“I’m so thirsty and parched – dry as a bone.  My tongue sticks to the roof of my mouth.” ~ Psalm 22:15

Have you ever been so thirsty you would do almost anything for a glass of water? Maybe you have just played a hard game in sports, or worked outdoors in the sun for a few hours, or eaten something salty or spicy. Whatever the situation, we all know what it’s like to have this human need of thirst unmet. I remember playing basketball in high school and I would come off the court after playing a quarter and all I wanted was that squirt water bottle that was being passed down the line.

I love liquid. Ask anyone who knows me, I love icy cold drinks. I always have a large glass of iced-tea or some other beverage I am carrying around. I joke that I am “parched” when my large insulated cup becomes empty. In fact, I am so programmed for liquid refreshment, that often I will reach over to grab my drink beside me when I am driving and if it’s not there, I wonder how I walked out the door without it? I’m convinced that there will be ice in heaven for me and cool drinks. (smile) Suffice it to say, I do not like to be thirsty. 

I was thinking about this verse from Psalms 22:15 recently, where King David is prophesying regarding Jesus’ crucifixion and He says of Jesus, “I’m so thirsty and parched, dry as a bone.  My tongue sticks to the roof of my mouth.”  We can only imagine what it would have been like for Jesus to be taken into custody and having gone through the agonizing torture and suffering that He went through while also having nothing to drink. I know when I have a good cry, I am always thirsty afterwards. In Luke 22 it refers to Jesus sweating blood due to the intense anguish and emotional stress (well beyond a good cry). We can only imagine what intense dehydration and thirst Jesus faced in the 24 hours proceeding His death.

So, why am I thinking about this? Because with everything Jesus went through in his death and resurrection, He purchased something for us. Jesus became thirst for me, so I never have to thirst again. He offers me streams of living water (His Spirit) flowing from within me. He purchased living water, the gift of Himself and the Holy Spirit so that we never have to thirst again. “On the last and greatest day of the festival, Jesus stood and said in a loud voice, “Let anyone who is thirsty come to me and drink. Whoever believes in me, as Scripture has said, rivers of living water will flow from within them.”  By this He meant the Spirit, whom those who believed in Him were later to receive. (John 7:37-38)  Often there are physical signs that point to spiritual truths, this is how I see Psalm 22:15.

When I moved to the desert, I realized what it was like to be truly thirsty. Before then, I would just joke around about being parched, but when you live in the desert there will be times you experience thirst in a different way. For example, many times I wake up in the middle of the night and can hardly swallow because my mouth is so dry from the dry desert climate. It’s in those times that I make sure and have water on the side of my bed. Like physical thirst, we equally all have a deep thirst in us spiritually that only God can fill and He filled it through Jesus and the gift of Holy Spirit.  Isaiah 44:3 says, “’For I will pour out water on the thirsty land and streams on the dry ground; I will pour out My Spirit on your offspring and My blessing on your descendants.”

Today, if you are feeling a little thirsty spiritually, let me remind you that there is no lack of living water to drink. Jesus became thirsty so we never have to thirst again. Drink! Drink deep of Holy Spirit, let him fill you afresh and overtake you. Invite Him to be poured out on any dry and weary place. Invite Him to fill any place that may feel parched; because the blissful reality is, we never have to thirst again!

Jesus answered, “Everyone who drinks this water will be thirsty again, but whoever drinks the water I give them will never thirst. Indeed, the water I give them will become in them a spring of water welling up to eternal life.  ~ John 4:13-15

Written by:  Nita Weldon

Published on: 11/10/2017