David's desire came from his own experience with the Lord in times past. He had looked for - and seen - the power of God in his life and knew what could be accomplished when faith was exercised. He'd spent many a night on the hillside singing and praising this same God. Now, in the midst of real need, real deprivation, real thirst, he could say, "Because your lovingkindness is better than life, my lips shall praise you. I will lift up my hands in your name. My soul shall be satisfied as with marrow and abundance." And why could he praise the Lord in such hard times? "Because you have been my help, therefore in the shadow of your wings I will rejoice. My soul follows close behind you; your right hand upholds me."

Is it any wonder Jesus likened Himself to living water? The people who listened to his sermon on the mount knew exactly what he meant when he said, "Blessed are those who hunger and thirst after righteousness, for they shall be filled." Probably the vast majority of his listeners had experienced times of great hunger and mind-numbing thirst. They got the picture when Jesus shouted out in the Temple, "If anyone thirsts, let him come to me and drink. He who believes in me, as the Scripture has said, 'out of his heart will flow rivers of living water.'" Oh, that our focus would shift from more programs, more numbers, more buildings, to more Jesus, more time with Him, more of His Spirit in our lives.

I know what it's like to be hungry and I know what it's like to be full. I praise God for the fullness of His Spirit, for the abundance of His grace. But it's hunger that drives me back to the bread of life. It's thirst that compels me to drink from the fountain of life. As the songwriter said:

In a dry and thirsty land

I know where there's water.

In the burning desert sand,

I know where there's water.

There's a place where I can go,

Where the living waters flow,

To refresh my weary soul,

I know there's water.*