Pulling Away from the Crowd

"After he had dismissed them, he went up on a mountainside by himself to pray. When evening came, he was there alone..." -Matthew 14:23

Life really does get crazy sometimes. TV, radio, text messaging, phone calls, Twitter, Facebook, the Internet — there is so much to keep up with in our post-modern society!

But, every now and again, we need to have time to be "away from the crowd."

Jesus had just finished feeding the crowd of five thousand with only five loaves and two fish. After everybody was fed, Jesus insisted that His disciples get into the boat they were using to head home as He sent away the multitude of five thousand. It was then that He went up on a mountainside by Himself to pray.

It is interesting to note that after Jesus' solitary time on the mountain praying, He performed a miracle in which the disciples really recognized that He was the Son of God. “Then the disciples worshiped him. ‘You really are the Son of God!’ they exclaimed.” (v. 33)

It is so essential that we take time aside to spend quiet time to pray and be with our God. This "inner court" time fuels us for the "outer court" ministry where people can discover that Jesus really is the author of our faith, and He can be the Lord and Savior of their lives.

Have you pulled away from the crowd lately? Set some time aside to be with Him. Our time with God one of the biggest weapons we have against the kingdom of darkness in this day and age.

Related resource: The Complete C. S. Lewis Signature Classics: Boxed Set

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