Soul Care Part 2: SolitudeSample

If Jesus Needed it, so do you!

Rest, pray, and hear from God. This is the purpose of solitude. Throughout the gospels we see moments when Jesus got away alone, or with his disciples. Sometimes it was directly after a great movement of healings and other miracles. Other times it was in preparation for the crowds He was about to minister to. It’s worth noting that Jesus went up on a mountain and prayed all night before naming the twelve apostles. And don’t let this get past you, Jesus had to be very disciplined about his solitude! People were constantly pursuing Him, so He did things like get up before dark and climb a mountain, or He would find some other desolate place.

But this is Jesus, God the Son. He is the one who created all things. How is it that He needed to rest, or set aside time to pray and hear? This may be hard to understand, but one thing is clear, if Jesus needed times of solitude, then so do we. What if we pursued hearing from the Father like Jesus did? What if we wanted to be sure that every word that came from our mouths was a result of meeting with God? What do you think would happen if we also did whatever it took to find solitude before we moved into action?

Ask Yourself:

- What practices in your life demonstrate that you value hearing from God?

- Where will you go for solitude?

- When will you go?

*Remember, solitude does not have to be complicated. Solitude could mean a whole day on an actual mountain, but more often it will be finding a half-hour of quiet space in your own home or nearby park.

Pause to Pray:

Holy God, please increase my desire for times to be filled by you…

Take the Next Step:

-Make a plan for solitude: Where will you go? When will you go? Try to go for at least two hours of rest, reading, prayer, and worship.