Jesus models the power of quiet retreat. He had just spent the evening, with the entire city gathered at the door of Simon and Andrew, healing the sick and casting out demon, but Mark records that, “very early in the morning, while it was still dark, [Jesus] got up, left the house, and went off to a solitary place, where he prayed.” He prioritized withdrawing from all noise to be with the Father. The psalmist echoes this need: “As a deer pants for flowing streams, so pants my soul for you, O God.” Solitude is not mere loneliness but an intentional stillness before God. In those quiet moments with Christ, we are renewed. Our soul thirsts for Him and longs for a peace that is only found in His nurturing love. Turning off the world’s distractions – even for a little while – lets us experience God’s overriding presence and peace. In Christ, we find that the silences of our lives are filled with His sustaining fellowship.