Accountability carries a negative
connotation, it often creates the image of somebody watching and controlling
you, it is usually because one has messed up and need some kind of supervision.
But this is not the issue. We each will be held accountable to God, until then
we have the ability to ask for a lesser form of help a lesser form of
accountability for fellow Christians. Usually we do not want to be held
accountable to anyone and when we do it is because we are asking for protection,
we are asking for help. Deep down inside each one of us has a desire to do well,
we do not want to do things that will be destructive in our lives or in the
lives of those we are connected with. When we are connected to someone who holds
us accountable to our actions we are asking for protection from doing that which
we do not want to do and protection from not doing that which we want to do.
We need protection! Satan is roaming the world
looking to deceive believers. Jesus made it very clear in John 8:44, "When he
lies, he speaks his native language, for he is a liar and the father of lies."
This is one tool that Satan uses against us. He wants us to believe that prayer
isn't important, that accountability is not cool, that pre-marital sex is ok,
that sin doesn't matter. It is easy to start believing these lies because we
live in a world that glorifies a lot of things that are contrary to the desires
of God. Paul tells us in the book of Romans (7:18-19), "I know that nothing good
lives in me, that is, in my sinful nature. For I have the desire to do what is
good, but I cannot carry it out. For what I do is not the good I want to do; no,
the evil I do not want to do, this I keep on doing." We often find ourselves
doing the very things that we do not desire to do. So we need protection against
the lies of Satan and from ourselves, ACCOUNTABILITY. We each have the Word of
God and the Holy Spirit working in us mightily to overcome temptation and sin
,but a friend, a teacher, a confident who is willing to help us, to pray with
us, to pray for us in any and all areas of need gives us yet another dose of
protection - we know that we can make it in and out of any situation. Once we
get beyond the negative definition of accountability and look at is as something
desirable and positive we will find it easy to seek this particular help.
We must immerse ourselves in the act of being
accountable. Accountability in regards to real, heart issues such as premarital
sex, breaking addictive habits, spending quality time with family, bad work
ethics, avoiding pornography, bad school habits, learning spiritual disciplines
or becoming a better steward. Once accountability is in the picture we will
begin experiencing victory in all challenging areas of our life.
One example, I was traveling to New Orleans to visit
home and to work on a job assignment there. A friend of mine (an old boyfriend
whom I still have feelings for), was meeting me there to visit me. He is married
(but separated from his wife) and still has feelings for me also. I knew that
once we were in each others presence that we would not be able to control
ourselves in the area of sex however I did not want to go against God's
directives and fall into the trap of sin. Everything in my intellect, my
thoughts and my emotions told me that it would be OK to have fun this time. I
began to plan and make arrangements to HAVE SOME FUN but the Holy Spirit began
to pull me the other way. I knew I could not do it alone so I began to pray, ask
other significant people to pray for my special intention and then (a select
few) I told about the actual situation and asked them to pray with and for me.
Because they knew the situation and I made myself accountable to them, it just
did not happen. They prayed, they called, they checked on me and because of the
prayers of the people of God, the opportunity to fall into sin was not
available.
We must remember that temptation is always
present in our lives, Jeremiah tells us that, "The heart is deceitful above
all things" so we have to be aware of our shortcomings and recognize our
need for help and protection. We have to articulate what we desire, the
Bible tells us, "The power of death and life is in the tongue", we have to
speak the desires that are within us in order to accomplish them. We must
find the right person to be accountable to, a person with a strong
relationship with God and a wealth of wisdom. It has to be someone who loves
you and has your interest at heart. Someone who is understanding enough not
to be judgmental but strong enough to speak the truth. Being accountable
requires us to be vulnerable and humble. One can not ask for things in
general and expect specific results. We have to share what is really going
on in our life or a particular situation even if it is difficult. It is
important to put a plan in motion so that that particular person can support
you in your endeavors and efforts. If we put these practices in action our
lives will be a little easier.
Always remember that God will ultimately hold us
accountable for our actions and it is OK for us to ask for help.
