Travel in Pairs

The old adage "two are better than one" actually comes from the Bible  in Ecclesiastes 4:9.  In our conference new teachers are given a mentor, in order to build community and help each other along the journey.  All of us can mentor someone in our lives, whether that is a student, a fellow collegue, or a family member.  Don’t wait to be asked, go find someone to mentor.

As a student missionary I spent a lot of my free time snorkeling, enjoying the wonders of the ocean.  Several of my friends learned to scuba dive.  Scuba divers know that basic safety includes the rule: never dive alone, always dive with a buddy.  Traveling in pairs when diving can literally mean the difference between life and death. 

In Judges 13-16 Samson got into trouble because he tried going it alone, he thought he could go through life without God.  Just like Samson we get into trouble when we don’t open our hearts to Christ.  Interestingly enough Samson knew he should have been traveling in pairs.  In Judges 15:4 we see him using "pairs of foxes" to take revenge on his enemies.

All through out the Bible we see examples of traveling in pairs.  At the ark God brought the animals in by pairs. Their were seven pairs of clean animals and one pair of unclean animals. Even the human family saved in the ark traveled in pairs.  Noah and his wife, Shem and his wife, etc.

Jesus understood the power of traveling in pairs that’s why he sent the disciples out two by two.

The Lord now chose seventy-two other disciples and sent them ahead in pairs to all the towns and places he planned to visit. Luke 10:1 NLT. Let’s follow Jesus' example and travel in pairs.

Matt Pacer, Associate Superintendent