Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness – Terry Nightingale

Psalm 42: 1 – 5, says this:

¹ As the deer pants for streams of water,
so my soul pants for you, my God.
² My soul thirsts for God, for the living God.
When can I go and meet with God?
³ My tears have been my food
day and night,
while people say to me all day long,
“Where is your God?”
⁴ These things I remember
as I pour out my soul:
how I used to go to the house of God
under the protection of the Mighty One
with shouts of joy and praise
among the festive throng.
⁵ Why, my soul, are you downcast?
Why so disturbed within me?
Put your hope in God,
for I will yet praise him,
my Savior and my God (Psalms 42:1-5)

When you look at the world, what do you see? When you watch TV or catch a video on your phone; when you scroll through Facebook or Instagram, what kind of things stand out for you?

For some, it might be a hope that others have ‘liked’ something you posted yesterday. For others, the latest trivia might grab your attention. Or a cute photograph. Perhaps a feel-good story.

For those who are compelled to stay in touch with national and international events, it is rarely good news that makes the headlines. Another conflict in another country. Another scandal.

I wonder, do you ever try to look with spiritual eyes? Do you ask yourself “I wonder how God sees all this”? And therefore, “How may I view the world with His heart – with a heart of righteousness”?

Jesus said, “Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they will be filled” (Matt 5: 6). In other words, blessed are those who want to see things from God’s perspective, Blessed are those who want righteousness to reign.

The writer of Psalm 42 has been living in troubled times, and he remembers better days (v 4). He knows God is the only one who can change things. Like a deer desperate for water on a hot, dry day, the psalmist is thirsty for God’s presence. For God and His righteousness to come.

How might we reflect that desperation today? Perhaps it starts in our prayer life. Pray for salvations to occur; pray for God’s love, help and peace to reach those who need Him. Pray for God intervene in events we see on the news. Pray for God to reign in your workplace, in your street, in your town, in your city, in all the dark places.

Those who hunger and thirst will be filled. What will they be filled with? Some suggest a deeper relationship with God and a transformed heart. But perhaps they will also experience the satisfaction of seeing God turning things around in ways we can’t even imagine.

“Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they will be filled.”