Center Church Dubai

I still remember that night.

I heard a distant sound that had become wearily familiar. As a weapon was being disarmed at a distance, I could sense a heaviness in my chest. It had been a while since I had slept well - waking to the sounds of the night sky had become an everyday reality. With no one at home to share the emotions with, I could sense an acute sense of loneliness creeping in…again.

My flatmate had just moved out and I had the house to myself. “It takes a while to settle into the silence,” I often tell my friends.

But that night’s silence felt different. I reached out for my phone – it was 2:48 am.

And in that very moment, almost like a faint whisper in my soul, I heard:
“Fear not, for I am with you;
Be not dismayed, for I am your God.
I will strengthen you,
Yes, I will help you,
I will uphold you with My righteous right hand.” (Isaiah 41:10)

As believers, we are often encouraged to hide Scripture in our hearts. In that moment, I understood why. The Lord drew out a promise I did not even realize had been planted so deeply – for a time such as this.

As a single in the city, loneliness can feel like a familiar companion. You walk into an empty home. You cook for one. You play soft music or keep the TV running on mute, just to create a sense of movement. Perhaps you’ve even mastered baking cakes in a mug – just enough to bring warmth and comfort to a quiet evening.

And yet, in these unprecedented weeks, I have found myself thanking the Lord.

Because if it weren’t for the chaos, the uncertainty, the unrest – I may have never experienced Jesus with such acute intimacy.

As a single, here are some of the ways I have been led to live out and taste Christ’s intimacy in these work-from-home and stay-at-home seasons:

1) The silence after Amen

I have learned that prayer is not only about speaking, but also about listening.

To create space to hear God’s voice – because we are designed to walk and talk with him. After I pray, I sit in silence – slowing down, softening my heart – leaning in to what his Spirit may reveal, even if it is a silent sense of his presence.

2) Digging out the diamonds in scripture

One of my favourite analogies is from the book Habits of Grace by David Mathis, where he says:

“There is a place in Bible reading for raking and gathering up the leaves at a swift pace, but when we ‘dig’ in Bible study, we unearth the diamonds. In meditation, we marvel at the jewels.” If time was ever my excuse, this season removes it.

There are moments in my day, now more than ever, where I can pause on a word, meditate on a verse or marvel at what God reveals – these diamonds unearthed have made me enjoy knowing Jesus more deeply.

3) Leaning on our giftings to serve the church

Tasting Jesus’ intimacy is also serving the church family we are blessed into.

I have enjoyed the many Zoom calls to plan mission trips or even organise these ‘Encouragement’ articles for Center Church. What if we used the hours we have more intentionally to plug deeper into the church? We can reach out to members, ministry leaders, or elders - explore where our interests lie. Even something as simple as setting up conversations to understand different roles in the church can become a step towards discovering how the Lord may help us experience his nature of servanthood, humility and compassion.

4) Silencing the noise

In times like these, it is easy to be consumed by news, opinions, and predictions. We may know more about world events than ever before – but Scripture reminds us: “For the Lord gives wisdom; from His mouth come knowledge and understanding” (Proverbs 2:6).

I have been intentional about limiting noise by setting boundaries around my social media use—disciplining when and how I engage—so I can create space for God’s voice to be louder than everything else.

5) Growing deeper in my love for Jesus

I have always been drawn to this thought from John 10:27 “My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me” and have asked myself, how do I become more and more sensitive to my Lord’s voice? The more I know Jesus, the more I recognise his voice. ‘The journey of a Christian is not one where we “arrive,” but one where we continue to grow’ - highlighting a thought I was inspired by from my recent time in the Habits of Grace book. We live in a privileged time where we can supplement our time in Scripture with biblically sound podcasts, faith-based studies and books, and honest conversations around how fellow Christians are navigating these times.

Knowing Jesus more draws me to an intimacy that redeems my routine at home alone.

As a final thought…

Just as we experienced during covid, normalcy will return.
Fear will settle.
Life will resume its business-as-usual rhythm.

But for us as disciples of Jesus, I am reminded that these valleys are not without purpose.

After all, scripture says ‘For a little while, we may suffer trials—but they refine us, just like gold’ (1 Peter 1:6–7).

Take heart dear church, because with confidence I know when the chaos around us comes to cease, we can look back and truly say we have ‘tasted and seen that the Lord is good’ (Psalm 34:8).