a deserted place

“Very early in the morning, while it was still dark, He got up, went out, and made His way to a deserted place. And He was praying there.” Mark 1:35

Jesus is our prime example. We are to love as He loved, obey as He obeyed, serve as He served, and forgive as He forgave. That is why I think this verse and others like it hold special significance for us as Christians. They are such a brief part of the narrative in the gospels that it would be easy to miss them. Still here they are pointing us to our Savior who sought out time alone to pray. Isn’t that significant! God’s Son, the Holy One, more than once during His time on earth got away from everyone, sought out a deserted place, and spent time talking to God! I suppose one of the reasons this surprises us is because we think that Jesus shouldn’t have needed that. Surely God in the flesh would be ’above’ such things with unlimited recourses did He really have to spend time in prayer? The Bible tells us so little about this habit of Our Lord that we really do not know the exact why behind it. Did He ’need’ to do this or did it spring from His great love for His Father, or both? If it was important for us to know God would have spelled it out clearly, the important thing is in the powerful testimony it is for us as His followers.

From several of the keys words in these verses I imagine that these times Jesus spent away from everyone were something more than just our every day time in the Word. We do need those daily times and they are of inestimable value but here I think is something different. Jesus went to remote places, climbed mountains (Mark 6:46), found somewhere He could be alone. There is not an indication that this was something He did daily. I don’t know about you but climbing a mountain or finding a spot where I am truly alone everyday is definitely not a possibility for me, but it is a practice I benefit from on occasion. Jesus withdrew when He heard of John the Baptist’s execution (Matthew 14:13), after feeding the five thousand (Matthew 14:23), and before moving on in His ministry to preach in Galilee (Luke 4:42). I think that here too we can learn from our Lord much about when we need to spend extra time with Him. Finding such a time or place may not always be easy but again we turn to God as are example. Some of the description in the verse I quoted at the beginning of this post cut deep into my heart; “very early in the morning” “while it was still dark”. All I can say is that sounds a little painful! I should not shrink however at giving up a little time or early morning sleep to be with my God! And I have a feeling that once the sacrifices are made and you are in that remote place - in truth before the throne of God - the treasures to be found there are of far far greater value!

So do you feel God calling you to a deserted place just to pray and be alone with Him? If so trust Him to provide a way. You may not have a mountain available but there are alone places closer to home that God can supply. Perhaps your mountain could be a barn loft, or the middle of your woods, or even your own home when everyone else is away. I would challenge you, my sisters, to seek out such a time with God ’s help in the weeks to come. Take advantage of the stillness to lay your heart before your Father and to tell Him about your burdens. I nearly always run out of time before I run out of things to say to God. What would it be like to pray until you’re empty, or rather to pray until you have exchanged every burden of your heart for His peace and joy? We put such a low value on prayer in the church today, but should we? Jesus didn’t.