As with the disciplines of Fasting and Simplicity, Solitude is the outward expression of an inward faith in the unseen yet truest and most affirmed reality: God is who He is. Solitude is one evidence of a transformed heart, rather than a mere recitation of facts like those above. If God exists and what He says is true, then I should feel quite secure to joyfully sacrifice my first-fruits on Him alone, in spite of any "lack" it seems to produce. If our lives have no outward expression in response to our "belief", then it is fair to say that our belief is weak at best, if not entirely absent and false.

Isolation, autonomy and individualism are extreme distortions of Solitude in the same order that asceticism is a perversion of Simplicity and anorexia a shattered mirror of Fasting. The purpose of the spiritual disciplines is synonymous with the Christian walk - an outward, ongoing process to love God and neighbors.

Persist, persist, persist! Seek God as a real Person, and relentlessly pursue understanding of His promises through the Word. There is no one-time, instant, magical "cure" for what ails or disappoints you spiritually. It is through pain, process, discipline and endurance that you grow. Don't groan, take great joy!