My Soul Pants For God

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?

Psalm 143:6
I spread out my hands to you; my soul thirsts for you like a parched land.


It is unfortunate that we so often go through times of famine in our relationships with God. There isn’t a piece of me that doesn’t wish I could just remain in the times of feast with Him, but invariably, I slip and find myself thirsting, parched, and starving for God. So, what do I do? I gorge myself. I run to His Word and "eat" as much as I can in one sitting.

Anybody who has fasted, especially for longer amounts of time, will know that when you break a fast, you need to take it slow. If you’re dehydrated, you can’t just guzzle down a gallon of water. You need to start with sips, and then gulps, and so on. Our bodies need to adjust to having the water in our stomachs, so that it doesn’t all just come flooding back up. It’s the same with food. If you break a fast with greasy foods, and eat an entire feast, you’ll be sorry. You have to take it slow and let your body get used to taking in food again, and digesting it.

I believe it is the same with the Word of God. When we have gone through seasons of extreme drought, hardly reading a single word from the Bible, we can’t just dive in and start reading chapters at a time. It will all just come right back up. I can’t count the number of times I’ve been so hungry for God that I just gorge myself on the Word. Not only do I get very little out of it, but I also get very disappointed that I can’t keep up the pace for long.

When breaking a fast of the Word, we need to take it slow – even a couple of verses to begin with - taking them and meditating on them, really taking the truth of them in. We have to get our minds and our souls back into gear, learning to process what we take in. We have to let our bodies get used to understanding the Word and hearing from God, and taking steps of obedience. Then, we can build from there.

Is it possible to just dive and keep it up? Absolutely – anything is possible when God is involved! However, for the most part, it’s wise to take it easy, a step at a time. Get a few choice morsels, and really take them in, digest them, and let them become a part of us. Before we know it, we will be swimming in the promises of God, and all that He has hidden for us in His mighty Word. We’ll be in so deep that there will be no turning back!