Really thirsty.

Can you remember a time that you were really thirsty?

My family used to go on arrow head hunting trips.

In the western states, there are a lot of Native American archeological sites where you can go and look for arrowheads.  If you are patient and look, you are almost guaranteed to find something.  Perhaps not a full-fledged arrowhead, but in some places, you are almost guaranteed to find at least a chip (a rock used to shape the arrowhead).

The trick is twofold.

One, know what to look for.

Two, patience.  You have to be willing to spend all day looking.

Not a problem, if you remember your canteen.

If you forget, you get…

… really thirsty. 

On a hot day, without water, you get really thirsty.

However, sometimes you don’t notice just how thirsty you are until the end of the day when you finally take a drink and are reminded how much you need water.

David uses the metaphor of thirst in Psalm 42.

To the choirmaster. A Maskil of the Sons of Korah. As a deer pants for flowing streams, so pants my soul for you, O God.  My soul thirsts for God, for the living God. When shall I come and appear before God? (Psalm 42:1-2 ESV)

http://getdrawings.com/

The picture is of a deer, parched from running and searching for water.  Finally, finding a stream of clean, pure water, the deer satiates its thirst.

Do we feel the same for the times of refreshing we receive from spending time with God?

Sometimes we don’t realize just how thirsty we can become until we finally drink and are reminded just how much we need that nourishment.

This weekend, if you haven’t already done so, dust off the Bible and spend a little time drinking from the clean, pure water of God’s word.

Don’t get down on yourself with guilt if you have “forgotten your canteen.” 

Thirsty people don’t stare at a glass of water and think, “I feel bad that I haven’t had water lately, I just can’t…”

Just enjoy the refreshment.

Keep safe, be well, and stay encouraged.

Brian