Panting for God

　
Ps. 42:1-2 As the deer pants for streams of water, so I long for you, O God. I thirst for God, the living God.

When do deer pant for water? It could be when they are running away from trouble and know they can't safely stop for a drink. It could be when all of the water resources around them are dried up. It could be when they wander away from familar territory and don't know where to find water. Deer pant for water out of need. They instinctly know that they must have it or they will be in serious trouble.

We need to capture the same urgency for God as the deer deprived of water have. We need to recognize the seriousness of life without the Lord. We need to know that we will never have the stamina to continue to flee from Satan or resist him without the Lord's help. We must understand that it is only the Living Water that can quench our thirst. There may be other types of water supply available to us, but none are safe or satisfying but the Living Water. We must understand that we dare not wander away from where the Living Water is found. Otherwise, we may not be able to find our way back to the only water that can help and sustain us.

It is good for the soul to have a constant thirst for God. We must never let ourselves be satisfied by anything but God in our lives. We must stay away from everything that would entice us to drink from resources other than God. We must always stay close to God. We must desire Him more than anything else in life.

The only way we can maintain a thirst for God is to let the disciplines of faith govern our lives. We must be disciplined to read and meditate on the Word consistenly. We must be disciplined to spend time alone with God in prayer. We must discipline ourselves to participant in the fellowship of other believers. We must be disciplined in being witnesses for the Lord whenever we can. The more disciplined we are in the faith, the more we will thirst for the Lord.