Matthew 10:2-4

“Now the names of the twelve apostles are these: first, Simon, who is called Peter, and Andrew his brother; James the son of Zebedee, and John his brother, Philip and Bartholomew; Thomas and Matthew the tax collector; James the son of Alphaeus, and Lebbaeus, whose surname was Thaddaeus; Simon the Cananite, and Judas Iscariot, who also betrayed Him.”

It is interesting that in the list of the disciples, they were all presented in pairs. Peter had Andrew, James had John, Philip had Bartholomew, Thomas had Matthew and so on. Why were they listed in pairs? Was it mere coincidence or could there be a divine purpose for this pairing? Although Jesus called them as individuals, it may have been that He intentionally put them in mutual accountability groups. I believe this is how God wants us to function. In such close relationships, we can look out for one another. Where’s your partner?

Do you have someone checking on you and you are checking on him or her? Is there someone you trust sufficiently to expose the details of your life to and vice versa? There is safety in pairing. It’s interesting that even Judas Iscariot had Simon, the Canaanite, as his partner. Could it be that Simon failed to pick up when Judas started to deviate? Could it be that Judas may have been salvaged if his partner had taken up this responsibility very seriously? Could Judas have intentionally hidden his secret struggles from Simon? We can’t tell, but for some reason, Jesus paired Simon with Judas. May I take my responsibility seriously concerning the lives commissioned to me. May I be diligent to observe them and interact more deeply with them; to know where they are and what they are going through.

“Lord, this means extra work for me, but I know it is needed. I realize there’s some risk in being so transparent and yet it is for my own safety when I am an open book with my partner. Help me to be totally transparent and help me request same from my partner. This I ask, in Jesus name. Amen.”