Feast of Sts Simon & Jude

In luke’s gospel we hear jesus spends a night in pray with His Father. He does so because he’s making
the all important decision- of calling twelve from among his disciples. Jesus did not just pray all night.
He quite intentionally left the crowds and even his own followers in order to be alone. At other times in
his ministry, most notably in the Garden of Gethsemane, Jesus took others along with him when he
prayed.

God created us to be in community. We are meant to live our lives with others, serving them and
growing in relationship with them. But there are times, as Jesus shows us by his example, when we need
to break away from others for a while in order to be alone with God. Solitude, of course, isn't really
"solo time," since God is with us. But being away from other people for a while can help us to quiet our
souls so that we might pray more honestly and listen to God more attentively.

When do we experience true solitude? When are we able to get away from the frenzy of life in order to
be alone with God? Our gospel challenges us, not only to pray more deeply, but also to be more
intentional about getting away from the demands of life in order to be alone with God. You know how
easy it is for me to think this is important, but not to do anything about it. Help me, I pray, to be more
intentional and faithful about taking time away to be with you.