Humble, patient, and dependent

..... “As a deer pants for flowing streams, so pants my soul for you, O God. My soul thirsts for God, for the living God. When shall I come and appear before God?” –Psalm 42:1-2

When my soul is weary, for what do I thirst? Am I drawn to the broken cisterns of the world, or the flowing streams only the Lord provides? Most times, I feel the urge to turn to the world for fulfillment. My heart is far from God and I do not yearn for Him. The imagery today at Ein Gedi was powerful because David wrote Psalm 42 while running from Saul, hiding in caves. He was in a desert, in the wilderness, crying out to God to rescue him.

I know God was purposeful in bringing David into a desert. Here, God taught David how to be humble, patient, and dependent. Our deserts can be times of immense growth, where we learn to sink our roots deeper into the Lord. This is exactly what David did, and I think we can learn from his example. This is where our hearts learn to pant for the one who is living water (Meim Chaiem). Today has been an awesome day learning of the significance of the desert. Itʼs been convicting to learn what it means to walk in obedience with the Lord, despite the circumstances we face.

Madison Slayden & Christina Saelzler