Faith Knows What It’s Thirsty For

As a deer longs for streams of water, so I long for you, O God!
Psalm 42:1 NET

Just as God created deer with a thirst for water, He created man with a thirst for Him.
Every desire.
Every longing.
Every sense of need.
Can only be filled by Him.

Do you believe it?
Have you experienced it?
Have you tested it for yourself?

The world tempts us to think we NEED everything and anything but God.

Then Jesus was led by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil. After fasting forty days and forty nights, he was hungry. The tempter came to him and said, “If you are the Son of God, tell these stones to become bread.”
Jesus answered, “It is written: ‘Man shall not live on bread alone, but on every word that comes from the mouth of God.’”
Matthew 4:1-4 NIV

What is the world tempting you to fill yourself with?
fun?
food?
family?
financial security?
followers?
fame?
future plans?

No matter what you pursue, apart from God, you will be left famished. unfulfilled. and faint.

Read Ecclesiastes 1:1-8.

Solomon, the wisest wealthiest most world-renowned king in all the earth wrote these words after an in-depth search for a fulfilling life “under the sun.” This king with unlimited resources at his fingertips, pursued everything the world has to offer: accomplishments, education, self-indulgence, accumulation, expertise, production, creativity. After experiencing it all to limits beyond our understanding or ability, he proclaimed: Meaningless! Meaningless!… Everything is meaningless (Ecclesiastes 1:2).

The original Hebrew translated as meaningless or vanity literally means: breath, vapor. As in the amount of air passing in and out of lungs. The focus being on its brief time of existence and its lack of content.[1] Solomon found everything there is to try to fill oneself with “under the sun” – in the world – as unsubstantial, filled with hot air, a fleeting moment that dissipates to NOTHING.

King Solomon’s conclusion?

I have concluded that there is nothing better for people than to be happy and to enjoy themselves as long as they live, and also that everyone should eat and drink, and find enjoyment in all his toil, for these things are a gift from God.
Ecclesiastes 3:12-13 NET

Only from a godly worldview, seeing EVERYTHING as God’s grace poured out in our life, can we enjoy the life we’ve been given and find satisfaction in Him. The final advice from this wise teacher and king is found at the very end of the book of Ecclesiastes — Solomon’s dissertation on seeking fulfillment.

Having heard everything, I have reached this conclusion: Fear God and keep his commandments, because this is the whole duty of man. For God will evaluate every deed, including every secret thing, whether good or evil.
Ecclesiastes 12:13-14 NET

Nothing fills us like Jesus — the Bread of life (John 6:35) the Word made flesh (John 1:14). It’s the relationship we were created for. When we approach Him according to His truth and Way, we find the satisfaction we seek. The first thing we must realize is that we can’t even define what’s good or evil. He is the final say even when it comes to what will fill our needs.

Faith knows what it’s thirsty for.

Nothing else will satisfy.

You satisfy me more than the richest feast. I will praise you with songs of joy.
Psalm 63:5 NLT

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[1] James Swanson, Dictionary of Biblical Languages with Semantic Domains : Hebrew (Old Testament) (Oak Harbor: Logos Research Systems, Inc., 1997).

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