Acts 2:42

And they devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching and the fellowship, to the breaking of bread and the prayers. 

Acts 2:42 (ESV)

Have you ever spent a period of time where you skip church a few weeks in a row, maybe avoid your mentor, "forget" about your bible study, and/or fail to make time for your daily devotions? What did this do to your walk with The Lord? This has happened more times in my life than I'd like to admit and the results are never good. When I'm drawn back to church I am reminded of the reasons why Luke emphasizes the importance of teaching, fellowship, breaking of bread, and prayers in Acts.                                                                                      
When my life is deprived of these four important elements the world begins to slowly creep in and my flesh starts winning. Suddenly it's really easy to become irritated at the lady ahead of you at Walmart, you let out a swearword when that guy cuts you off pulling out of the parking lot, and by the time you get to Starbucks you are so caught up in feeling bad for yourself and being mad at everyone else that you have a mini temper tantrum when your coffee isn't right. One day down the road you realize you are in habitual sin and you wonder how you got there. The answer is simple: we need these four elements so we are kept accountable.
We need to realize that life is hard and we weren't made to do it on our own. God breathed verses just like this one so we are aware that it is okay to need each other for accountability. In fact, He says it is imperative that we use each other for this purpose. As 1 Corinthians 12 states, "God has so composed the body, giving greater honor to the part that lacked it, that there may be no division in the body, but that the members may have the same care for one another."