Thirsting For God

Thirsting for God

“If you don’t find life before death, you can’t find life after death”

Every human being lives with a thirst. Some thirst for family approval… others for health, success, money, sports, exercise, music, or a thousand other pursuits. We chase what promises satisfaction, and we drink deeply from the wells of this world hoping they will quiet the ache inside. If you ask a Christian what they thirst for, many will give the expected answer: “Oh, I long for God. I walk with Him beside still waters.” But that is often our polite answer—not our honest condition. Look across the landscape of the modern church. It is filled with activity—services attended, hands raised, ministries served, prayers spoken. Some even prophesy in Jesus’ name, cast out demons, or participate in great works. And yet Jesus warns us soberly that not everyone who calls Him Lord truly belongs to Him (Matthew 7:21–22).

There is a kind of religion that is busy but not born again… active but not alive. The head is quick to claim, “I love God with all my heart.”

But the heart often whispers a different truth.

To be called carnal or lukewarm—or even half-hearted—feels offensive to many churchgoer. Yet the question remains: Do our lives match the Gospel we claim to cherish? Have we truly found the Treasure in the field… the Pearl of great price… the Savior worth losing everything else for?

Let me ask you gently but honestly:

? Is approaching the throne of grace your deepest delight?

? Is walking beside the still waters—hearing His voice, obeying His leading—your highest priority?

? Do you want Christ more than you want comfort, entertainment, approval, or even the closest earthly relationships?

? When planning your day, your month, your year—do you truly submit your desires to the One whose ways are higher than your ways and whose thoughts are higher than your thoughts? (Isaiah 55:8–9)

Or has God become…

? a convenient addition?

? A helpful accessory?

? A quiet voice drowned out by louder passions—your career, your hobbies, your pleasures, your other “gods”?

Because every person thirsts for something. The question before us is not, ‘Do I thirst?’ but rather, ‘What well am I drinking from?’”

Today’s message is an invitation to take an honest look at your walk with Jesus. As we open the Scriptures together, let the Spirit search your heart. Ask yourself: Am I truly saved? And if I am, what is slowing down my hunger for God? Consider your daily schedule and the things you chase after. Have the passions of this world begun to drown out your love for Christ? Are there areas where you still want to be “the boss” of your life—holding on to control instead of surrendering in obedience to the One who can always be found by those who seek Him? Bring before the Lord the pain of unanswered prayers, the weight of hardship, and the weariness of waiting. Trust Him with what you cannot understand. And above all, reflect honestly on whether God receives the first and best of your time and devotion—or only whatever is left over after the world has taken its share.

The Soul’s Deep Longing

Some of the most encouraging words in all of Scripture were forged in seasons of deep sorrow. After David’s grievous sins with Bathsheba and the murder of Uriah, the prophet Nathan declared God’s judgment: “The sword shall never depart from your house… I will raise up disaster against you from your own household… and your neighbor shall lie with your wives in broad daylight.” (2 Samuel 12:10–12). In time, these words came to pass through David’s own son Absalom.

? Absalom murdered his brother Amnon.

? He stole the hearts of the nation.

? He seized the throne.

? He forced David to flee Jerusalem in shame and anguish.

David climbed the Mount of Olives weeping (2 Samuel 15:30), crossed the Jordan, and took refuge in the wilderness regions of Gilead (Psalm 42:6; 2 Samuel 17:24). Psalm 42—written by the Sons of Korah—beautifully captures the anguish and longing of that season. They give voice to the inner cry of a king cut off from the presence of God. And what was David’s deepest yearning in that wilderness?

Not the royal palace in Jerusalem…

not the sweet water of Bethlehem’s well…

not the beauty of Sharon nor the strength of Lebanon…

David longed for God Himself.

He longed to stand once more in the sanctuary and behold the Lord’s glory (Psalm 63:2).

So Psalm 42 opens with one of the most powerful images in all of Hebrew poetry:

“As the deer pants for streams of water,

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?”