Psalm 42 is known for being hungry for the Lord. Psalm 42:1-2 says, "As the deer longs for streams of water, so I long for you, O God. I thirst for God, the living God. When can I go and stand before him?" The Psalmist expressed his deep longing for God and used a picture of a deer thirsting for water. Imagine when we are very thirsty, especially in the heat of the summer. Our mouths dry, and we are longing for cold ice water to quench our thirst. In this Psalm, the water represents the presence of God. The Psalmist's soul longs or thirsts for the presence of God. True Christianity is about having a deep relationship with God. Our relationship with God is not an external transaction with God. It is not about getting what we want from God, but it is about having a heart-to-heart relationship with Him. And this is the reason the first step in having a relationship with God is believing in the Lord Jesus as our Lord and Savior. It is about submitting and surrendering our lives to Him.
When we submit and surrender ourselves to Jesus, we will experience God's presence in our lives, and we will begin to experience His hands working in our lives. The more we intimately experience Him, the more our soul longs for Him. Our longing for Him is based on our relationship with Him. If we haven't felt our longing for God, we need to examine our hearts to see if we truly believe and surrender our lives to Him. A superficial relationship with God will eventually show because we will not have a desire for God. So, if we haven't long for God, there is only one thing that we need to do, and that is to surrender our hearts to Him again. We need to pray that God will rekindle our love for Him and let God begin to touch our lives again.
Having a heart that longs for God will lead us to renewed life. If the weight of this world has downcasted us, it is time for us to go back to the presence of God to find rest for our souls. Let us draw our spiritual strength to our living God and let His presence renew us once again.
Ask yourself these questions for application: (Think through carefully and meditate on the questions while answering them, and let the Spirit of God speak to you). Do I long and thirst for God? What must I do to get back to my intimate relationship with God? Why do I need the presence of God?
Write down all the worries you face today and lift them up to God.
Prayer:
Father in Heaven, please renew my soul and fill me with your presence today. Forgive me for the sins that I have done, and renew my relationship with you. Give me longing and thirst for you. Do not let the things of this world harden my heart. In your name, Lord Jesus, I pray. Amen.