Jesus did Solitude#
Did Jesus ever make a mistake?
His brief season upon planet earth was punctuated in silence, devotion and prayerful solitude. A model we all would do well to heed.
Solitude is as much self-discovery as it is the window Heaven opens unto itself.
Both Mark and Luke, as they begin their Gospels record these words of God at Jesus' baptism, “You are my son whom I love, with you I am well pleased”. (Mark 1:11) Not only had Heaven identified Jesus to any bystanders, but The Father had also brought confirmation of Jesus' identity and belovedness to His one and only Son.
(Surely Jesus would recall these words of approving love frequently through the abuse, hatred and betrayal that lay ahead of Him for the next three years?)
It is Heaven's opinions of me alone that matters.
In an instant after His baptism Jesus is then driven by His Holy Spirit into the desert, that place so easily identified with solitude.
Jesus would then spend forty days of ever weakening strength and an unhindered time to ponder His Father's words as He prepared to fight satan.
While His body was becoming weaker, in solitude His resolve was gaining strength. Jesus chewed upon God's affirmations which spoke of His identity as both son and beloved.
For 40 days He is tempted to discount and negate this truth of who He is and who God is. (Sister Patty Fawkner)
Living in the shifting, suffering desert sands of solitude Jesus' learned to depend alone upon God and equally to resist satan. Stripped of all earthly scaffolds, in solitude His spirit was formed and His heart grew in steadfastness.
Solitude is the necessary liniment to the soul that permits God to speak, and me to then hear, learn and grow.
From the season of solitude far greater seasons come.
Today's Soul Snippet:
‘The garment of sackcloth and ashes always precedes the mantle of righteousness.
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ENJOY ~ St Benedict did Solitude, Solitude & Me and Exploring Solitude
#Inspired by Sister Patty Fawkner of the Good Samaritan Sisters