“Tremble, O earth, at the presence of the Lord, at the presence of the God of Jacob, who turns the rock into a pool of water, the flint into a spring of water.” (Psalm 114:7-8 ESV)
Thirst is a fickle friend who offers us periods of desperate longing, but at other times is pretty much MIA. Think of the person lost in the desert with an empty canteen who is literally dying of thirst. Or the marathon runner whose body is in near constant need of refreshing. Or the poolside sun bather whose ice in their nearby drink is melting as it sits without notice.
Which “picture” is representative of your “thirst” for Jesus. Do you find yourself continually longing to “drink” of His holy presence? Or are you among those who claim to be following Jesus, yet can cruise through life for days with hardly a thought of Him? Then the screeching of tires and the breaking of glass suddenly opens the heart and mind to His much longed for and needed presence. Or the doctor’s report is bad, so, once again we become very “thirsty” for His nearness.
Jesus said, in a conversation with a Samaritan woman who had come to draw water from Jacob’s well: “Anyone who drinks this water will soon become thirsty again. But those who drink the water I give will never be thirsty again. It becomes a fresh, bubbling spring within them, giving them eternal life.” Jesus is the living water, apart from whom we will never enjoy His refreshing, life-giving presence, in this life or the life to come.
“Tremble O Earth” “Used by permission, © Ray Majoran, GlimpseOfInfinity.com”
As human beings we have many allures, in terms of the numbers of things that create in us a “thirst.” The woman at the well had an obvious thirst for love, acceptance, affirmation, and a sense of belonging, that led her in and out of many relationships with men, but resulted in her continued thirst. For many today it’s sex, drugs, alcohol, money, success, acceptance, companionship, love, and many more things for which we “thirst,” believing in that person or thing we’ll find the satisfaction that will last, but it never does. Why?
Because we’re eternal beings, created by God to thirst for Him. He alone is the One who can ultimately satisfy the longings of our heart, the “thirsts” of our soul. We search in vain to find an eternal answer in temporal things. Nothing this world could ever offer can compare with knowing, loving, serving, and enjoying Jesus as Savior, Lord, and eternal Friend.
The longer I walk with Jesus, the more thirsty I become for His satisfying presence. A person who professes faith in Jesus but has no longing for His closeness is a contradiction. To love Him is to desire to know Him. Paul said it well in Philippians 3:7-9a: “I once thought these things (the things the world offers) were valuable, but now I consider them worthless because of what Christ has done. Yes, everything else is worthless when compared with the infinite value of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord. For His sake I have discarded everything else, counting it all as garbage, so that I could gain Christ and become one with Him.”
What is that for which you most “thirst?” If it’s anything but Jesus it will never satisfy long-term. I pray your heart, mind, soul, and body longs for intimacy with Jesus. That’s what it means to “know” Him. When Paul says in Philippians 3:10: “I want to know Christ…” it’s the same word that is used in Genesis 4:1 when it says: “Now Adam knew Eve his wife, and she conceived and bore Cain…”
It depicts the closeness, not only physically, but emotionally and spiritually that nothing but God through Christ can satisfy. It’s a deep longing that doesn’t waver or evaporate when Satan parades the trinkets of this world. Why? Because we have the Treasure of infinite worth when we drink from the fountain of eternal life only Jesus can give.
Blessings, Ed 😊
Walking With Jesus 