If I had to describe the month of August in just a few words, one of those words would probably be thirsty. I try to begin each day drinking 32 ounces of water, and though it’s a great start, it’s not enough. My body will definitely need more. In spite of my efforts to stay hydrated, I almost always feel thirsty at bedtime.

David—psalmist, shepherd, king, and man after God’s heart—knew something about thirst, and Psalm 63 is a great example of this. David wrote these words when he was running away from his son Absalom. You can read that story in 2 Samuel 15-18, but here’s a summary: Absalom, David’s oldest son, manipulated his way into the hearts of the people to overtake the throne. David found out about his plot, so he escaped. Eventually, Absalom’s failed coup ends with him getting his hair caught in a tree while riding his mule, and then, as Absalom was hanging in mid-air, one of David’s men killed him. But before the story is resolved with David back on the throne, he wrote this psalm in the Judean wilderness where he was hiding.  

Psalm 63:1-5: “You, God, are my God, earnestly I seek you; I thirst for you, my whole being longs for you, in a dry and parched land where there is no water. I have seen you in the sanctuary and beheld your power and your glory. Because your love is better than life, my lips will glorify you. I will praise you as long as I live, and in your name I will lift up my hands. I will be fully satisfied as with the richest of foods; with singing lips my mouth will praise you.” (NIV)

I’ve been thinking a lot about that first verse and the intensity of David’s word choices. This was a desperate man going through one of the worst moments of his life. David had been hunted before, but this was a betrayal by his own son. Even though he’s at his lowest, he gives us an example of what to do when things look really dark. David starts off by saying what he knows. He claims God as his own. “You, God, are my God.” And, not only that, but David is earnestly seeking God. He’s serious about his relationship with the Lord. In fact, he’s so serious that he thirsts for God’s presence and his intervention.

With it being summertime, I think we can all sympathize with that feeling of having a strong thirst, that craving for a glass of water after you’ve been outside doing yard work. It’s tempting to focus on the bad parts of our situation—the cause for our spiritual thirst or physical need—but the thirst can actually be the magnet that pulls us toward God. Think about who Jesus mentioned in his Sermon on the Mount. He didn’t say, “Blessed are the well-fed and hydrated.” He said, “Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness.”

God is always offering us ways to draw closer to Him. If you’re in a “Judean Wilderness” like David (though it’s probably not because your long-haired son is trying to steal your throne) you can still see your thirst as an opportunity to earnestly seek the source for Living Water!