“EREMOS” : In the Quiet.

“In the morning when I rise, Give me Jesus.”

Yes. Give me Jesus. How I wish this longing was conscientiously reflected in our actions every waking day. In the hustle and bustle of life, we reach out for phones and relish the thought of being first on the updates more  than seeking nourishment for our souls in the secret place. Ravi Zachari (His soul rest in Peace), an instrumental teacher whose teachings continue and will continue to impact our lives knew how crucial this is when he said . “The greatest battle you’ll ever face is keeping your appointment with God. Keep it or every other battle will become bigger.”

We are currently in an era where a simple post of a verse on an Instagram story  is meant to signify that we have had a dose of Jesus. While I am not against this, we miss the potential of God’s power and rob ourselves of access to the spiritual dimension that is as a result of lingering and losing ourselves in the place of stillness.

While there are arguably many reasons as to why I could encourage you to be diligent and deliberate in your quiet time, I’m inclined to make reference to the one person we all want to be like- Jesus. Yes , Jesus had a quiet time. He was always intent in making sure that no matter how busy life got (having crowds follow Him and the lined up queues seeking healing), He had to make time to meet with the father. If Jesus had a quiet time , a solitary place He went to, what makes us the exception? Needless to say, it wasn’t as glamorous as we have it now where it encompasses views, coffee (or tea) a dozen highlighters or a CMA Journal (shameless plugging is allowed lol) . In the inclusion of preference we have demeaned and disregarded the core essence of time alone with God; which simply put; is the exhaling of all our burdens and toxicity that may have found room in our hearts and inhaling His love and mercy. It is in the quiet that we allow our souls to receive nourishing from it’s sustainer (God) 

Is there a specific time ? Many would say No and while there is an inkling of truth, I think that the lack of structure can sometimes contribute to our inconsistency. It isn’t about getting time but making time. What you fail to commit to, you easily pass off. Mornings are a great time to enjoy the quiet. “I am not a morning person. I have too much to do in the morning” ..you may groan and protest but the truth is there is always time. It comes in the form of little sacrifices like sleeping a little earlier and giving up that TV show, It means waking up 30 minutes earlier before your workout session begins. We include so many things in our morning routine and forget that which matters most. This is not to say that other times are invalid but setting your face on God in the morning provides ground for continuous fellowship throughout the day. You get to listen to Him before the noises of the world come streaming in and when it eventually does you are armed with God’s truth and nothing can faze you. #WordBeforeWorld is a hashtag I live by and I invite you to do the same. Don’t  reverse it and live from  #WorldbeforeWord.

“Now when it was day, He departed and went to a deserted place.”(Luke 4:42)  “So He Himself often withdrew into the wilderness and prayed.”(Luke 5:16)  Now when He had come down from the mountain (Matthew 8:1) ” “He departed from there by boat to a deserted place by Himself” (Matthew 14:13) “..He went up to the mountain by Himself to pray” (Matthew 14:23)

I could go on and on to highlight how Jesus prioritized this sacred time but my favorite has been (Mark 1:35) which is the backbone of my daily seeking, as well as what inspired my rhythm “Now in the morning, having risen a long while before daylight, He went out and departed to a solitary place and there He prayed.” He knew what was in store during the day, the way people would want to hang around Him , the tasks He had to do that would be impossible without the infilling and refreshing from the secret place. From the place of prayer, Jesus knew He would get direction, perspective, affirmation and He would be empowered to continue with His earthly ministry. Mark Batterson said ” knowing that you have too much to do should inspire you to pray even more” and yet we often use the excuse of daily life hustles as reasons for not communing.

Eremos refers to the quiet, the secret place, the wilderness, the solitary- Strongs Concordance. We read through the gospels rejoicing over all the miracles and yet all the same missing out on what matters most- the lifestyle that is lived by Jesus. I used to ask What did Jesus do? But now I ask How did Jesus live? . Guess where it starts from and revolves around? In the eremos. It’s in the how of Jesus that I find my structure.

You can’t get deep with God on the run, fitting Him into the cracks of your day but you can enjoy continuous fellowship. If you want to walk in prayer all day, linger in prayer in quiet communion.

 Set your systems in place.

Everyone has a pick me up when they are feeling low, unmotivated, tired or just in a “bleeeh” state… It’s a far fetched analogy but Daniel 6:10 is my pick me up. This verse gives me so much life and anytime I attempt to snooze or neglect my secret place . Aside from the results that came from this prayer (not being eaten in the den) , what struck my heart the most wasn’t just that Daniel prayed. It was that he prayed as was his custom. Those little four words messed me up (in a transformative way) till date. As was his custom, it wasn’t just at a time of tragedy, it wasn’t just because he was free...as was his custom.

I am not making this up I promise “…he went home, in his upper room, with his windows open toward Jerusalem, he knelt down on his knees three times that day , prayed and gave thanks before his God, as was his custom since early days. NKJV (..he continued to pray just as he had always done MSG,NLT) 

“My voice you shall hear in the morning O Lord. In the morning I will direct it to you and I will look up.” Psalms 5:7

I will lay the pieces of my life at your altar every morning and wait for your fire to fall upon my heart. Psalms 5:3.

 “The first appointment of your day should always be with God. First on the calendar where He belongs. It is not the sort of commitment one compromises. It is the start of an organized day, an organized life and an organized private world. ” Gordon McDonald. Quit compromising it for a quick text or a quick peek in your Instagram likes. Don’t compromise it for anything! As my friend Winnie once said, if you are not full of the word, you are full of the world. Choose the former.

Can you commit to letting your voice be heard? To letting your heart be ministered to daily? To letting God refresh and nourish your soul? Can you? In writing this, I hope to invite you into the path of consistent abiding and dwelling in the secret place because there are great rewards.

You are light and you are so loved. Stay anchored and keep His light shining through.