accountable – responsible, answerable, liable

dependable – trustworthy, reliable, conscientious, sensible, mature

Whether we like it or not, we all have to answer to somebody.  Though we don’t care to admit it, we need to be accountable to others – it keeps us honest.  Our Pastor has the right (and the responsibility) to hold us accountable to the standard of God’s Word, the Holy Bible.  As parents, we must hold our children accountable to being obedient to our instructions.  Our managers provide us with mid-year and annual performance reviews, and sometimes give more frequent feedback.  Many people have to clock-in for work on a daily basis, creating a documented track record that can be reviewed at any time.  Friends can be our accountability partners for fitness goals or lifestyle changes when we check in regularly to share our triumphs and challenges.  The baseline for all of these relationships?  Honesty.

What good is telling someone something if it isn’t true?  One thing I’m learning from Weight Watchers: the scale doesn’t lie!  I can choose not to track or write down a high-calorie item and kinda attempt to “fudge” my numbers (pun intended!); but in the end, the truth reigns.  So I may as well be honest with myself to begin with, then start making healthier choices.  In turn, it becomes easier to be honest and transparent in my relationships with others.  From my husband to my personal fitness trainer to my Sales Director in Mary Kay – accountability is built into systems all around me.  But I know it’s for my benefit.  Because left to my own devices, I deviate from the best path and meander into justifying behavior that’s undisciplined.  I have proof from previous experiences – and I can’t afford the consequences anymore!

Why do we hesitate to tell others the truth about what we’re really going through?  Because we don’t want to be corrected or instructed in righteousness; we wanna do what we wanna do (hint: that’s the FLESH)!  Before I was committed to changing my eating habits and beginning some semblance of exercising, I didn’t talk about my unhealthy habits to others because I didn’t want them telling me what to do!  The sad thing about that mindset:  it’s counterproductive and detrimental to me, but it also impacts others associated with me.  Most of all, it affects my witness for Christ.  In the Body of Christ, we are interconnected, so how can I think my actions are isolated?  They are not.

I know it’s been several weeks since I blogged, but I’ve been digging in to make some seriously positive changes in my life.  And I’m glad to be in the process of aligning my walk with my talk.  How about you?  Be honest…with yourself, and with others.  Allow God to lead you in the way that is right.

“Thy word is a lamp unto my feet, and a light unto my path.”

(Psalm 119:105)

 “This I say then, Walk in the Spirit, and ye shall not fulfil the lust of the flesh.”

(Galatians 5:16)

© Copyright 2010 by Kayren J. Cathcart