Have you ever been thirsty or dehydrated? Typically, the brain will send signals to our body when we are thirsty before we get dehydrated. My mouth gets dry if I am really thirsty and I can’t seem to get enough to drink! Nothing will quench this kind of thirst except water. But, I can ignore my thirst and eventually it will turn to dehydration.

Did you know you can be dehydrated without even knowing it? Yep! Scary, huh? Our brain sends all the signals, but many times we don’t respond to it. The first signal is usually being thirsty. If you ignore it for too long more serious signals occur such as fatigue, bright yellow urine, foggy brain, dry mouth, confusion, dark circles under the eyes, dizziness, organ malfunction, and even death. This is how your body is letting you know it’s in the danger zone. Once you get in the danger zone it takes more than a cup or two of water to quench your thirst and get you re-hydrated.

Our spiritual life goes through a similar process when we ignore the signals. Many times we don’t even know our spiritual life is in the danger zone because we haven’t paid attention to our thirst. We fill ourselves with everything else except Jesus. We run hard after our career, kids, responsibilities, social lives, and or fitness goals. Or maybe those aren’t the things you pursue, but you pursue something. Whatever fills your time & mind, that is not God, that is the thing you’re chasing. We give Jesus our leftovers if even that much. We end up tired, weary, stressed out, & empty. These are the warning signals letting us know we are thirsty for Jesus.

I normally start my day by reading the word of God and praying. But, I can read the bible and still miss Jesus.

Especially if I am reading just to mark it off my list. Or, If my heart is not right within me and my mind is distracted by everything else I need to do. I can easily miss out on experiencing Jesus. I am guilty of all of the above which is why I know we can be thirsty for Jesus without even knowing it. We ignore the signals such as being tired, irritable, stressed, anxious, exhausted, empty, etc…these are indicators of a life that is spiritually thirsty. If we ignore these signals for too long we will end up in the spiritually dehydrated. Don’t get me wrong I know we have to manage our responsibilities and juggle many things to some degree. But spending quality time with Jesus is more important than anything else on our to do list. If I run myself ragged to get all my to do list accomplished, which I do at times, but miss Jesus what have I really accomplished?

Recently, I visited a friend’s church. The sermon was just what I needed to hear. It was not a feel good type of message. It was quite convicting. And it was uncomfortable to some degree because it shed light on my sin (which is a good thing). I had been chasing after everything, but Jesus. It was a powerful message because it was the very word of God being taught which spoke directly to my heart. I went to lunch with my friend after church. We talked for a couple of hours in booth at Newks. I could have continued to talk to her for hours. I could not get enough of the fellowship we were experiencing together that day. God used that particular Sunday to show me some things missing in my spiritual life.

My soul was thirsty for ONLY the Word of God being taught & community with other genuine believers. I did not even realize these things were missing from my life until I experienced church in a different way that day. I go to church regularly. I have godly friends from church & outside of church. I read the Word daily. But, something was missing in my spiritual life and had been for several months. I knew it in the depth of my soul due to all those warning signs, but I had not been able to identify the missing link. The signs were right in front of me daily. I was tired, exhausted, quick to anger, empty, & stressed out. So, how did I not know? Because I had not slowed down long enough to hear what God was trying to tell me. I had been filling myself up with all the things on my to-do list. I chased after more work, fitness goals, productivity over relationships, significance from other sources, etc…These things are never enough and will never be enough! These things leave me feeling exhausted, stressed out, & weary most days. If I am being transparent, I will always want more of something other than God to some degree because I am a sinner. But, God in His mercy created us with a hole in our heart, so that we would pursue Him to satisfy our wondering hearts. We were never meant to be satisfied by the things of the world. If the things of the world could satisfy us, we would never seek God Almighty.

These things even the good things we do daily to fill us are only temporary. Let us be people who seek the Lord, pursue the things of the Lord, and be filled up with the One true source of living water that will satisfy our thirst for more. He won’t leave us feeling tired, weary, stressed out, etc…He actually gives us strength, comfort, peace, & rest when we cast down our idols & seek Him. When we are filled up with Jesus Christ our hearts should be content with whatever God has given us. We may still want more, but we can trust God will provide it if we need it. We don’t have to run ourselves ragged in order to make it happen. God is the only One who can and will truly quench our thirsty souls. Let His love fill you up, and remember His love is not temporary, it is everlasting. Taste and see that the Lord is good.

What about you? Are you thirsty? Are you tired, stressed out, or feeling empty these days? Are you spiritually dehydrated? Evaluate your heart’s desires…Ask God to show you what’s in your heart. Do these desires align with the truth? Are you seeking eternal things or running yourself ragged for temporary things? If so, ask God to show you what He wants you to pursue. Pursue the things of the Lord, seek Him and His kingdom first and all these things will be added to you.

CAT