Read Psalm 27:8; Psalm 91:1
The psalmist said, "He who dwells in the shelter of the Most High will abide in the shadow of the Almighty" (Psalm 91:1).
Do you have a place of shelter where you seek only His face? Do you spend time in that secret place?
Have you given prayer the priority it deserves? And when you pray, do you remember that it is the Lord's face you seek?
It is possible to be engaged in the work of ministry, in the work of the church, yet be in secret very seldom. There is this great tendency to think our best work is done at our desk or on our feet...but it's really done on our knees.
It is easy to become so caught up in people's needs (which are endless and usually urgent) and to be so preoccupied with meeting those needs that we miss "the shelter of the Most High."
It is so easy to emphasize all the involvements of being with people, rather than being alone in a secret place with Him. And I do mean alone with God, as though there is not another care, another need, another person...only "the Almighty."
I have begun to realize the value of this. As a result of time invested in the secret place, we gain an invincible sense of God's direction and the reassurance of His hand on our lives, along with an increased sensitivity regarding iniquity in our lives.
Being alone with God is not complicated, but it is tough to maintain. Nevertheless, we need secrecy, especially in this hyperactive, noisy, busy world of ours.
Consider the beauty, the wonder, the magnificence, the awe-inspiring times of praise in the secret place! There is nothing to be compared to it. As great as corporate worship may be, with a magnificent pipe organ and full orchestra and a congregation singing at full volume, it cannot compare to the secret place where our best work is done and where God's best work is accomplished in us.
When Jesus was instructing His disciples regarding prayer, He said, "Pray to your Father who is in secret, and your Father who sees in secret will repay you" (Matthew 6:6).
Our best work is done on our knees.
Excerpted from Day by Day with Charles Swindoll, Copyright © 2000 by Charles R. Swindoll, Inc. (Thomas Nelson Publishers). All rights reserved worldwide. Used by permission.
