where's the angst for God?

this is a question i heard from matt chandler a while back. "where's the angst for God?" in other words, where's that deep longing?? where is that hunger and thirst for righteousness? where is that absolute need to see and touch God?? where is the yearning and the aching to be with the Father?

we know david was a man who was after God's own heart. we know the famous lines that now have been made into a song and even put on coffee mugs. "as the deer panteth for the water, so my soul longeth after thee..." it's beautiful. but how often have we overlooked those lines and thought, "how nice. david longs for God as a deer longs for water." and leave it at that? where's the passion? where's the zeal? where's the desperation?? here's the passage in some more context:

1 As the deer pants for streams of water,
so my soul pants for you, O 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 men 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 with the multitude,
leading the procession to the house of God,
with shouts of joy and thanksgiving
among the festive throng.

5 Why are you downcast, O my soul?
Why so disturbed within me?
Put your hope in God,
for I will yet praise him,
my Savior and

6 my God.

My soul is downcast within me;
therefore I will remember you
from the land of the Jordan,
the heights of Hermon—from Mount Mizar.

7 Deep calls to deep
in the roar of your waterfalls;
all your waves and breakers
have swept over me.

8 By day the Lord directs his love,
at night his song is with me—
a prayer to the God of my life.

9 I say to God my Rock,
“Why have you forgotten me?
Why must I go about mourning,
oppressed by the enemy?”

10 My bones suffer mortal agony
as my foes taunt me,
saying to me all day long,
“Where is your God?”

11 Why are you downcast, O my soul?
Why so disturbed within me?
Put your hope in God,
for I will yet praise him,
my Savior and my God.

i read this and i see so much more than a cliche line strewn across calendars and coffee mugs. i see a man in desperation in need of His God! he's crying his heart out to see the Lord! his soul pants, needs, cannot live without God! that's how much he needs Him! he goes on to say, "my tears have been my food day and night while men say to me all day long, 'where is your God?'" this man is broken. this man has been crying nonstop. he hasn't a friend in the world. and he knows the only person who can satisfy is God.

are we ever this desperate for God? are we ever so in need of Him that we cry out for Him? i mean, like, literally cry out with everything that we have for Him? it seems like most of the time we stuff down our emotions with other things when we're in trouble. we stuff down our depression and anxiety with food or busying ourselves with work. we stuff down the tears and emotions with laughing and joking and leave the problem unsolved inside of us. we stuff down the frustration and anger ignoring the problem and living our own lives. we stuff down shame and regret by changing the subject and running away. rarely do we say, "God! i need you so much right now! this thing has got my heart wrecked! everything inside me is broken! please, please, please come to me!" we seem to fill ourselves up with anything but God. the one person who can lift our burdens from us and help us deal with the issue. where's the angst for God? where's the constant longing for the Holy Spirit to be working in our lives because we know we can't do this life without Him? is it because we're not willing to give Him that place in our lives? is it because we don't believe that He's that strong? or is it because He just falls behind all of the other alternatives?