As the deer pants for streams of water,
\nso my soul pants for you, my God.
\nMy soul thirsts for God, for the living God.
\nWhen can I go and meet with God?
\nMy tears have been my food
\nday and night,
\nwhile people say to me all day long,
\n\u201cWhere is your God?\u201d
\nThese things I remember
\nas I pour out my soul:
\nhow I used to go to the house of God
\nunder the protection of the Mighty One
\nwith shouts of joy and praise
\namong the festive throng.
\nWhy, my soul, are you downcast?
\nWhy so disturbed within me?
\nPut your hope in God,
\nfor I will yet praise him,
\nmy Savior and my God. (Psalm 42:1-5, TNIV)<\/p>\n
A dear pants for streams of water when it can\u2019t find them. Likewise, the psalmist is panting for God, whom he can\u2019t find anymore.<\/p>\n
We all experience periods when we feel alone and desperate, when all joy is gone. God seems far away. We can find no warmth, no comfort and no hope. Our problems have overwhelmed us and we feel that there are no solutions. This is the sad condition that the author of Psalm 42 and 43 is living. He is in despair. He remembers how it used to be, how in times past he felt close to God. Now, he wonders what has gone wrong. Why can\u2019t he find God?<\/p>\n
But the author chooses not to get lost in his gloom. He understands that even though he can\u2019t see God or feel God, he knows that God has not abandoned him. He believes that the dark and lonely time that he faces will be only temporary. Though he is in despair, he knows that he can still trust God and that in the future, he\u2019ll once again be able to offer God his praise. He knows God will bring back the light.<\/p>\n
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