Worth Repeating - June 15, 2017

Mark 1: 35-37 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. Simon and his companions went to look for him, and when they found him, they exclaimed, “Everyone is looking for you!”

Jesus did not try to do it by himself. Why should you?*

Rather than allowing himself to be consumed with meeting people’s needs, Jesus maintained a balance between serving people and spending time with his Father.* He focused on doing the will of his Father and not on what others expected of him.*

I have read that Jesus spent 50% of his time in solitude with his Father. What was he doing? Praying, of course. What was he praying for? Surely he prayed for the lost souls that he was sent to minister to. Did he also pray for strength to resist temptation? What tempted him?  What else was he doing during his time alone with God? Was he preparing his lessons/sermons? Did he just take time to be still and know God?

Time spent in meditation puts us at risk of appearing to be wasting time that could be spent in actual ministry work. The source that claimed Jesus spent 50% of his time in solitude with God also published the following stats: 40% of his time was spent training the twelve apostles (i. e., “discipling”); 10% of his time was spent in active “ministry.” Whether the data is accurate or not, Jesus set an example for us in prioritizing our time. Time spent in communication with the Father is never wasted.

All solitude and no service equals selfishness. Some solitude and some service, however, equals perspective.*