The Power of Solitude
Kamaria Byrd reflects on breaking past the ‘four walls’
Photo: Karim Manjra
During this Lenten season, the Lord is calling us to do something different, something strange, or, as my pastor Rev. Charles Wilkins would say, “something peculiar.” The church has been talking about “doing church” differently and doing ministry differently, and now God has given us this unique opportunity to actually do it.
It is no coincidence that the spread of a pandemic, forcing us to practice “social distancing,” is taking place during the time when we are supposed to be drawing closer to Him. Many connect Lent to Jesus’ time in the wilderness by himself (see Luke 4:1-2). Going through this season was not one in which Jesus’ focus was on being in the temple with his disciples--in other words, “going to church.” It was about being uncomfortable, being tested, and being solely focused on his relationship with God.
This is exactly where many of us are right now, feeling tested, and uncomfortable.
But the good news is what happens when you return from the wilderness, from the solitude. The text states that when Jesus returned from this solitude, he came back “…filled with the Holy Spirit’s power” (see Luke 4:14-15).
I do not believe this season of solitude is about fear; this season of solitude is about power.
Furthermore, the Lord sometimes does for us what we cannot do for ourselves. We have now, for the most part, been forced into solitude by being forced to stay in our homes. Typically, we find ourselves doing so much running around, that we don’t have time for God. Now, God is not giving us a choice. For the first time in my lifetime, the typical distractions have been canceled: social events, conferences, sports. But because of this, we have been given a unique opportunity to truly remain focused on God.
I have noticed that the church often talks about being “more than the four walls,” and now the Lord is putting us to the test. Are we really “more than the four walls”? Even when the CDC, and the federal and local governments, tell us it is dangerous and potentially fatal to participate in large gatherings, we are still unable to loosen the grip of needing and wanting to cling to our building.
I believe that the true church is beyond the four walls. Although Jesus is recorded as frequenting the temple, he also spent a lot of time outside of the church and in private homes (see Matthew 8:14).
I believe that, ideally, God wants us in community with one another, but there are seasons when we need to be alone, in spaces away from one another.
I believe that there are times when God wants us all to himself. The world, the church, our jobs, our schools, our extracurricular activities have had us for too long. He wants His time now.
Like us, Jesus’ disciples were busy healing and feeding people. But notice that, at times, Jesus wanted His disciples to separate from the people so that they could eat (see Mark 6:30-32). During this coronavirus quarantine, stop to consider this question: “Are you giving yourself time to eat?”
Jesus himself often retreated to “a lonely place to pray” (see Mark 1:35, Luke 6:12, Matthew 26:36-4, to name a few). In the Old Testament, Moses’ encounters with God typically happened while he was separated from everyone else. Many of the prophets went off to be by themselves, as well.
In this enforced time of separation and solitude, determine to make it “work together for the good…”
A season of solitude can prove to be spiritually nourishing.
