Hungry

As the deer longs for streams of water so I long for you, O God. I thirst for God, the living God. When can I go and stand before him?

Day and night I have only tears for food, while my enemies continually taunt me, saying, “Where is this God of yours?”

- Psalm 42:1-3 

O God, you are my God; I earnestly search for you. My soul thirsts for you; my whole body longs for you in this parched and weary land where there is no water.

- Psalm 63:1 

Every day, somewhere around 9:15am I get hungry. Now, I typically eat breakfast anywhere from 5:30 to 7am, depending on the day and schedule, but no matter what I eat or when, I get hungry again about 9:15am. I don’t even need to look at the clock; I know what time it is when I feel hungry. 

I typically do not eat the same thing every day. This is no second breakfast kind of thing. Somedays, many days, popcorn does the trick. It may be leftover something, especially if I am craving protein. Rarely is it sweet, except for the Pepsi I have with it. Gotta have the Pepsi. 

Right before I started to work on this, I got hungry. I was running late, but I already knew it was pointless to try to write while hungry. It’s better to eat a little something then to try to force myself to sit down and write. No idea will flow when the stomach is empty. (Today I had tortilla chips – just a few, with some cheese melted on top. It hit the spot, and of course with a Pepsi.) 

As I continue my life long journey with God, I find that my soul longs for His presence and influence in my life. It too is like a hunger that reminds me on a daily basis just how dependent I am on Him. I long to hear His voice, to see His activity around me, to hear Him speak through His Word, or a devotional, or an answered prayer, or in an unexpected, just when I needed it, clearly from Him moment. 

The more I have questions or face uncertainties or pressure points, or stressors, or fears, I realize that in many ways, their effect on me is like a hunger pain that can only be filled by God and His presence. They cause me to stop what I am doing and reach out to Him. I have found too often, if I try to push through, everything I attempt is wasted effort. I need Him to give me the energy of soul to keep going. 

My soul hungers for God when I have too much time to think. It hungers when I am not sure what to do. My soul has a way of communicating my hunger for God without using a word. It just knows and lets me know. 

I have found that God always satisfies, but it is on His time, not mine. Sometimes He waits until I am so hungry I … well, I don’t know what ... but I do know there are times I feel like I am at the breaking point – the “hangry” point, but yet, He always shows up, and it always works out. 

Just like our bodies, our souls must be fed. It hungers for God and His righteousness. We may not realize that for what it is or we may try to feed our souls with something besides God, but ultimately it doesn’t satisfy. Only God does that. 

Recognizing when our souls are hungry for God is a first step. Seeking Him out is another. Being satisfied in Him is everything. 

So learn what it feels like to be hungry in your soul, and when you learn how that feels, be sure to act on it by turning to God – and He will satisfy you. 

May you be filled today.

Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they will be filled.

- Matthew 5:6