How easy it is to lose that lovin’ feeling. When I first came to Christ, I was in love and on fire for God. I studied my Bible. I went to church. Gospel music filled my car during my long commute. I would readily testify of God’s goodness and invite everyone I encountered to come to know Jesus. But after some time, “life got in the way.” I treasured sleep more than my morning devotion time. I focused more on “my work” than growing my faith. I got complacent, comfortable, and the “ooey-gooey loving feelings” began to wane. Sickness crept in. Several prayers seemed to go unanswered. And then doubt began to sneak up on me. “I did everything you asked.” I thought, “So why am I going through this?” My problems seemed bigger than God’s promises. 

But God, in His infinite wisdom, knew that we, because of our humanness, would need a reminder of God’s love and presence (John 15:26). He knew that we’d forget His promises, and we’d begin to question that which we could not see and touch (John 10:22-25, John 14:8-11). We would need a comforter that we could feel. We would need a holy nudge when we got off track. So God gave us the Holy Spirit.  

Look at the example of John, the disciple. John followed Jesus faithfully. He was one of the twelve chosen disciples (Matthew 4:21). He was referred to as one of the Sons of Thunder (Mark 3:17). He was referred to as the beloved of Christ (John 21:7). And he was the only disciple present at the crucifixion and was commissioned by Jesus to watch over Mary, the mother of Jesus (John 19:25-27). During John’s ministry, he also spread the gospel message throughout Samaria (Acts 8:14) and Asia Minor (Revelation 1:11). 

Eventually, John was captured as part of a persecution campaign by the Roman Emperor Domitian. John was ultimately sentenced to Patmos (Revelation 1:9), a small, rocky and barren area where many criminals of Rome were sent to serve out their prison terms. The conditions were harsh, and often prisoners had to work in the mines with little food and protection against the elements. 

Exile on Patmos separated John from the church of Ephesus, cut him off from the work of in Asia Minor and silenced his preaching. His banishment could be characterized by isolation and loneliness, separation from people he cared about, and a disruption to the routines of daily living. Patmos brought John to a standstill, the prime circumstances for “losing that lovin’ feeling.”