Withdrawing to pray.

Scripture:
But Jesus often withdrew to lonely places and prayed. – Luke 5:16

Observation:
Jesus would perform many miracles in the towns he visited. The news of them would spread and cause many people to search him out for a healing or deliverance. Because he would be overwhelmed by the sheer number of people, Jesus would need to steal away to a remote place in order to pray and spend time with his Father, God.

Application:
Do we steal away to a remote place to spend time in prayer? Or, do we allow people and things around us to divert us away from having a personal, intimate time of communion with our Father? We were created solely for the purpose of pleasing God. (See Revelation) God used to walk in the cool of the day with Adam and share their thoughts and just spend time together. This is why God created us – to be his constant companions and children. If we never spend time with him in prayer (which is just talking to him as you would any other person), then we would get to know him more and more on a daily basis. We’d learn of his kindness, love, passion, compassion, grace, mercy, anger, loyalty, jealousy, wrath, and all that is God. Learn to get into the regular practice of going to a remote (not around people) place to pray to God, as Jesus did.

Prayer:
Father, I can never spend enough time in prayer with you. There isn’t enough time in my life or in a day for me to spend in prayer with you, but I have made excuses over time of why I’ve not spent alone time with you. Forgive me for letting our time slip away from me. People and things have crept into my life that have stolen my time with you away from me. I’ve allowed this to happen. I desire my time with you above all others. You are the One who can do what no one else can truly do – love me for who I am. You are my Savior, Lord, and King. I pledge my allegiance to you, no one else. Give me a burning passion to seek the lonely, remote places to spend quiet time with you. May I grow in favor with you and men, as Jesus did. In Jesus’ name, Amen.