Why We Must Come Away

We all need to come away with Jesus.

In the Bible, the Son of God often called His disciples to spend time alone with Him (Mk. 6:31), and He is still calling.

In our busy and distracted world, it’s more important than ever that we give ourselves time to rest in His presence.

Resting is good for us. It’s part of God’s design to restore our hearts.

Rest is so important that God built it into creation (Gen. 2:2–3). He set the seventh day apart as holy—a day to rest and not work.

There’s something about daily life that makes this hard to do. As believers, we all need to find time for worship, Scripture study, and prayer, but our culture wants to keep us busy and distracted.

And yet, the Lord beckons us to come away (Song 2:10). He invites us to rest and journey with Him, to go somewhere that we might not in our daily lives—even if we are seeking Him regularly.

Hebrews 4:11 says we are to “strive to enter” God’s rest (ESV). This may sound strange—how can you strive, and yet be at rest? Aren’t they opposite?

What this scripture is saying is that rest isn’t natural. We have to work against our culture and our flesh to enter the place of rest. It won’t happen unless we pursue it, unless we make a priority of setting apart time to commune with the Lord.

The good thing is the Bible tells us the Lord “is a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him” (Heb. 11:6), so He will help us do this.

Taking time to be with God—on a daily, weekly, and even longer basis—is something He’ll reward. Spending a few days at a conference or retreat can inspire us to live wholeheartedly for God when we’re back in daily life.

We can receive rich deposits of knowledge, intimacy, and God’s love by seeking Him in a focused, intentional way. He wants to take us deeper!

That’s why conferences like Onething exist. It’s our belief—and experience—that the Lord will respond to faith, touching the lives of those who come with encounter, equipping, and meaningful experience.

Do you want a fresh touch from God? Do you desire more dedication to prayer, greater anointing for ministry, and to live an undistracted life? Take four days this December to join 20,000 young adults in focused pursuit of Jesus.

Join Reinhard Bonnke, Mike Bickle, Francis Chan, Allen Hood, Daniel Kolenda, Misty Edwards, and Bethel Music’s Steffany Gretzinger and Amanda Cook, among others, for anointed worship, teaching, and ministry in the power of the Spirit.

Come away from distraction and rest in God’s presence. Experience Him at Onething 2015!

Adam Wittenberg

position

A Detroit native who was raised in Vermont and Connecticut, Adam worked as a newspaper journalist until 2012, when he moved to Kansas City to complete the Intro to IHOPKC internship. Afterwards, he earned a four-year certificate in House of Prayer Leadership from IHOPU and is now on full-time staff in the Marketing department at IHOPKC. He also serves in the NightWatch (overnight prayer hours) and is active in evangelism. He, and his wife Stephany, have a vision to reach people everywhere with the good news of Jesus Christ.