I remember the warm June afternoon I decided to participate in a half-marathon. I had been training for a little while and felt pretty good throughout the race. However, I remember one very distinct feeling I had throughout the race. I was THIRSTY! It was hot. I was running way too many miles (at least for the sane person) and all I desperately wanted was to be hydrated.
Any of you that have run any type of race know that it’s a little tricky to drink throughout. You can stop at those convenient little water pit-stops, but you discover that those little paper cups aren’t quite enough. You also realize that if you keep swinging by every water stop, you’ll soon have to take a restroom break (which isn’t ideal when all they have is port-o-potties). No thank you!
The point of all this is to say, I had a deep thirst and couldn’t quite quench it. That happens all the time in our lives when we don’t seek Jesus first. We thirst for Him, yet we look for satisfaction and contentment in all the wrong places. We think those little pit-stops to buy those material things we “need” and all the people we cling to and expect to fill any voids we have will somehow satisfy our “thirst” for more.
The Unfulfilling Thirst
The first place we usually look to for fulfilling our “thirst” is in other people. We turn to our spouse, significant other, family member or friend to make us feel adequate and fulfilled. I’m so guilty of this. I sometimes expect too much from my husband, parents, siblings and friends. These are the people I hope will make me feel good about myself, build me up and give me my worth. I know where my true value comes from, but I still tend to turn to the wrong places first.
The other place I think many of us turn to is “things.” We really like all of our stuff and we can never seem to have enough of it. I have somehow trained myself to believe I “need” something every time I enter one of my favorite stores, or the nearest Starbucks. It’s a terrible cycle that I know I need to pull myself away from. This, I believe, is what we do to fill the voids that Jesus isn’t filling. Not because He won’t or can’t, but because we don’t come and ask Him to.
A Satisfying Spring
So what do we do when we feel those voids creeping up on us, and we’re drawn to people and things? We must first go to God. I know it seems too obvious and we may feel we need a drawn out map of what to do, but we really don’t. What we need is a heart surrendered to the Lord. God’s Word to direct us properly. Knees kneeled in reverent prayer to our Father. Those aren’t things we need to go buy in a store and there’s no tricky formula for any of them.
We just need to be real and authentic with God. Tell Him where you are right now and what you’re struggling with. Ask Him to give you a pure heart, a clear mind, and a soul filled with His glory. Ask Him to quench that thirst you’ve been dealing with.
“God, you are my God; I eagerly seek you. I thirst for you; my body faints for you in a land that is dry, desolate, and without water.” -Psalm 63:1
You know what…He will! He’ll quench that thirst more than we could ever expect or hope for. The spring of His love and mercy is all we need to feel satisfaction. Real and lasting satisfaction. When we choose to come to Him in expectation, we get to experience the fullness of His presence.
Our Never-Ending Supply
The Lord’s reserve of thirst-quenching grace is in abundant supply. It never ends or ceases to be available to us. All we have to do is turn to Him before anything or anyone else. When we feel that tug of unnecessary desire for people or things to fill us, let’s pause and first come to our Father. He’s there waiting for us and actually wants to give us lasting satisfaction and fulfillment.
“For I satisfy the thirsty person and feed all those who are weak.” -Jeremiah 31:25
God’s supply of love, care and mercy to us never runs out. We don’t have to ration how often we come to Him or what we ask Him for. God wants us to come to Him and be in a constant relationship with Him. His desire is for us to draw near to Him, regularly. When we do that, we receive His unending supply of goodness and grace. It’s readily available to us, whenever we need it.
The Thirst-Quencher We Need
We are created with a heart and soul that thirsts for something more than this world can offer. That something, or rather someone, is our Father. Our very Creator that knit us in our mother’s womb and calls each and every one of us by name. Our hearts yearn for the One who knows us inside and out.
We have a thirst that only God can completely quench and satisfy. When we come to him thirsting for peace, love, comfort, or anything else, He’s there on the receiving end to satiate whatever we need. The wonderful thing is, He knows our needs before we even present them to Him. He begins working in us and quenching all the thirsts we have, before we even realize He’s working. His Spirit is constantly at work in us and works on our behalf.
We have a thirst-quenching Father that’s always available to us. We don’t have to do anything to earn His love for us; we just have to believe and put our trust in Him. Let’s not allow the world to deceive us and give us false-satisfaction. Let’s look to our Creator, God, to give us the heart, soul and mind fulfillment we really need.
“The Lord will always lead you, satisfy you in a parched land, and strengthen your bones. You will be like a watered garden and like a spring whose water never runs dry.” -Isaiah 58:11
Thanks for taking time to read this post and checking out my blog! If you enjoyed this one, please feel free to share it! 🙂