“ALONE” with HIM…

There has to be some “alone” time when you bask in the Spirit of God, where you can feel His presence and thrill in the Spirit to the sound of His voice, His still small voice, speaking directly to you, to your heart.

My wife and I love that “quiet time” in the morning. I call it “getting up before the devil”, –simply because in the early hours I don’t have any cares, any business, nor any problems to attend to. I purposely draw out my “to do” list the night before, and I won’t look at it until I’ve totally connected with the Lord, for an hour or two, and sometimes four hours. We get our inner strength from those early morning hours when we are “alone” with Him.

Jesus was very dependent also on those early morning hours for personal private “alone time” with His Father. “Very early in the morning, while it was still dark, Jesus got up, left the house and went off to a solitary place, where He prayed” (Mk 11:35).

The Psalmist David speaks so beautifully of his love for this time alone with God.  “One thing have I desired of the Lord, that will I seek after; that I may dwell in the house of the Lord all the days of my life, to behold the beauty of the Lord, and to enquire in His temple” (Ps 27:4). “My soul longeth, yea, even fainteth for the courts of the Lord: my heart and my flesh cries out for the living God” (Ps 84:2). “Blessed is the man whom Thou choosest, and causest to approach unto Thee, that he may dwell in Thy courts: we shall be satisfied with the goodness of Thy house, even of Thy holy temple” (Ps 65:4). “As the hart panteth after the water brooks, so panteth my soul after Thee, O God” (Ps 42:1).

Back then, they had to go into the “temple” to meet with God, but Jesus said, “God is a Spirit and they that worship Him must worship Him in Spirit and in truth” (Jn4:24,). We are the temple. He lives in us. 

Without that quiet time alone with the Father, in close and intimate relationship with Him, we lose the power that we so desperately need to fulfill His will on a daily basis! Our life is oh so demanding, and we must operate in His Spirit in order to be in tune and bear fruit.

We need Him in our relations with those we work with, those we meet; in making wise decisions; in overcoming difficulties, tests and trials; in ministering to and training others; in caring for our families and those we love; in keeping that strong confidence that we are a child of the Father; in growing in faith…and the list goes on!

All of the “cares of life” are demanding our attention, and attending to them all is necessary for the upkeep and smooth running of our life.  But if you run out of the oil of His Spirit, you simply will not be able to fulfill your responsibilities as He desires, in His way. You will become all black and smokey, like a wick that is not immersed in the oil!  You must stay soaked in the oil, continually, so that you (your efforts) burn brightly by His Spirit. When you fill up, you will be like Mary, sitting at Jesus’ feet listening to His voice (Luke 10:39). You will hunger and thirst for righteousness, and you will be filled (Matthew 5:6).

It is not possible to get “alone” with the Lord (to where you are really filled up) when you are constantly “on the run”, or listening to the many voices around you and your mind is full of everything that has to be taken care of.  Yes, there are times when, in the midst of daily business, that you must shoot up a prayer, or ask the Lord a question in order to know “which foot to dance on”, but you aren’t going to be able to get those quick “orders” and the immediate guidance you need there and then, if you are not familiar with His voice!

And the only way to become familiar with His voice and leading is to spend quiet time with Him alone. Remember, it’s not a religion, it’s a relationship that we cultivate. Alone time with God is about just that – relating to God. You can study the Bible backwards and forwards and still have no relationship with Him.

There are so many examples in the Old Testament when people spent time alone with God for their inner strength and wisdom, but in the New Testament also, Jesus Himself spent time alone with God (Matthew 14:13; Mark 1:35; Mark 6:45-46; Mark 14:32-34; Luke 4:42; Luke 5:16; Luke 6:12; Luke 9:18; John 6:15). Jesus actually instructed us to pray to God alone at times: “When you pray, go into your room, close the door and pray to your Father, who is unseen” (Matthew 6:6).

Jesus’ relationship with His Father was very strong.  He regularly answered His accusers with, “I only do what I see My Father do and I only say what My Father says” (Jn 5:19). His time alone was very important because of the need to be close to His source. “And when He had sent them away, He departed into a mountain to pray” (Mk 6:46). “He went out into a mountain to pray, and continued all night in prayer to God” (Lk 6:12).

We will not be able to do the Master’s work without the Master’s power. Spend time “alone” with Him. Let Him light up your candle first thing in the morning.

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Here are more verses to take to heart, about the importance of “connecting”:

“My voice shalt Thou hear in the morning, O Lord, in the morning will I direct my prayer unto Thee, and I will look up” (Ps 5:3).

“I prevented the dawning of the morning, and cried: I hoped in Thy Word” (Ps 119:149).

“I love them that love Me; and those that seek Me early shall find Me” (Pr 8:17).

“Arise, cry out in the night..pour out thine heart like water before the face of the Lord” (Lam 2:19).

“In the night His song shall be with me, and my prayer unto the God of my life” (Ps 42:8).

“My soul shall be satisfied as with marrow and fatness; and my mouth shall praise Thee with joyful lips: when I remember Thee upon my bed, and meditate on Thee in the night watches” (Ps 63:5,6).

“With my soul have I desired Thee in the night yea, with my spirit within me will I seek Thee early” (Is 26:9).