“You called, you cried, you shattered my deafness. You sparkled, you blazed, you drove away my blindness. You shed your fragrance, and I drew in my breath, and I pant for you. I tasted and now I hunger and thirst. You touched me, and now I burn with longing for your peace.” Saint Augustine

“When the soul is full, you turn down even the sweetest honey. But when your soul is starving, every bitter thing becomes sweet.” Proverbs 27:7 TPT

“BLESSED are those who HUNGER and THIRST for RIGHTEOUSNESS for they shall be filled.” Matthew 5:6 NKJV

JESUS MAKES THIS DECLARATION FROM A PLACE HE KNOWS BETTER THAN ANYONE:

“BLESSED are those who HUNGER and THIRST for RIGHTEOUSNESS for they shall be filled.” Matthew 5:6 NKJV

“How long can the moth flirt near the mouth of the flame before their lips touch and the moth’s soul becomes like a sun.... How long do you think you can just flirt with Him before you dissolve in ecstasy?” Meister Eckhart

"To hunger and thirst after righteousness is when nothing in the world can fascinate us so much as being near to God." - Smith Wigglesworth

The Feeling is Mutual: Jesus knows this place of extreme bliss as a result of his desire for the Bride and this desire should awaken desire for Him in you.

We only pursue God to the degree that its real to us that He is pursuing us.

When you hear things like, “Seek my Face continually...” (Ps. 105:4), “Men should always pray and never stop...” (Lk 18:1), “Pray in the Spirit always...” (Eph. 6:18), and “Pray without ceasing...” (1 Thess. 5:17), do you hear a call to discipline or do you hear the voice of someone longing for unbroken communion with you? In these verses I hear the heart of someone saying, “I could talk to you all day long. I don’t want the communion to stop. You’ll hang up first.” You might want to reread these verses with the understanding that "The Spirit that lives in us wants us to be his own" (James 4:5 God’s Word Translation). I know that we talk much about our longing and hunger for the Lord but have you considered the Spirit’s longing for us? Our communion with the Spirit is the result of mutual longing.

William Seymour was desperate for the fullness of the Holy Spirit. He had such a hunger for more that he gave himself earnestly to the secret place five hours a day for two years. He wasn't satisfied. Seymour asked God, "What else can I do?" The Spirit spoke to him and said, "Pray More." Seymour then changed his five hours a day to now seven hours a day. He continued in secret prayer seven hours a day for another year and a half. The result was a glorification of the Spirit, not just in Seymour, but one that would have a historic impact called the Azusa Street Revival.

John G. Lake said of Seymour’s hunger, “God had put such a hunger into that man’s heart that when the fire of God came it glorified him. I do not believe any other man in modern times had a more wonderful deluge of God in his life than God gave to that dear fellow, and the glory and power of a real Pentecost

swept the world. He [Seymour] preached to my congregation of ten thousand people when the glory and power of God was upon his spirit, and men shook and trembled and cried to God. God was in him.” “Seymour, I want you to pray more.” The Spirit is longing for an unbroken communion with this man! What an honor and permission!

Paul’s release of hunger.

12Not that I have already attained...I press on, that I may lay hold of that for which Christ Jesus has also laid hold of me [fullness of Paul’s destiny]...14I press toward the goal for the prize of the upward call [fullness of Paul’s destiny] of God in Christ Jesus. (Phil. 3:12-14)

As we hunger and thirst, we will embrace whatever it takes to experience more of God. As Bill Johnson prayed, “More of You at any cost.” We are pursuing a Person who releases righteousness in us and through us. Jesus is worthy of our efforts to press into God.

“Hunger is one of the most important signs of(continued)