"He took them with Him and they withdrew
by themselves." Luke 9:10
Time alone daily with the Lord is vital to our
spiritual growth. It's been said that one quiet hour of prayer will
often yield greater results than many days spent in the company of
others. So, why do we skip our alone time? Why to we get busy or become
distracted with our duties and skimp on our devotions? Well… simply
because it yields so much fruit that the enemy will stop at nothing
to detour us.
Spending time alone daily with the Lord is also
a discipline. It should be a habit that we form and don't ever veer
from. It should be like brushing our teeth…we
never leave home without doing it! If Jesus felt it necessary
to teach His disciples to withdraw for time then we should find it
necessary. Even Jesus spent time alone with the Father. Spending time
alone with the Lord each day brings much needed strength. It also
brings clarity and perspective throughout our day. As we seek the Lord in the
Word and prayer we are filled afresh with His Spirit that we may go about our
day in the Spirit and not in our flesh. We also are not as easily overwhelmed through our day if we first spend time with the Lord. We are more patient with
our children, our husbands, and others. We are more loving, kind and
sensitive to the leading of the Spirit. We also have some new manna to give out
to someone we may need to encourage during the day at
the grocery store, on the phone or at work. The benefits are unending.
It's in our times of devotions that we are built up and ready for the battle that we may unexpectedly have to face during the day. It's were we suit up for battle…put on our running shoes… get our boxing gloves on…and sharpen our sword! Without this sort of daily preparation we are left unprotected, untrained and uneducated. We are sitting ducks! All the enemy needs is a little foot hold and he's in. He doesn't need a lot of room…just a little, and he can move freely without our knowledge seeking to zero in on his target and take us down.
One pastor said; “We can be tired, weary and emotionally distraught, but after spending time alone with God, we find that He injects into our bodied energy, power and strength.” David describes this sort of emotion in Psalm 73 saying in verse 2; "My foot nearly slipped, I was envious and arrogant." And in verse 16; "When I thought how to understand this, it seemed to me a wearisome task..." But everything changed for David in the next verse..."until I went into the sanctuary of God; then I discerned their end." David was beside himself with how to deal with his enemy. He was tired and weary and frustrated...and yet, when he went in to the Lord...everything changed. His focus switched from himself to His God. He gained discernment into his situation and was given immediate perspective. He saw their end and recognized God's hand of protection upon him. David went from agony to glory in seconds. This is what time alone with God can do. We must guard it...protect it...and fight for it! We must run to our sanctuary and allow God to speak to us, strengthen us and comfort us. He is a very present help in time of need. Go into your sanctuary today and let the Lord strengthen your weary soul. Let Him lift your burden and make it light. Let Him hold your hand and lead you the way you should go. Let Him comfort your hurting heart. He is waiting for you today...beckoning you...Come!
It's in our times of devotions that we are built up and ready for the battle that we may unexpectedly have to face during the day. It's were we suit up for battle…put on our running shoes… get our boxing gloves on…and sharpen our sword! Without this sort of daily preparation we are left unprotected, untrained and uneducated. We are sitting ducks! All the enemy needs is a little foot hold and he's in. He doesn't need a lot of room…just a little, and he can move freely without our knowledge seeking to zero in on his target and take us down.
One pastor said; “We can be tired, weary and emotionally distraught, but after spending time alone with God, we find that He injects into our bodied energy, power and strength.” David describes this sort of emotion in Psalm 73 saying in verse 2; "My foot nearly slipped, I was envious and arrogant." And in verse 16; "When I thought how to understand this, it seemed to me a wearisome task..." But everything changed for David in the next verse..."until I went into the sanctuary of God; then I discerned their end." David was beside himself with how to deal with his enemy. He was tired and weary and frustrated...and yet, when he went in to the Lord...everything changed. His focus switched from himself to His God. He gained discernment into his situation and was given immediate perspective. He saw their end and recognized God's hand of protection upon him. David went from agony to glory in seconds. This is what time alone with God can do. We must guard it...protect it...and fight for it! We must run to our sanctuary and allow God to speak to us, strengthen us and comfort us. He is a very present help in time of need. Go into your sanctuary today and let the Lord strengthen your weary soul. Let Him lift your burden and make it light. Let Him hold your hand and lead you the way you should go. Let Him comfort your hurting heart. He is waiting for you today...beckoning you...Come!