Seeking Solitude

SEEKING SOLITUDE...
Earlier this summer, I heard a sermon on the 20th chapter of the book of Acts and my attention was drawn strangely to this small verse covered briefly in the sermon:
 
Acts 20:13 NIV
“We went on ahead to the ship and sailed for Assos, where we were going to take Paul aboard. He had made this arrangement because he was going there on foot.”
 
Paul had been sailing with Luke and other companions, but when he got to Troas he decided not to join them in sailing to Assos, which was ~20 mi south down the coast. The terrain between the two cities is mountainous and the walk would have been taxing. But, Luke records that this is what Paul had arranged. This was a planned solo venture by Paul on land while his fellow missionary associates sailed by ship. While Luke does not explain Paul's motivation for deciding to make this arrangement, Paul's decision does speak loudly. He likely needed to take some time for himself for some reason. If Paul was going to preach at a town along the way, he would have likely taken at least one co-worker with him, if not more. Thus, since he went alone and planned ahead of time to meet up with his group at Assos, there must have been a personal need he had to traverse the land by himself.
 
What became apparent from Paul's actions is that even the best leaders need time for their own journey of faith. Why Paul took the journey alone and what he did specifically on his 20 mi walk are unknown. He probably spent the time in prayer and meditation conversing with the Lord and re-charging himself spiritually. Maybe he needed to think some things over about the next stage of his ministry and inquire of the Lord about what to do. Regardless, whatever it was it was likely self-directed at his own needs in order to prepare him to keep going with his preaching ministry and serving God's people.
  
Everybody comes to that point when they have reached their limit and they just need some time to themselves. Christian leaders only have strength to give as they are strengthened by the Lord. But, we are all mortal and we all come to physical, mental, and emotional limits. Fortunately, the risen Lord Jesus and God suffer from no such mortal constraints and are not bound by the earthy frailties that plague us fallen creatures of the world. One day we too will inherit such glory, but for now we must deal with weak vessels (i.e. bodies) made from the earth.
 
Have you ever just felt overwhelmed by stress, anxiety, life circumstances, experiences, or anything else? I have found that finding solitude is the best first step toward relieving such burdens. When in solitude, I begin prayer and meditation. Sometimes the issues do not quickly leave my conscience or my soul remains heavy laden and I am found having to pray more earnestly or calm my spirit and to be more focused on meditating. In the end, talking with the Lord has never resulted with me being in worse shape than when I started. Sometimes the answer I understand from the Lord is not the one that I want (it rarely is because what I want is the easy way out and the easy way out by-passes the growing stage of the experience). When his answer is to be patient, it is hard to accept that as an answer. But, I have found that many times, the answer of being patient is given in order for us to realize that the true answer is simply God himself. The missing piece was that we thought something needed to happen, something needed to change, or we needed something, but all we really needed was to realize that God is with us and he is the answer we were overlooking all along but just didn't see it.
 
God has often used times of difficulty and trouble in my life to bring me closer to him, not by providing some supernatural answer to prayer in the form of altered circumstances or some sign or miracle. It has been to draw me nearer to him and to realize that he is all I need. I think we often get caught up in the circumstances of life and forget that they are all circumstantial, but God is eternal!
  
We replace in our minds he who never changes and is faithful in all his words with what is transient and changing and of no lasting consequence. Sure, this world is full of personal responsibilities in life and the needs of God's people, but those circumstances will come and go and receiving a miraculous answer to one is still just an answer to ONE problem. It is a wonderful answer and one worthy of singing praises to the Lord, but did we miss the more important lesson of growth that will carry us through the next thousand problems we will encounter in life?
 
Psalm 54:4 NIV
“Surely God is my help; the Lord is the one who sustains me.”
 
The God who created us is the same God who is the one who sustains us. Every moment of every day the Lord watches over us and gives us strength to keep going even when the going gets tough. He desires for us to come to him and to see him as the answer we need. He is everything and without him we have nothing.
   
Psalm 62:5 NIV
“Yes, my soul, find rest in God; my hope comes from him.”
 
When our hearts are restless only God can quiet the storm within us, only he can satisfy our longing for peace. If we are exhausted, he enlarges our capacity. If we are depleted, he is our destination. If we are broken, he is our healer. Physical sources may cover the issue momentarily, but the void returns and each time it is more devastating and destructive than the first time it surfaced. Our hope can never be found in anything this world has to offer. They can never replace the rest God offers. Our only true hope is found in him. My soul will find rest in God.