“As the deer PANTS FOR THE WATER BROOKS, 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?” (Psalms 42:1-2) Deers don’t pant for water. They pant as a mechanism to cool down. Deers breathe rapidly to excrete excess heat out of their body. Deers also seek water sources to remove their scent after escaping a predator. This is why deer often pant near water sources.
Dogs pant on a hot day, but deer do not. (Generally speaking, deer get a great deal of their water from the food they eat – up to 90% in some cases, so they don’t often go hunting for water and they can go long periods without a water source.) So, if it was common knowledge that deer don’t “pant” like dogs do when they are hot, why would the Psalmist write “…as a deer PANTS FOR WATER, so my soul PANTS AFTER YOU, O GOD…”?
Psalm 42 is an emotionally charged outpouring of RAW DESPERATION from a man who is experiencing a VERY DIFFICULT season just now. But what makes the difference between faith and failure is how WE PROCESS the difficulties we experience, in light of the firm conviction of the GOODNESS, MERCY, AND POWER OF OUR LOVING GOD.
Korah felt like he had become frantic, gasping for help, and FILLED WITH ANXIETY AND FEAR. Do you ever feel like this? He said, “When I remember these things, I pour out my soul within me. For I used to go with the multitude; I went with them to the house of God, With the voice of JOY AND PRAISE, with a multitude…(I Must) HOPE IN GOD, for I shall YET PRAISE HIM For (He is) MY SALVATION.” (Psalms 42:4-5) “By day the LORD COMMANDS HIS STEADFAST LOVE, and at night HIS SONG IS WITH ME, (is with each of us) a prayer TO THE GOD OF MY LIFE.” (Psalms 42:8)
Remember this, God’s Angles, “Are ministering spirits sent forth to minister for those of us who WILL INHERIT SALVATION?” (Hebrews 1:14)
Your Personal Pastor -Bill Stockham