The Secret Place

Athletes of all disciplines who have their eye on the prize have to choose to prepare for many hours in order to achieve their goal. Torvill and Dean revealed that they rose as early as four o’clock in the morning to practise their ice skating before embarking upon their normal day’s work, in order to eventually obtain the trophy of their dreams.

Similarly, in our quest for success in the race of all time, our most important discipline is making time to meet each day with our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ. It’s when we enter into that secret closet that God communes with us, imparting His wisdom, knowledge and understanding through His Word. It’s there that the natural is permeated and saturated by the eternal! However, do we devote quality time to the Lord, or are we like the young man to whom God revealed that every morning he was dashing into his heavenly Father’s presence, sliding into the throne room on his knees, and after handing God his shopping list he immediately turned round and dashed out again to get on with his day?

Have you noticed that as soon as your eyes open in the morning the pressure is on and everything in your life conspires to keep you out of the secret place of communion with God? Without this communion, which empowers us for godly living, we soon find ourselves battling to accomplish through the flesh what prayer can accomplish in moments operating through God’s strength.

The most wonderful thing is that the more time we spend in His presence, the more we’ll want to, for this is where we are refreshed, restored, healed and encouraged. If Jesus Himself found it necessary to meet with His Father early each morning before embarking upon the pressures of the day…how much more should we!

As always the Lord comes to us with encouraging words. ‘There is a place by me’ (Exodus 33:21), and it’s the safest place on earth! Safe from the onslaught of enemy attacks and a refuge in the time of trouble. The Psalmist reminds us to dwell or ‘abide’ in that place and God has provided 24 hours every day in which we can ‘draw near’. Time spent with Jesus is never lost and when we focus on Him we are at our most productive. When Martha was stressed about work, Jesus said of Mary that ‘one thing was needful and she has chosen that good part’ (Luke 10:40-42). Can He say that of us today? Have we chosen the good part?

Prayer: Dear Heavenly Father, Please help us to put our relationship with You above all else, that we might not neglect that which is most important and needful, in Jesus’ name. Amen.