Psalm 42: 1-2

As the deer pants for streams of water,
so my soul pants for you, O God.

My soul thirsts for God, for the living God.
When can I go and meet with God?

On any given day, at some point, I start thirsting.  Not for water, which, living in the northwest,  I’m fortunate to have close by at almost any moment.  Not for alcohol, which puts me to sleep and makes me too fuzzy to function after a couple of swallows.  Not for milk which was all I ever drank growing up on a farm with three Guernsey cows that produced more than a family of five could possibly consume in a day.

No, I’m ashamed to admit I thirst for a Starbucks mocha.  With whip.   With little hesitation, I will indulge my thirst.  No, I didn’t give it up for Lent.  I acknowledge it is not truly thirst I am feeling but only a desire. I’m not panting and dehydrated.  This is a want rather than a need.  I will not die without my mocha.

It just feels as if I might.

If only I could thirst daily for God with the same visceral fervor and singlemindedness!   If I could dive into His word daily and savor it like I do my mocha, I would be much less fluffy in stature, and much more solid in faith.

This psalm reminds me of my constant thirstiness and how no mocha, no glass of water, indeed nothing of this earth will truly slake it.  I must wait to meet the Lord to know what it feels like to no longer want, and then all needs are fulfilled.

“You have made us for Yourself, and we cannot find rest until we find it in You.”   St. Augustine