Solitude With My Creator

“Come with me by yourselves to a quiet place and get some rest,” Jesus said to his disciples in Mark 6:31. Mark uses the word “apostle” in these verses.  As disciples, the twelve were learning, as apostles they would be missionaries and healers. Jesus knew they needed rest and renewal.

Jesus often went off alone to be with God. After he was baptized with the Holy Spirit, he went to the wilderness for forty days and then began his ministry. Moses was alone on the mountain for forty days before he received the tablets of the ten commandments to carry to the people. Elijah also went to the mountain for forty days before God appeared to him and gave him a mission to anoint two kings and a prophet for God’s purposes.

God calls each one of His children, not just those carrying commandments and anointing kings and prophets, to meet Him alone in a quiet place and receive His rest and direction. If I do not hear Him in the rush of my days, it’s not that God isn’t speaking to me in my busyness, it’s just that I am not listening. It helps me to have intention. When Jesus, Moses and Elijah set off alone to fast and pray, there was no mistaking their intentions. They were not multitasking for forty days, they had one objective—to seek God. I am a child of God, I need His healing restoration. I need His specific guidance. I need to be in solitude. I need His intimate presence.

But Jesus Himself would often slip away to the wilderness and pray.                      Luke 5:16