You can listen to the mp3 audio file of this talk here
Soul Searching for Satisfaction.
Psalm 63
Introduction
Some people would say asking the question ‘what thing in life do you find the most satisfying?’ is an irrelevant question. Life is not about my own satisfaction – that is just selfish.
In particular, many Christians would say that wanting to be satisfied is just worldly, selfish and godless.
Well, like poor poker players, let’s put our cards on the table right as we start. God wants you to be satisfied. He wants you to be more satisfied with your life than you have ever been before because he created us to search for ultimate satisfaction and to find it.
CS Lewis, 65 years ago wrote these now famous words -
‘We are half-hearted creatures, fooling about with drink and sex and ambition when infinite joy is offered us, like an ignorant child who wants to go on making mud pies in a slum because he cannot imagine what is meant by the offer of a holiday at the sea. We are far too easily pleased.’ The Weight of Glory by C.S. Lewis (Preached originally as a sermon in the Church of St Mary the Virgin, Oxford, on June 8, 1942: published in THEOLOGY, November, 1941 http://www.doxaweb.com/assets/doxa.pdf)
My prayer is that none of us would finish this article half heartedly, settling for anything less than infinite joy! I’m sure, having watched the video above, we could add to the list other worthwhile things that give us a sense of satisfaction (as well as a few less worthwhile). Some of them are very good things, like family or spending time with our children. They are things that are worth striving for – but even that, at times is less than joyful and satisfying.
So as we read this Psalm, please be asking God to change our shallow half-hearted desires into a consuming passion for the one thing that ultimately satisfies.
Because that is what this great, but often overlooked Psalm is all about. David, who wrote this Psalm is no stranger to our half-heartedness. He knows it only too well, but he has learnt the secret of Joy. And he lets us in on the secret!
Playing at seeking God?
‘O God, you are my God; I earnestly search for you. My soul thirst for you; my whole body longs for you in this parched and weary land where there is no water.’ v1
To many of us, these words will be a little embarrassing. David is letting us into the heart of his emotions – to see what drives him. We naturally struggle with this – particularly those of us born in a British culture where our emotions are private – to be kept to ourselves.
But this is important for us – as we shall see. We are rounded human beings, created with minds, bodies, wills and emotions that are finely balanced – and God is concerned with what we do with all of them. Does God want us to feel strong emotions about, and towards him? Of course he does. And it takes, as we will see the engagement of our minds, our wills and our bodies to do it.
David searches...for God, and it is easy to overlook this. We live in a world that is searching. Searching for something – but it doesn’t know what. For all of us – a life without a relationship with God is terminally dissatisfying. We are built to know God and to enjoy knowing him – so when we don’t we are left with a hole. We are left searching for God. But so often we would rather search for something to replace God!
Many of us would say we have found God and the search is over. But do we always feel the sense of satisfaction we say we have found? As we shall see, even when we have found the source of life our hearts and souls are so fickle that we forget, or let it get crowded out by other things. We must actively hold on to it.
So whether we are still searching, or trying to hold on to it, this Psalm is for us.
David knows how the equation works. What he most desires is to know God and enjoy him forever. This desire is not simply mental assent that God is good, and therefore worth trying to find. Look at the words he uses. He ‘searches earnestly’, he ‘thirsts’ and ‘longs for’ God.
He turns to the environment he is in as an analogy. The preface tells us he is in the desert of Judah – and his soul feels like the desert he is wandering around in. The desert of Judah is hot, so hot that the ground burns your feet. It is parched and dry. Nothing lives there until the rains come and the sand and gravel crunch under his feet as he walks round trying to find shelter from the hot desert sun.
And this is what he likens to the state of his soul. He is desperate for God, longing to enjoy him and see him at work.
What about you? Do you ever feel like that? It may be that you feel like that but don’t know what your feeling. You are thirsty and searching for something, something important that will give your life purpose, direction and a centre but you don’t know what it is.
It may be that you know what it means to search for, and find God – but that you are a dry as a bone at the moment.
It may even be that you don’t feel what David feels. You don’t really feel hungry and thirsty any more. It has been so long, but as you read this Psalm, God is awakening in you a desire to put it right.
Either way – how does David search for God?
Searching for God.
We live in a world confused by what it means to seek God. What do we have to do? Is it Special journeys and Ritual fasting? And if that doesn’t work what about using crystals, techniques of meditation etc?
Seeking God can sound very super-spiritual in a way that we don’t quite understand – but David goes on in this great song to do just that.
He reflects and meditates on God which, we will see, involves his body, mind, will and emotions. That is what it means to seek God. Wholehearted discipleship.
Firstly, David focuses on what he knows of God.
When his soul is thirsty for God he remembers again God’s power, his glory and his love.
In Psalm 63v2-5 David remembers what he himself has seen in the sanctuary of the temple. And has he does so, his heart is turned to God again. The Jewish set up in the temple was designed to communicate and signify the presence of God to the people, and as David reflects on it he is rightly reminded not of the content of the ceremony of the temple, but of how awesome, how holy and how powerful the creator God who is behind it all.
But he is also reminded of the most precious thing in life – God’s unfailing love.
This is surely something to fulfil the deepest longings of any person. Love, pure perfect love because it is from God, and love that will never fail.
At the time of his souls drought, David reminds himself of the glory, power and unfailing love of the God who he longs for – and the impact, as we shall see in a few moments changes his whole perspective.
But not only does David remember, he meditates (v6-8).
Christian meditation is a lost art – partly because of the popularity of new age and Buddhist meditation which it is totally different from.
The word 'meditation' here comes from the word to ‘mutter’. As David goes over and over in his mind what he knows of God and how God has helped him, his heart is turned to God. But Christian meditation is more than just remembering. It is telling ourselves the reality of who God is for us and allowing that truth to permeate into our hearts to such a depth that we not only remember how he has helped us, but we rejoice in that help and we are drawn into wanting to follow him. The activity of our minds shape and mould our emotions, our wills and the way we use our bodies.
As one translation puts it, as we meditate on God
‘My soul clings to you; your right hand upholds me.’(NIV Psalm 63v8)
But what does it mean for you and me to seek God – to reflect and meditate?
We have a clear advantage of David. We can know God in a way he didn’t and God has shown himself to us in more clarity in the person of Jesus than he ever did to David.
David reflected upon Gods glory, power and unfailing love.
John 1v14 – ‘So the word became human and loved here on earth among us. He was full or unfailing love and faithfulness. And we have seen his glory, the glory of the only Son of the Father.’
1 Corinthians 1v23-24 – ‘...but we preach Christ crucified: a stumbling-block to the Jews and foolishness to the Gentiles. But to those whom God has called, both Jews and Gentiles, Christ the power of God and the wisdom of God.’
Christ is the glory of God and the power of God for you and me. We have never been to the sanctuary that David worshipped in, and have never seen what he saw – but we, through the accounts of his disciples and apostles have a much clearer view of the glory, the power and the unfailing love of God – seen in Jesus Christ.
And meditating on these things changes us.
Later on in 2 Corinthians, Paul says this
‘And all of us have had the veil removed so that we can be mirrors that brightly reflect the glory of the Lord. And as the Spirit of the Lord works within us, we become more and more like him and reflect his glory even more.’ 2 Corinthians 3v18
As we focus on, and meditate on the character of God in the person of Jesus; as we seek God, we will not only find our heart lifted from the dry, parched desert of a life without God, but we will begin to reflect that same glory – like a mirror, to each other and the world around.
But we can only do this if we have something to meditate and focus on.
One church leader of the late 18th Century said
‘The vessels are fullest of grace which are nearest its spring. The more Christ’s glory is beheld, the more people are changed.’ (William Bragshaw)
‘Memorisation is the first step to meditation’ (Jerry Bridges)
Searching after and seeking God is intimately bound up with prayerful reflection and meditation on Jesus Christ as he is revealed in the Bible.
It is no surprise to me that the times in my life when I feel most like a spiritual desert are the times when I rarely consider the glory, power an unfailing love of God. It is those times when you find my Bible under a stack of other books, or the TV guide – and my space in my diary crowded out with other things.
Encourage you to try to memorise – start with this Psalm
Finding a satisfied soul.
You must have noticed by now – this psalm is riddled with references to praise and worship.
‘my lips will glorify you. I will praise you as long as I live and in your name I will lift up my hands...with singing my mouth will praise you...I sing in the shadow of your wings...all who swear by God’s name will praise him.’
The first outworking of a life that searches after God is one that praises God. After a win at the footy, you don’t have to instruct people to cheer, sing and tell other people about the win. It is a product of their enjoyment of the win. Enjoying God, receiving from his glory, power and unfailing love produces a heart of praise to God. And this is huge. It is what we were created for.
We have been thinking over recent weeks in Revelation about our ultimate purpose as human beings.
‘Fear God...and give him glory for the hour of his judgement has come. Worship him who made the heavens, the earth, the sea and the springs of water.’ Revelation 14v7
If you want to know how to do this with integrity – to genuinely praise him and give him glory then seek after him. Meditate on him, reflect on his glory, power and love – and praise will well up from within your soul.
And this is ultimately satisfying. There is nothing more fulfilling and satisfying in life than enjoying God for who he is and what he has done – and therefore praising him from a heart of worship.
‘You satisfy me more than the richest of foods. I will praise you with songs of joy’ v5
We can chase after all sorts of things this world offers – but none of them will satisfy like knowing God and enjoying walking him and reflecting his glory. Ultimate satisfaction is found ONLY HERE!
So far, I’ve not commented on 2 verses – v9-10. They are not difficult verses but they are uncomfortable verses.
David’s life is in real danger. There are those seeking to destroy him – For David it is a ‘them or me’ scenario. One of 2 things will happen – I will be destroyed or they will. It was as simple as that. Any of us in the same situation would have said these same words. But what is important is that a life spent earnestly searching after God means even these situations – where life is held in the balance, are situations where God is trusted. David, the God anointed King of Israel knows he is the rightful ruler – so he knows that God will not let him down.
Enjoy God
We started with a quote from CS Lewis,
‘We are half-hearted creatures, fooling about with drink and sex and ambition when infinite joy is offered us, like an ignorant child who wants to go on making mud pies in a slum because he cannot imagine what is meant by the offer of a holiday at the sea. We are far too easily pleased.’ The Weight of Glory
David starts this song from the desert place – but finishes it with words of Joy.
‘...the King will rejoice in God. All who trust in him will praise him, while liars will be seduced.’v11
He starts dry and parched, and finishes enjoying God. All his searching, thirsting and longing leads to praise and rejoicing because of who David’s God is.
So often our lives don’t match up to this experience of David – but we would all, I’m sure like them too.
What is the one thing in your life you find most satisfying? What is the thing you most thirst and long for? Acceptance, relationship, friendship, money, sex?
Nothing, nothing can compare to the infinite joy of knowing God and actively living for him.
‘Your unfailing love is better to me than life itself; how I praise you!
And we are not talking about abnormal happiness or an insincere constant grin. We are talking about a deep satisfaction that holds us securely – God’s ‘strong right hand holds me securely’ throughout what life throws at him.
None of us are there yet – but which direction are we moving in? Make a decision today to search after God, trusting that he will satisfy.
What might that mean for us?
It might mean locating the thing in our affections we have pinned our hopes in – and recognising that it can never take the weight of our thirsty souls. The next promotion, the right relationship, money, family.
And it will mean turning to the one who has come in power, glory and unfailing love.
Searching after and finding God is not for the faint hearted. It takes a whole-hearted decision – involving our hearts, minds, wills and bodies. Lets pray.