Title: Make me thirsty / Psalm 42:1-5
Content Make me thirsty/Psalm 42:1-5
According to the Bible, people who longed for God like that were strangely people who were all in hardship. This poet also wrote this psalm while he was in trouble. A person who had previously served diligently and devoted himself in the temple of God suddenly, for some reason, was far away from the temple and could not serve the Lord even though he wanted to. It hurts my heart to miss that time even more in a situation where I can't help it now. “I accompanied the crowd who kept the holy day, and led them to the house of God with a voice of joy and praise. To make matters worse, people ridiculed this poet. “The God you believe in, where is the God you love? People are really weird. If you work hard, your emotions will be dulled and your emotions will live, but if you can't do the work again, you will miss it to death. What a blessed life it would be if you could be faithful to the end with such a thrill when you are in peace!
Pain is a blessing. I would say this is the stool of a person who has never been sick. But suffering is a blessing because it is a guide that leads to the Lord. Biblical commentator Matthew Henry said that one of the purposes of suffering is to bring us to the throne of grace. It is clear that suffering calls to God. Toothache requires seeing a dentist and wounds needing to be sewn up. People who are in a hurry to study go to school. Suffering, whether there is a reason or not, makes us seek God, the Lord of our lives. As I went to visit the church, I met church members who were suffering, and from their mouths I met the Lord in their suffering. Every time they get a reply saying they have heard the voice of the Lord, they can't stand it with envy. How blessed are their hearts, though in pain, rather than our dulled souls? These people are already living in blessing. A heart that longs for like a thirsty deer is already a blessed heart.
As a deer longs for streams, so my soul longs for you, O God. My soul longs for God, the living God. The poet thirsted for the Lord, and tears became his food day and night. But God's comfort came to this poet who was desperately missing God. In fact, the painful reality has not been resolved. But the comfort of the word came from God. So he sings. Why, my soul, why are you discouraged, and why are you anxious within me? Rather I will praise him for the help of his face.
These words come from the heart of the poet. But it was God who planted these words in his heart. Consolation felt in the heart is real in faith. Even if it did not appear as a reality now, it will become a reality someday. This is the mystery of faith. So the poet believes that reality has already been fulfilled and sings. "Don't be discouraged. Don't be anxious, wait on God. Now I will rather sing praises to God who helps. Those who earnestly seek God will surely meet the Lord. But that meeting comes first with conviction and faith. Then Prophet Hosea, who experienced this kind of God, exclaimed,
Therefore, let us know the Lord, let us strive to know the Lord, and his coming out will be as steady as the morning light, and he will come upon us like the latter rain, which waters the earth like rain. In the spring rain, ask for rain from the LORD, the LORD who sends lightning. I will send showers of rain to the multitudes, and the vegetables of the field will be given to everyone.
David Brainard, a pioneer who caused a great awakening in the United States, who was not in good health and worked hard to evangelize while traveling through Indian villages, wrote in his diary when his body became very weak. What a joy it is to give and love all things for God! It was then that I heard an inner voice that came to me secretly.
“You are not an angel, you have no hope of living. Here I responded immediately with all my heart. I truly long to love and glorify God more than any angel in heaven. “But you are filthy, and you are not fit for the kingdom of God. In the midst of this immediately appeared the righteous robes of Christ.
I couldn't help but cheer for victory. I thought it was the infinite excellence of God. My heart was bursting with the desire to glorify God. I thought of a movie in heaven. But he soon changed his mind. "I am not going to the kingdom of heaven to enjoy glory. I am going to give all glory and praise to God. While I was living on this earth, how long I longed to give glory to God here too! If I receive it, I am living toward eternal life, and there is no need to worry about physical pain.
Whether we are healthy, unwell, in peace, or in distress, we have prayers that we must ask for. It is, Lord, make us thirsty. Here is a poem that touches our hearts.
Lord!
Let me thirst for you.
Like the burning earth in a three-year drought
burning the bottom of the chest
Make me feel thirsty.
So the more you drink your bottled water, the more
Make me thirsty even more.
-------
Lord! Make me poor in spirit
The more you meet the Lord
The more I got to know the Lord, the poorer my heart
fill heaven.
Fill me with your riches.
---------
Lord! towards you
Make me thirsty.