Journeying to Easter - Part 2Sample

Thirsting for God in the wilderness

Lent is a season of longing – a time to pause, reflect and rediscover the deep thirst of our souls for God. Like David who wrote this psalm, we may find ourselves in a season of spiritual dryness, yearning for the refreshment that only God can provide. The picture of a deer panting for water reminds us that this thirst is not a sign of weakness but of life itself. It reveals our dependency on God as our ultimate source of sustenance and strength.

In Psalm 42, David expresses both lament and hope. He feels the weight of separation from God but chooses to remember God’s faithfulness. ‘Deep calls to deep in the roar of your waterfalls’ (v7a) reminds us that God's presence, though overwhelming at times, is always deeper than our despair. Lent invites us into this tension – to acknowledge our hunger and emptiness while trusting in God’s abundant grace.

As we journey through Lent, fasting and prayer can uncover the places where we’ve tried to quench our thirst with things that do not satisfy. Let us turn our gaze toward the cross where Jesus poured out living water for us.

Take heart in the promise that the God you long for is already drawing near. Let your soul cry out, not in despair but in expectation: ‘Put your hope in God, for I will yet praise him, my Savior and my God’ (v5b). This Lent may your thirst lead you to the Living Water.

Written by AARON WRIGHT