My soul thirsts for God, for the living God.

One of the things I love about the Bible: No matter what I'm feeling, no matter how indiscernible or indescribable the dark cries of my heart are to me, there is something in God's Word that captures them. It's like God's way of showing me, over and over again, that He really does understand every thought in my head, and that the Spirit really can interpret my wordless prayers (Romans 8:26) into something that makes sense. They aren't pretty, granted, but they make sense.

When it comes to Bible guys, I'm really thankful for David. I'm not one of those people who is gifted in contextualizing and analyzing history, so I don't know really what David was like as a person; I just know that so many of his praises and complaints to God tend to summarize my heart. David definitely experienced highs and lows, and he shared both with God. I relate to that.

So I don't have many thoughts to share about this Psalm, but it spoke to me this morning and I am grateful again that God has comforted me with His understanding of my soul.

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?
My tears have been my food
day and night,
while people say to me all day long,
“Where is your God?”

These things I remember
as I pour out my soul:
how I used to go to the house of God
under the protection of the Mighty One
with shouts of joy and praise
among the festive throng.

Why, my soul, are you downcast?
Why so disturbed within me?
Put your hope in God,
for I will yet praise him,
my Savior and my God.

My soul is downcast within me;
therefore I will remember you
from the land of the Jordan,
the heights of Hermon—from Mount Mizar.

Deep calls to deep
in the roar of your waterfalls;
all your waves and breakers
have swept over me.

By day the LORD directs his love,
at night his song is with me—
a prayer to the God of my life.

I say to God my Rock,
“Why have you forgotten me?
Why must I go about mourning,
oppressed by the enemy?”

My bones suffer mortal agony
as my foes taunt me,
saying to me all day long,
“Where is your God?”

Why, my soul, are you downcast?
Why so disturbed within me?
Put your hope in God,
for I will yet praise him,
my Savior and my God.

Psalm 42