¹O God, You are my God; I shall seek You earnestly; my soul thirsts for You, my flesh yearns for You, in a dry and weary land where there is no water.

In our most difficult times of struggle, our darkest moments of fear and extreme discomfort, spiritual dryness takes over our soul; we experience that thirsty longing for intimacy, closeness and joy in the Lord. Unfortunately, the reality of the Lord’s presence is often not what we see or feel. Psalm 63 can help us navigate such times as we read how David dealt with his dryness while running for his life.

This man of God writes about his experience fleeing from an unnamed enemy. The similarities of theme with previous psalms that identify King Saul as his nemesis (see Ps. 18, 52, 54, 57, 59) are strong. David had the military strength and backing to defeat Saul and his army. But he was constrained by his unflinching loyalty to God—which led him to restrain from doing anything to harm Saul, who was in the role of the Lord’s anointed. Indeed, this commitment would put David at a military disadvantage and make fleeing in fear for his life understandable. However, in verse 11 (“But the king will rejoice in God…”), he could not be referring to Saul being the king rejoicing in God because that man (if he is the one pursuing David) was destined for judgment. Nor could David be referring to himself as the king, for he was not yet king of Israel.

 The psalm fits better when David was already recognized as the king of Israel and could naturally refer to himself with that title. The context of this psalm, then, would involve the episode when he was fleeing from his son Absalom who had sprung an attempted insurrection to oust his father and take over the throne (2 Sam. 16-18).

The inscription of this psalm tells us David was holed up in the desert of southern Judah, in the general area of the Dead Sea, an area notably arid and virtually lifeless of vegetation. He used the physical condition as a metaphor for his spiritual thirst. Verses 1-2 have become part of hymnic history and have provided words for crying out in our darkest moments. We yearn for the Lord and do not turn away to anything but Him.: “O God, You are my God, and I shall seek You earnestly ….” For David, he would seek no other god or any other salvation from his dire circumstances. His hope was in the Lord.

By this time in his life, King David had learned to deal with his struggles; he reflects on the spiritual highs he often experienced in temple worship (Ps. 63:2-3); he remembers God’s power and glory and the great times of praising and blessing Him. Yes, those were glorious stretches of his life, lifting his hands (vs. 4) with the satisfaction of all that the Lord is and what He does. He re-enters those experiences by overlaying them onto his present emotional and spiritual need. Not just remembering, but by faith applying the same truths, bringing satisfaction and praise that lifts him above his circumstances (vs. 5). He chooses to control his bedtime thoughts by meditating on God’s help and protection in the past (vss. 6-7). He lets that occupy his mind rather than obsessive or depressive thoughts—the Lord will help him again! “In the shadow of Your wings I will sing for joy.”

Fortifying our minds and souls with thoughts of God’s glorious rescues in the past does not eliminate the present dangers. Yes, He will rescue David again, but faith did not deny the reality on the ground. He knows that danger will still await when he wakes up in the morning; the enemy will still be pursuing him. But in faith, he continues to cling to the Lord: “My soul clings to You; Your right hand upholds me” (vs. 8). And so, he bolsters himself in confidence to believe that those wanting to kill him will themselves be defeated and die in battle, the very thing they wanted to do to him (Ps. 63:9-10).

While David doesn’t technically pray to that end, he joins God’s assessment of the outcome. Effectively he is quenching his spiritual thirst with a prayer of confidence that God will be his defender and bring retribution on those seeking to harm him (vss. 9-10). Thus, he begins this psalm with the strong affirmation, “O God, you are my God,” and finishes with a declaration of faith: “But the king will rejoice in God” (vs. 11).

Every Christian knows the experience of thirsting for God when He seems absent or silent. “Where is God when I need Him? Why am I not experiencing His presence?” Sunday morning worship is uplifting and often exciting, where the music warms our souls and prompts physical expression of our joy and worship by raising our hands or clapping. Yes, those are good times.

But in reality, deep peace is often not there; the sense of the Lord’s presence in our lives has no discernable evidence. Like David, against all indications to the contrary, we dare to believe God will act on our behalf and remove those things or people who are against us or the oppression they foist upon us. And in faith, we remember those spiritual highs to bolster our souls because we know the Lord will prevail again as He has in the past.

Lord, I remember times of refreshing praise in Your presence, and I desire that again. I thirst not for the experience but for You!