two by two

Why does the Lord send the disciples two by two? 

Calling the Twelve to him, he began to send them out two by two and gave them authority over impure spirits. – Mark 6:7 NIV

The Lord God said, “It is not good for the man to be alone. I will make a helper suitable for him.” – Genesis 2:18 NIV

I wanted to share some instances that happened recently where the Lord has highlighted to me the importance of being sent out two by two. In that, it is good to honor your friendships and steward the people around you because the Lord placed them in your life for a reason. It is important to take note of Spirit-Filled friendships. Who in your circle can you go to war with in prayer? Who is your accountability partner in the faith? Who do you go to help grow in the Word with? 

I have a small circle of friends who I entrust to help edify my Spirit. These are the people who are not afraid to tell me when I am doing wrong and are not shy when it comes to being bold about God. These are the friends who are constantly pushing me to righteousness and to continuously seek the Lord. 

I say these things because I have had two encounters with my friends where I have verbalized “so this why the Lord sends us out two by two.” I believe it is intentional to release this word of encouragement to help someone out there in their community. 

Matthew 18:20: There is power when two or more people are gathered together in His name. Whose name? Jesus. 

Boldness to speak 

Have you ever been in a situation where some theologies differed than yours? Have you ever felt the Holy Spirit urge you to speak up and you did or didn’t? Recently, the Lord has been providing opportunities for me to speak up and stand on the Father’s Business. There have been times where I missed the opportunity and was shy or not bold. 

However, this past week I was in a situation where I could not stand listening to what was going on around me. I had a stirring in my Spirit to speak and testify about the Holy Spirit in such a way that countered the theology they were speaking about.  

When I spoke out, I remember feeling an immense amount of release and peace, but because the feedback wasn’t necessarily received well, I was in my head. The Lord quickly shut the lies and thoughts in my head, having me doubt what came out of my mouth. 

Later on, my friend who was with me, expressed how proud she was that I spoke up and that it needed to be said. We shared how it felt like we were like the disciples going house to house to testify about Jesus and the Holy Spirit. 

With this story, what if I didn’t have my friend with me? Would I still have been bold? Maybe. But at the same time, I believe it was intentional that my friend was with me as a spiritual backing. She was someone who was praying in her heavenly language. Someone who confirmed everything I was receiving and discerning. 

If I didn’t have her with me, I probably would still have this tiny ounce of doubt in my head, but because she showered with me Word from the Lord, it put all my ringing doubts and thoughts to rest. 

Persevere 

Sometimes when we feel weak, we need that friend who is going to help shower you with the Promises of God and the Word of the Lord. Sometimes you are that friend and other times your friend is that for you. 

Today, at the gym, my friend who is a content creator was having a lot of technical difficulties with her camera. There were blockages and situations that were inhibiting us to make a video we knew was going to glorify the Lord. 

Doubt, frustration, and annoyance crept in, but we quickly turned to prayer, had faith, did our due diligence to see how to fix a problem, and the turn around was quick! 

We were able to finish the video, spend more than enough time in the gym capturing what we needed to do, and had fruitful conversations. 

We didn’t allow the minor setbacks to stop us from what God intended us to do. 

We easily could have succumbed to the situation, but we acted out in faith and trusted in the Lord that He would provide a way – and He did. 

We made a comment during the workout session after we finished fixing the technical difficulties saying, “see now this is why the Lord sends us out two by two, so we can help each other persevere.” I may be paraphrasing, but the message stays the same. 

It is not good for man to be alone. How often do we allow the ounces of fear, doubt, confusion, sadness, etc, get in the way of what God wants us to do. Sometimes it just takes a reminder from a friend, or a partner in purpose to help remind you of the Promises of God in your life. 

I had to remind my friend that content creating is exactly what the Lord wants her to do, and that she just needs to persevere. We all do. 

It was a good loaded learning lesson to persevere through and just continue to work out the problem with God. 

Whoever this message is for, don’t allow life’s problems to get in the way of what the Lord wants you to do. Reach out to the friend who holds you accountable. Stop trying to figure life out on your own. God placed specific people in your life to help you figure this life out. 

Allow them to shower you with prayer, words of encouragement, and words of life that are rooted in Truth. 

In Jesus Name, 

Amen.