Accountability

think it’s a pretty good idea for us to share helpful tips/disciplines, so ive thought of a few hacks to blog about. first off, sth quite close to heart - accountability. Brothers, if someone is caught in a sin, you who are spiritual should restore him gently. But watch yourself, or you also may be tempted. Carry each other's burdens, and in this way you will fulfill the law of Christ. Galatians 6:1-2 The Christian journey isn’t meant to be walked alone. We know that the Bible calls us to carry each other’s burdens, to confess our sins to & pray for each other… precisely cos its tough to live for Him, in isolation, apart from the Body of believers. Is any one of you in trouble? He should pray. Is anyone happy? Let him sing songs of praise... If he has sinned, he will be forgiven. Therefore confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you may be healed. The prayer of a righteous man is powerful and effective. James 5:13-16 Forming accountability huddles (with 1 or 2 other persons) I believe is a needful way to help each other apply the truths learnt at BS & sermons in practical day-to-day scenarios. Listening & studying the Bible is the easier part of the equation. Putting it to practice, changing our lives is the much harder part! (James 1:22-25) Often times we form convictions & resolve to change, but we lack the discipline to pray & work through these convictions. Accountability is one way to help us do that. Do not merely listen to the word, and so deceive yourselves. Do what it says. Anyone who listens to the word but does not do what it says is like a man who looks at his face in a mirror and, after looking at himself, goes away and immediately forgets what he looks like. But the man who looks intently into the perfect law that gives freedom, and continues to do this, not forgetting what he has heard, but doing it—he will be blessed in what he does. James 1:22-25 Here is my suggestion of what accountability partnering shd look like :) what it would accomplish/areas it wld cover: i. Confession of sin to each other Share with your buddy wrt specific areas of weakness/sin that you’re struggling with. Its not an easy thing to do cos it means shining the spotlight on our secret fears, insecurities, crutches, sins. But that’s also the whole point – sin exposed is easier to deal with than sin in secret. Admitting to someone you can trust means you aren’t alone in your struggle and there is someone who can partner with you against the sin, in prayer & by keeping you accountable about your progress. Sharing also forces you to think through your life, to admit to yourself & God the areas/attitudes you need to change. In sharing of life & struggles, bro/sis can also shed new light & help suggest practical ways where you can avoid temptation. Buddy should ask you about the issue the next time you meet to keep you accountable. ii. Pray for each other Remind each other that with genuine confession, you’re forgiven in Christ. Repentance/change ways & attitudes – pray for God to help you change, about specific areas that you should persist in, etc. Reliance on God in prayer on issues that are burdening us / sharing of burdens & joys. iii. Encourage each other To press on in living for Him - against specific sin, changing attitudes, in decision-making. By sharing lessons/convictions that He has taught. For SC & me, we usually spent about 20-30mins each sharing the main issues/lessons/sins that confronted us, that God brought to our awareness since the last update. Sometimes, we will give advice, share wisdom, encourage or point out blind spots/ areas to change… basically talk it through. Then, we will proceed to pray. One person will confess sins & pray about struggles & the other person will pray in response for her. Then we switch roles. who to look for: he/she should… - be a committed believer of Christ - display a level of maturity & trustworthiness – someone you can trust to keep in confidence the issues you share - be available & willing to do accountability with you on regular basis - once a week or fortnight is ideal - be someone you are comfortable with, can share openly with - be someone that is humble & not judgemental, yet able to correct & point out flaws in love - be of the same gender as you, if you’re single may or may not be (in my humble opinion)... - someone of the same background – he/she doesn’t have to work in the same industry nor be serving in the same ministry - someone of the same marital status – he/she doesn’t have to be single or attached or married like you Although one might think its easier to relate to someone that’s similar, I personally think there is value in being of different backgrounds as there is added perspective & insight from the other’s angle which you (or someone similar to you) may not point out. It would be ideal to have separate accountability with a peer, an older mentor & someone younger. However, its not always easy to find people that can commit the time & effort to meeting regularly for this purpose so I’d say that some accountability is better than none. how you should prepare: - be ready to be real, honest & vulnerable in sharing your weaknesses, failings, sins - be committed to meeting regularly - be committed to being a true friend, bro/sis displaying the qualities above as much as possible wrt humility, boldness to speak truth & trustworthiness lastly, trust God to work! you’d be surprise at how God can work through you & your buddy to develop both your characters and the friendship. ______________________________ Think different people have different ideas of how an accountability session/buddy looks like & what it should accomplish. The above are just my views based on (limited) personal experience with my buddy. In what i highlighted, you might realise that you’re already doing some of it within your DG or with closer friends. That’s great! If not, its my prayer that you might see the value of & be encouraged to pursue accountability with someone. Apart from forming a ‘formal’ accountability group, accountability & praying for each other can & should also take place with other bros/sisters in the church. God has been showing me the beauty & joy in committing to prayer what little I know about the struggles that my bros/sisters are going through. Even from short sharing/chatting over drinks or msn or reading blogs, its possible to love & uplift the other by praying for the person in your own time. They may not even know & it doesn’t matter, but sometimes it’s the best way to care cos there’s little you can do otherwise to aid the situation. End of the day, its not about adopting a model, more rules or subscribing to a ‘more christiany’ way of doing things. Its about helping each other become more Christ-like & sharing ways that could be useful in our journey towards that. Hope you found this (long winded) hack helpful! :)