“And rising very early in the morning, while it was still dark, he departed and went out to a desolate place, and there he prayed.” (Mark 1:35 ESV)

There are times in our lives that are very dark.  A daughter dies at the hands of a gunman, a grandmother dies after an optional surgery, a young father is claimed by cancer, a son commits suicide, a job is taken, a reputation is sullied.  These are some examples, we all have our own.

What do you do when you find yourself in a dark place?

This verse from the Gospel of Mark is even more powerful in the original Greek. Verse 35 begins, “And rising up, still very early, very much in the night….”  When Jesus got up to pray that early morning, it was still very much in the night; it was a dark time.

So where does Jesus go at this dark time of the day?  A desolate place.  Jesus was not trespassing, this was public land; it wasn’t worth much of anything, shepherds might be able to feed a flock; a lone piece of vegetation here and there could be found.  The Son of God gets up in the pitch black and goes where no one wants to be and it is here that He has His conversation with His Father.

Do you ever feel like life is black?  Do you ever wonder why there is so little life in your day?  Do you ever feel like you are all alone?  Jesus did.

The Gospel of Mark zooms from one ministry event to the next.  Over and over again we see the word “immediately” in Mark.  Jesus is clear about His purpose, “Let us go on to the next towns, that I may preach there also, for that is why I came out.” (Mark 1:38 ESV)  In His preaching and teaching, Jesus knows that He will be walking in dry and desolate places as people come to Him with their hurts, their sickness and their sin.  Jesus knows that some will drink from the spring of living water He gives and Jesus knows that some will choose broken and dry cisterns instead.

It is interesting that the specific time of Jesus’ prayer is not recorded.  I think it would be tempting for believers to glorify this exact moment each day instead and lose the focus on the priority of prayer, which is that prayer should be a very real priority in our day.

Tomorrow when you get up, realize this- God has prepared good works in advance for you to do.  In preparation for your day, as you begin to sort out your schedule in your head and clarify your priority list for the day; take time to be in prayer.  Take time to talk with God about the things you expect to see and about the things which you will not know about until your day has come to a close.  Take time to pray for those you know who are in a dark place, those who feel that they are in a desolate place; God sent His Son to seek and to save those who are lost, wandering and feeling defeated by life.

The word for “rising” in Mark 1:35 is the word we get “resurrection” from.  The Book of Hebrews tells us that Jesus prayed with loud cries and moans for His Father to save Him from death and that His prayers were answered.  Jesus rises from the dark; He is life and He brings life to the desolate place.  Join Jesus in prayer as you start your day.