Solitude

There is a general lack of true solitude in our culture. We have become so artificially connected to each other that we can hardly stand to be alone. Cell phones, the Internet, laptop computers, pagers, Black Berrys, and many, many more such items keep us only a few button-pushes away. We don’t know what to do with solitude, so we medicate ourselves to avoid the silence.

Mark 1:29-35

“As soon as they left the synagogue, they went with James and John to the home of Simon and Andrew. 30 Simon's mother-in-law was in bed with a fever, and they told Jesus about her. 31 So he went to her, took her hand and helped her up. The fever left her and she began to wait on them. 32 That evening after sunset the people brought to Jesus all the sick and demon-possessed. 33 The whole town gathered at the door, 34 and Jesus healed many who had various diseases. He also drove out many demons, but he would not let the demons speak because they knew who he was. 35 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.”

I tend to be a person who needs solitude. There are many people who don’t. A good chunk of my time is spent with people, and while I love being with them, after a while I begin to feel the need to recharge. It is good to know that even Jesus had this need. When the entire city of Capernaum showed up at Peter and Andrew’s doorstep, Jesus was confronted with a multitude of desperation. There were people with chronic illnesses and other debilitating physical problems, and there were also those who were demon-possessed. It would seem likely that Jesus spent a large amount of time helping these people. I can picture a helicopter’s view of Peter and Andrew’s house surrounded by a huge crowd, all clamoring to see Jesus. I can imagine Jesus’ exhaustion and need to refuel. The original text states that Jesus rose early in the night and went to a desert place to pray. The desert was considered to be a lonely place, where spirits haunted and death was always a possibility. It is interesting that Jesus withdrew to a place of loneliness. How and what He prayed we cannot know, but I can imagine it had something to do with the tremendous burden of time and space, sin and salvation.