Psalm 63:1 “O God, You are my God; Early will I seek You; My soul thirsts for You; My flesh longs for You In a dry and thirsty land Where there is no water.”
Have you ever considered all of the ways that God fills us up? The multitude of gifts He brings only benefit the ones ready to receive them. When we come before the KIng, ready to receive all that He wants to give, do we approach Him with pots ready to be filled or do we come before Him as vessels that are full of something else?
“Before we pray that God would fill us, I believe we ought to pray Him to empty us.”
-D.L. Moody, Secret Power
The manner in which we approach God is as important as having right expectations.
The Lord will supply us with everything we need, the key is in responding to His call. What has He called you to? What is it that He wants to give? The manner in which God supplies us is in direct correlation to what He has planned for the journey.
Consider the Israelites in the desert…
As the Lord led the people from Egypt to the promised land, He sustained them with food, water, and protection. Leading millions of people across a desert leads to all sorts of supply problems, without the proper provisions the people would surely perish, but the Lord has a way of dealing with every problem perfectly. When the people needed food, God provided heavenly food called ‘Manna’, it fell each night and was good only for the day, if people tried hoarding it, it would spoil.
God’s Supply of Bread
Matthew 6:8-11 “Therefore do not be like them. For your Father knows the things you have need of before you ask Him. In this manner, therefore, pray:
Our Father in heaven,
Hallowed be Your name.
Your kingdom come.
Your will be done
On earth as it is in heaven.
Give us this day our daily bread…
God’s supply is meant to sustain you now. He gives what is necessary, when you need it, if you need supply tomorrow, He will take care of it then.
What God wants from you is to trust Him.
The way that trust is made evident is by the manner in which we walk with God. Righteousness isn’t a suggestion, it is an expectation. Walking with God is living according to His standard of righteousness and His standard is made evident by His moral law. The 10 commandments are not an outdated list of rules that served only the Israelites in the desert, they form the basis of God’s character revealed to mankind and what it looks like to live like His people.
Isaiah 33:15,16 “He who walks righteously and speaks uprightly,
He who despises the gain of oppressions,
Who gestures with his hands, refusing bribes,
Who stops his ears from hearing of bloodshed,
And shuts his eyes from seeing evil:
He will dwell on high;
His place of defense will be the fortress of rocks;
Bread will be given him,
His water will be sure.”
How are you sustained?
Just as the body requires food (bread), so our spirit requires spiritual food to survive. If we don’t take in the necessary spiritual sustenance to grow and be strengthened, we will grow weak and defenseless.
There are different sources of life by which God gives us this bread but ultimately, the Bread of life comes from Jesus. Those who forsake Jesus as their Lord and Savior, forsake all that is necessary in God’s Kingdom.
John 6:35 “And Jesus said to them, “I am the bread of life. He who comes to Me shall never hunger, and he who believes in Me shall never thirst.”
God’s Supply of Water
Equally as important as the Bread of life, is the water of life. People can fast from food because of the fat’s stored up in their body, water on the other hand is not as readily stored and must be replenished much sooner.
As Jesus is our manna from Heaven each day, He is likewise our source of life giving water.
John 4:13-14 “Jesus answered and said to her, “Whoever drinks of this water will thirst again, but whoever drinks of the water that I shall give him will never thirst. But the water that I shall give him will become in him a fountain of water springing up into everlasting life.”
What does it cost you for this bread and water of life?
Nothing……and everything.
Isaiah 55:1 “Come, all you who are thirsty, come to the waters; and you without money, come, buy, and eat! Come, buy wine and milk without money and without cost!”
The price was already paid by the life that Jesus gave for you—it cost Him his life. All He asks now is that you follow Him, let Him sustain you, let His life giving Spirit fill your life and trust Him for your provision.
The cost of God’s bread and water is more valuable than gold, receive it and you will never be the same again, you will never hunger or thirst spiritually again.
His promises never fail.
Isaiah 58:11 “The LORD will always guide you; He will satisfy you in a sun-scorched land and strengthen your frame. You will be like a well-watered garden, like a spring whose waters never fail.”
There are many ways the world has attempted to mimic the life giving hope that Jesus only can provide. Go to the source of life and you will save your life, seek your fulfillment anywhere else and you will remain empty.
The answer has been and will always be Jesus.
U.T. 