AUG. 31: GOD’S PRESENCE

Focal Passage: Psalm 42:1-11

When was the last time you were really thirsty? Many of us have experienced great physical thirst from hard work or recreation, but are we that thirsty spiritually? Much of our liquid intake is not about thirst, but simply part of our daily routine or social interaction. 

That highly-caffeinated soft drink may be quick medicine for a headache. Could the same thing be said of our time with God? Are we spiritually thirsty like the deer desperately panting for water (Psalm 42:1), or are our spiritual lives more like coffee time? Are our times with God a means to certain temporal ends, or are they intimacy with the God of the universe?

The spiritual thirst portrayed by the psalmist is not an abstract concept. He knew that the solution was to “appear before God” in worship (Psalm 42:2). When worship becomes distorted, believers, including the corporate gatherings of local churches, exchange intimacy with God for a material or emotional fix. Thirsting for God is replaced by carnal desires for health, wealth, emotional affirmation, and numerous other idols.

The majority of Psalm 42 expresses the spiritual depression of the psalmist. Unable to eat or sleep (Psalm 42:3), he recalled the joy he had previously known in procession to the temple. He knew that the struggle was his weakness and not God’s as he questioned his own dejection and turmoil and reminded himself to hope in God (Psalm 42:5,11). 

Sometimes spiritual depression results from sin that has taken us far from God. At other times we, like the psalmist (Psalm 42:9-10), are weighed down by the gravity of our circumstances. In these instances, we are prone to a particular sin of omission — failing to cast all our cares on the Lord who sustains us (Psalm 55:22/1 Peter 5:7).

Our minds fast forward to all the potentially disastrous outcomes of our situation, and take our hearts along for the ride. While the future outcome may not be pleasant, it cannot contain all of the possible what-ifs that produce our unnecessary anxiety.

Although his depression overwhelmed him like a flood (Psalm 42:7), the psalmist knew not to trust his emotions: “The Lord will send His faithful love by day; His song will be with me in the night” (Psalm 42:8). Our faith in God is built on the finished work of Jesus as recorded in the Bible. The minute we base our faith ultimately on how we feel, we begin a rollercoaster ride of spiritual instability. Our enjoyable ascents are swept away by rapid descents followed by twists and turns that leave us dizzy and nauseous. 

Yes, God sometimes uses feelings to move us in His direction, but the objective truth of His Word remains our constant foundation. When the resurrected Jesus questioned Peter’s love for Him the third time, Peter fell back not on his unstable emotions but on His sovereign Savior: “Lord you know everything; you know that I love you” (John 21:17b).

Whether you are struggling with spiritual depression or trying to defend personal choices, make sure your thoughts are rooted in fact, not feeling. Remember, the heart is most deceitful (Jeremiah 17:9), but the Word of God is firmly fixed in heaven (Psalm 119:89). B&R