Good morning, world. Things are looking pretty good from the front porch of my farm in Virginia today. Fall is my favorite time of the year when the temperatures drop, the colors change, and the deer gather around the farmhouse to consume the abundance of acorns that are now falling to the ground at record speed. When I see the deer grazing nearby, I think about how they gather around the front porch for nourishment just like I do! Psalm 42 says: “As the deer pants for streams of water, so my soul pants for you, my God. My soul thirsts for God, for the living God. When can I go and meet with God?” Meeting with the Lord of my Life isn’t just about opening up the Bible and saying a simple prayer for me. I “thirst” for Him, and I’m desperate to meet with Him. When you “thirst” for Him like a deer thirsting for water, you can’t rest until you “find” Him, because you know He’s the Source of your Nourishment for Life. What is true for water is true for the Living Water too – with Him we Live…without Him we die. What a sweet reminder to me straight from the Throne of a Mighty God this morning…He’s the Living Water and I thirst for Him! Isn’t that the way you feel about Him, too?

It’s a little strange when you think about it – animals thirsting for water or food are relentless. They don’t give up until they find it because they intuitively know that it’s a life-or-death situation. A baby in need of nourishment is relentless, too. They’ll cry until they get fed and watered because they intuitively know that it’s a “life or death” situation. Many people are relentless when it comes to something they want or think they need, and they won’t rest until they achieve it, as if their life depends on it. There’s no end to the list of examples of people “thirsting” for things in life, but I wonder how many people THIRST for the Living Water, and I wonder how it’s possible that they can take Him or leave Him on any given day. If they’re a little hungry or a little thirsty, they don’t give up until they satisfy their physical needs, but somehow their Soul never seems to hunger or thirst for the Living God. Is that even possible for a genuine Believer in Jesus Christ?

He’s the Source of Life…the One who “holds the Keys” to Death and Hell…the One who “set the stars in the sky and knows them each by name”…the One who plants the seed of life within a mother at just the right moment in time, and the One who provides every breath from the first one until the last. He’s the One who “sought them and bought” them with His Redeeming blood…the One who “gives and takes away”…the One who knows the Plans He has for us, plans to give us “hope and a future”. He’s the One who has gone “to Prepare a place for us” where we can live for all Eternity with Him. He’s the One who can part the seas, heal the sick, raise the dead, cause the sun to stand still…the One who gives us “the ability to create wealth” and the One who can “heal all your diseases”. He’s the One who stores up every tear we’ve ever shed in a jar because we’re precious to Him. He’s the Alpha and Omega…the Beginning and the End, and He’s MY PERSONAL Savior! Do I thirst for Him? You better believe I do! How could I not? Like a deer thirsting for water, He’s the Source of my Life. I love Him. I need Him. I thirst for Him day after day.

I woke up to a new day, with a heart still beating and air still filling my lungs. I woke up hungering and thirsting for Him. I remember what my life was like before I Invited Him into it, and the Work He’s done in me is nothing short of a MIRACLE. I’ve been on top of the mountain, and deep in the valley, and just about everywhere in between… and it ALL just makes me hunger and thirst for Him more. It took a while, but once He was sure that He had my Full Attention, He went to Work on me to Build a Willing (and Usable) Vessel…one that thirsts for Him day after day. One who NEVER hesitates to mention His Name. The kind of Vessel that will NEVER get enough of Him. He’s the Source of my Life, and I’m always hungering and thirsting for more.

How about you?