Accountability in Resolutions

Happy New Year.  Today I want to continue on the New Year's theme and build some on Helene's post from yesterday.  Whether talking about sin that needs repented of or a goal that we are resolving to accomplish, I believe that one reason that we fail in bringing about the desired change is our lack of accountability to each other.  

We live in a society where we are not always transparent with each other.  A friend asks, "How are you doing?"  We respond with, "Oh I am doing great" when really we are carrying a great struggle around with us. 

This past week, I have been reading Paul's letters to the Thessalonians and to Timothy.  So often when we read the Bible we read it very generically forgetting that these words were not written to a general audience, but to very specific people for a special reason.  When Paul wrote chapter 4 telling them to abstain from sexual immorality, I believe it is quite likely that he wrote these words to address some particular problems that he had heard about.  I think that he penned those words to hold them accountable for their actions.  It is easier to live in our unrepentance in the dark of denial than in the light of acknowledgement.  

Paul closes I Thessalonians by telling them in verse 11 to encourage and build up one another.  One very specific way that James talks about doing this is through confession.  He says that we should confess our sins to one another.  Be confessing our sins to one another, we hold each other accountable for our actions.   I am not suggesting that we should leave God out of the equation.  We should confess our sins before the father as 1 John 1:9 says, but there is something about telling a person we can see what we are struggling with that often helps us in our resolutions or repentance.  Ecclesiastes 4:12 says that a cord of three strands is not quickly torn apart.  

 

As you try to overcome the sin in your life or as your make your New Years resolutions, do you have another person to walk the journey with you and God? Is there a friend with whom you can share your triumphs and backslides that can pray for you, build you up, and encourage you along on your journey?   

Jane