Strength in Numbers

Isn't it wonderful when you have a dear friend?  Someone who is willing to roll up their sleeves, (quite literally in fact), and help out in the everyday of your life.  Those types of friends are hard to come by.  Those friends that care enough about you that they will challenge you when you start slacking off, encourage you when you are doing well, and rejoice with you when they see God moving in you.

I have a friend just like that.  My friend Meg and I have been committed to calling one another Monday through Friday for at least a month or two now every morning.  Sometimes it's a quick call, sometimes longer, sometimes we pray for one another, other times we share what God has been speaking to us.  Each morning this call is an accountability call.  We both desire to have the discipline of prayer established in our lives.  We've realized quite frankly, that through the years that we've tried to establish this alone, it has not stuck.  I have gone weeks, maybe sometimes months where my daily devotion time is steadfast....and then I will completely forget, turn my heart in another direction and have to start again.

Now I'm not saying this won't happen again.  And I'm not saying that Meg and I will still be calling each other every morning when we're grannies but what I am saying is that as we establish this discipline in our lives, we have found strength in numbers.  There is something about not going it alone, feeling encouraged, supported and challenged as we engage our spirits in this most precious journey.

Today Meg came over to help me do some spring cleaning.  We cleaned, purged and organized nearly every cupboard in my kitchen.  Again, I found strength in numbers.  This is a job that I would love to forget about.  But as spices come flying at me when I start to make dinner....it's hard to forget the mess!  And so, with her help, I was able to tackle one of life's many mundane chores and feel accomplished in what we did together.  It was wonderful to have my husband come home and 'ooh' and 'awe' and 'wow' over every cupboard he opened.

So, it is not at all a sign of weakness to ask for help.  It is a sign of great courage.  It is with others that we are called to live this life, and it is with others, we receive strength to keep moving.