COMMUNION

A QUIET TIME, A QUIET PLACE

John 18:2 (NASB)

2 “Now Judas also, who was betraying Him, knew the place, for Jesus had often met there with His disciples.”

COMMUNION

Prayer is, above all else, communion with God. Mark’s gospel reveals that during His Gethsemane experience, Jesus entered into a time of honest, intimate fellowship with the Father (see Mark 14:32–36).

Mark 14:32-36 (NASB)

32 “They came to a place named Gethsemane; and He said to His disciples, "Sit here until I have prayed."

33 And He took with Him Peter and James and John, and began to be very distressed and troubled.

34 And He said to them, "My soul is deeply grieved to the point of death; remain here and keep watch."

35 And He went a little beyond them, and fell to the ground and began to pray that if it were possible, the hour might pass Him by.

36 And He was saying, "Abba! Father! All things are possible for You; remove this cup from Me; yet not what I will, but what You will.”

The very word He used, “Abba,” is one of tender endearment. Unlike the more formal word father, its equivalent in our culture today would be Daddy. This kind of intimate communion with the Father can only be developed through a consistent prayer life.

Two observations are in order here. First, it is foolish to seek counsel from people who do not themselves seek counsel from God. We tend to divide our lives into the secular and the spiritual. Secular matters include our finances or our job. Spiritual matters have to do with our relationship with the Lord. In secular matters, we normally do not consider the spiritual depth of the person from whom we seek advice. I know many Christians, for instance, who seek consultation regarding their finances from some of the most godless sources. On the other hand, they feel it is appropriate to seek counsel on spiritual matters only from people who are spiritually minded.

But God makes no such division between the secular and the spiritual. Our entire life is to be a spiritual offering to Him. Therefore, when we seek counsel, whatever the issue, we should consult people who appreciate and honor what God says in His Word and who as a habit converse with Him about the affairs of life.

Recently in a meeting with Dr. Solomon Owalabi in Washington, D.C. from Nigeria he shared this testimony about his wife: “My wife once asked our children’s pediatrician specific questions about his personal relationship with Christ. He was surprised at her queries. He just assumed she knew he was a church member and a true believer in Christ. He failed to see any relationship between his spiritual life and his ability to be a good physician for our children. My wife told him that she did indeed know he was a church member, but since he would be counseling her regarding the welfare of our children, she wanted to know more about his relationship with the Lord. In particular, she was interested in knowing just how often he sought the Lord’s wisdom regarding his patients. My wife is a wise woman of God.”

Second, it is equally important that we counsel others only after we have sought the counsel of the Lord. Often, we respond to people’s questions carelessly. With little thought or prayer, we tell them what we would do about the situation. But it is imperative for us to hear from God before dispensing advice to others.

After many years of pastoral counseling, I became discouraged at the realization that a small number of people consumed the major portion of my counseling time and seemed to make minimal progress. I finally realized how little prayer and thought I was giving to their problems. This brought about a significant change in my approach to counseling. Instead of giving immediate advice, I began to ask more questions about their situation and would then say, “Now that I have a grasp of the problems you are facing, I want to pray over this matter and seek the counsel of God through the Scriptures. When He gives me His answer, I will share with you what He has shared with me.”

The results amazed me. Those whom I counseled placed a greater value on the words I shared; and when they followed the counsel given, their lives were changed for the better. The reason for the difference was obvious: I was seeking the counsel of God before giving advice to others. This approach required that I spend more time in prayer each day. But after all, isn’t that a desired priority?