Being Alone

Being alone stinks!  I think we’ve all felt that.  The isolation, the fear, the anxiety that can creep in when you’re all by yourself can really do a number on you.  But what if I told you sometimes it’s good to be a alone.  Ok, that’s not totally fair because what I mean is, it’s good to be alone with God.  Being alone prepares us for ministry.  Now before you say you’re not in ministry, understand the Christian life is a life of ministry.  Jesus, right before He was going to start his three years of public ministry, got alone for 40 days and fasted and prayed.

Being alone makes us aware of God’s plan.  “Now in the morning, having risen a long while before daylight, He went out and departed to a solitary place; and there He prayed.” (Mark 1:35).  See, what happens here is Jesus gets alone and prays.  And then right after, “But He said to them, ‘Let us go into the next towns, that I may preach there also, because for this purpose I have come forth.” (Mark 1:38).  After being alone, Jesus feels this call to go to other places.  His ministry spread out.  Things were going so well, but He was called somewhere else.  Don’t get so caught up in where you’re at that you miss what God has next.

Being alone also prepares us to carry our cross.  Right before Jesus is going to face His death, He gets alone to pray.  “And He said, ‘Abba, Father, all things are possible for You.  Take this cup away from Me; nevertheless, not what I will, but what You will.’” (Mark 14:36).  In this moment, right before He is going to face the worst death imaginable, Jesus gets alone and cries out to God.  And in this moment where He is in such great distress He, He is also so close to God.  He calls Him “Abba”, or daddy.  God is going to ask us to do some hard things.  It’s part of the Christian life.  But when we take time to get alone with Him, He will be with us, and He will prepare us for that work.