Bonhoeffer cautions that if one feels he
cannot be alone, beware of community. Man can only do harm to himself and to
the community if he ignores the place of solitude before God.
Alone
you stood before God when He called you; alone you had to answer that call;
alone you had to struggle and pray; and alone you will die and give account to
God. You cannot escape from yourself; for God has singled you out. To refuse
solitude is to reject the conditions of life and the circumstance under which
we were called.
God
did not call Moses when he was with the crowd in Pharaoh’s palace. God called
Moses when he was alone at the backside of the desert with the sheep of Jethro.
God
did not choose David when he was with his father and brothers. God called for
him when he was alone with his father’s sheep. The Lord spoke to his servant
Samuel to anoint David before his father and his siblings. Listen to the voice
of God when you are in solitude with Him.
