Accountability

⁹ Two are better than one,
Because they have a good reward for their labor.
¹⁰ For if they fall, one will lift up his companion.
But woe to him who is alone when he falls,
For he has no one to help him up.
¹¹ Again, if two lie down together, they will keep warm;
But how can one be warm alone?
¹² Though one may be overpowered by another, two can withstand him.
And a threefold cord is not quickly broken.

- Ecclesiastes 4:9-12 (NKJV)

The subhead for this set of scriptures in my Bible is “The Value of a Friend.” I remember these verses from our pre-marriage counseling and the pastor talking about the threefold cord. If my husband and I put God in our marriage, the threefold cord is not quickly broken. It’s worked too. We’ll be celebrating our 10-year anniversary next week (October 12th).

But I thought of this verse for another reason. I participate in these online focus sessions with a small group of women who are serious about working on and growing their business. We support each other, encourage each other, to get our to-dos done everyday. One of the ladies in this group, Julie E., asked me why I hadn’t posted on simply His in so long. Immediately all kinds of excuses flooded my mind, but essentially what it comes down to is accountability. I’ve fallen away from my quiet time, my Bible study, and my small group interaction.

I’ve got 3 of the very best friends you could ever have in Lisa T., Julie H., and Lora L. What makes each of these relationships strong is that God is in the middle of them. Unfortunately, we are all physically separated now and aren’t involved in each other’s daily lives. I desperately miss all of them, but I know they are there for me. Our friendship bond will never be broken, and we could go years without talking and the bond will still be strong. When I let the world get in the way, though, there hasn’t been anyone in my daily life, to pull me back up.

I’m going to change that. I’ve asked Julie E. if she’d be my accountability partner for this blog. She wasn’t sure what that meant, but I explained “just get on me when I haven’t posted in awhile.” She agreed, so we’ll see how well this works So Julie E., here’s my post for today — the one I promised. It’s already done my heart, mind and spirit a world of good.

So my question to you: do you have an accountability partner? Are you trying to do things on your own? On my own I thought no one ever reads simply His anyway, so why worry about posting here. Don’t let the devil get those thoughts into your head. Develop a friendship with God at the center, and start doing!