tonight, well, i guess i should say this morning, i have done some research on accountability. not because i didn't know what it is but i wanted to know the significance. i have a really hard time holding my loved ones accountable. i'm just not good at it so i just decided to research it.. these are some things I've found. a bit lengthy but worth the read.
What does the Bible say on the importance of accountability?
With much temptation already in the world today, Satan is working overtime to create even more. We must have a brother or sister we can count on when we are facing temptations that threaten our spiritual lives. King David was alone the evening he was tempted into adultery by Satan. It may have appeared to be Bathsheba who tempted him (2 Samuel 11), but the Bible tells us we fight a war not of flesh but of the spirit, against powers and spiritual forces who threaten us (Ephesians 6:12).
Knowing we are in a battle against the forces of darkness, we should want as much help as we can gather around us. In Ephesians, Paul tells us that we must be equipped with all the power that God supplies to fight this battle. “Therefore put on the full armor of God, so that when the day of evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground, and after you have done everything, to stand” (Ephesians 6:13). Paul realized that even if we equip ourselves with everything God has to offer in defense of evil, we are still human and we may not always be able to resist Satan’s temptations. We know without a doubt that temptation will come.
Satan knows our weaknesses, and he knows when we are vulnerable. He knows when a married couple is fighting and perhaps feeling that someone else might understand them better. He knows when a child has been punished by his parents and might be feeling spiteful. He knows when things are not going well at work and knows how that reminds us of the bar that is on the way home. Where do we find help if we have done all we can do to fight the battle? We want to do what is right in the sight of God, yet we are weak. What do we do?
Proverbs 27:17 says, “Iron sharpens iron; so a man sharpens his friend's countenance.” A friend’s countenance is a look or expression of encouragement or moral support. When is the last time you had a friend call you just to ask how you were doing? When is the last time you called a friend and asked her if she needed to talk? Encouragement and moral support from a friend are sometimes the missing ingredients in fighting the battle against Satan.
The writer of Hebrews summed it up when he said, “Let us consider how we may spur one another on toward love and good deeds. Let us not give up meeting together, as some are in the habit of doing, but let us encourage one another—and all the more as you see the Day approaching…” (Hebrews 10:24-25). Accountability is crucially important in the battle to overcome sin. An accountability partner can be there to encourage you, to rebuke you, to teach you, to rejoice with you, and to weep with you. Every Christian should have an accountability partner with whom he or she can pray, talk, confide, and confess.
The word "accountability" does not appear in the Bible. However, the word "accountable" is mentioned eight times in the Bible. Most of these references apply to being held accountable for not saving another person. God cares about those who are separated from Him, and He makes His children accountable for reaching out to those who are lost. If God tells you to witness to a person and you choose not to obey, then God holds you accountable for that person being separated from God (Ezekiel 3:18).
Sometimes people who are living in a way that is contrary to God's plan need someone to warn them about the consequences of their choices. The prophet Nathan obeyed God and warned King David about God's anger with David for committing adultery with Bathsheba and then having Bathsheba's husband killed (II Samuel 12). King David could have literally "killed the messenger," but he instead repented. If Nathan had remained silent and David died in his sin, God would have held Nathan accountable for David's blood.
The Bible says that as long as people are obedient to what God tells them to do, they are not held accountable for the outcome. The Bible explains this well in Ezekiel 33:8-9: "When I say to the wicked, 'O wicked man, you will surely die,' and you do not speak out to dissuade him from his ways, that wicked man will die for his sin, and I will hold you accountable for his blood. But if you do warn the wicked man to turn from his ways and he does not do so, he will die for his sin, but you will have saved yourself."
God holds leaders accountable for the way that they lead God's people. In Ezekiel 34, the Bible uses the metaphor of a shepherd and his sheep to explain the accountability that leaders have over God's "flock." The Bible warns in James 3:1 that "Not many of you should presume to be teachers, my brothers, because you know that we who teach will be judged more strictly." God holds teachers and other leaders accountable for the ways in which they lead God's people.
Leaders and teachers are not the only ones who God holds accountable. According to the Bible, "the whole world [will be] held accountable to God" (Romans 3:19). Fortunately, God sent Jesus to fulfill the law because he knew that human beings were incapable of doing so themselves: "Do not think that I have come to abolish the Law or the Prophets; I have not come to abolish them but to fulfill them" (Matthew 5:17).
Thursday, December 30, 2010
Tuesday, November 23, 2010
reality check
oh, reality checks. just gotta love them. when i finally took the GRE i felt a HUGE load off my shoulders for some reason. since i felt that i went into a mode where i thought everything was just fine. i paused on grad school applications because for some reason i felt like i had plenty of time to do them and now that i took the GRE i can kind of give myself a break. so i've been "living the life." hanging out with friends every weekend, only having class tuesday and thursdays, sleeping in on a daily basis, etc. sounds awesome right? its been sounding pretty darn amazing to me. so amazing that i have neglected the one thing that should be constant in my life..God.
i've neglected Him to the point where i could see that my actions were not reflecting Him. where did this go wrong? at the beginning of the school year i thought i had it all together but thats because i wasn't neglecting Him. i had my devos every day and i was constantly getting into the word but somewhere that stopped happening. i started neglecting the one thing in my life that makes everything seem right again. i yearn to have that back, i NEED to make God a constant in my life again. i am tired of being apathetic about it and i need to start proving He is in my life through my actions. i need to start doing things that are edifying to Him and not just because i want to do them.
He deserves to be a constant in my life instead of put on a shelf, neglected. He is my constant, my rock, my salvation, the one that loves me unconditionally and that shows the most AMAZING grace on me. if He isn't a constant in your life, do something about that.
remember, God is love.
i've neglected Him to the point where i could see that my actions were not reflecting Him. where did this go wrong? at the beginning of the school year i thought i had it all together but thats because i wasn't neglecting Him. i had my devos every day and i was constantly getting into the word but somewhere that stopped happening. i started neglecting the one thing in my life that makes everything seem right again. i yearn to have that back, i NEED to make God a constant in my life again. i am tired of being apathetic about it and i need to start proving He is in my life through my actions. i need to start doing things that are edifying to Him and not just because i want to do them.
He deserves to be a constant in my life instead of put on a shelf, neglected. He is my constant, my rock, my salvation, the one that loves me unconditionally and that shows the most AMAZING grace on me. if He isn't a constant in your life, do something about that.
remember, God is love.
Tuesday, October 12, 2010
twenty two
wow. i'm twenty two. i can no longer tell people that i am 21 when they ask me how old i am. kinda sad because saying you're 21 sounds A LOT cooler. haha. i've never really been the person to make a big deal out of my birthday. to me, it's just another day. of course i love feeling loved when people text me or call me or write on my facebook wall to tell me happy birthday and when i receive flowers from my mom but, as far as celebrating, i'm just fine with keeping it chill. i've been asked several times what i want to do on my birthday but i just kinda want to lay low. probably because i have a big test tonight, which by the way, i am putting off studying by doing this haha. any surprise? i think not.
it's been awhile since i last posted. i took my GRE last week and it went okay. i wanted to do better but i'm just over it now. its whatever. i still have yet to complete a full application for grad school. i'm only like 2 steps away from getting one completed but its not due til april so when i found that out, i of course started to procrastinate. oh well. it will get done this week...maybe? maybe next week :) anywho, i dont really think i had a point to this blog except to procrastinate some more but i really do want to say that i am very blessed to have made it to my 22nd year. i have the best family a girl could ask for and pretty kick-ass friends. i am truly blessed and couldn't ask for more. it's been a fun ride so far and i look forward to many more years to come with some pretty amazing people along for the ride. i love you all, you guys are the best!
remember, God is love.
it's been awhile since i last posted. i took my GRE last week and it went okay. i wanted to do better but i'm just over it now. its whatever. i still have yet to complete a full application for grad school. i'm only like 2 steps away from getting one completed but its not due til april so when i found that out, i of course started to procrastinate. oh well. it will get done this week...maybe? maybe next week :) anywho, i dont really think i had a point to this blog except to procrastinate some more but i really do want to say that i am very blessed to have made it to my 22nd year. i have the best family a girl could ask for and pretty kick-ass friends. i am truly blessed and couldn't ask for more. it's been a fun ride so far and i look forward to many more years to come with some pretty amazing people along for the ride. i love you all, you guys are the best!
remember, God is love.
Monday, September 6, 2010
.only hope.
so, i am sitting here at 4 in the morning still awake. not sure why. i just can't sleep. and so i have my playlist playing and "only hope" comes on and i recognize it because of the movie "a walk to remember" and so i decide to just skip it .. but then i'm like nah. ill go back to it, i haven't heard it in awhile. while listening, i realized that i never took time to really listen to the lyrics. like, i knew them, and i could sing them, but i didn't give any meaning to them in my mind. just another song that i could sing without having to look up the lyrics. but this time i did. and i really read them.
it amazed me because right now i am under the stress about finding a school to go to for grad. school. the application process, the GRE, who is accredited by who (because apparently that matters) and so on and so on. it really has consumed my mind lately and in my last blog i said that i pray that i can just truly trust in God's will for my life. i haven't really done that yet. and i know that once i just give it up to Him, my life will be a lot less stressful but i want that control over my future. i need to realize that i can't control it. and i don't really want to when i really think about it. but the fear of the future has consumed every thought process that i could possibly have. when i'm driving, that is usually the time where i think about things and my roommate, kim, hates it because i get a really serious look on my face and i just don't talk, while she is wanting to jam out. but now, i don't think there is a minute that goes by where i'm not thinking about it because it has become this huge reality and its here. i never thought it would come. i didn't really want it to come this fast because i still have no idea what God wants me to do with my life. anywho, i was listening to this song and as i was reading the lyrics along with it, i began to realize i was trying to write out that song that is in my soul but I cant do it on my own. God is sitting there and He is singing it to me over and over again but its almost like i have put Him on mute or something or just keep changing the song (i do have music a.d.d) ;) He is singing me the song of my future but i just need to turn up the volume and decide to listen because He is my only hope. and i cannot do this on my own. i am weak. i am fearful. i am scared. but with Him i can choose to be none of those.
I challenge all of you to listen to this song and really listen to the lyrics and see what it means to you. and i also challenge you to wake up in the morning and say, "here i am Lord, i am choosing to live as an example for You, do what you want with me, I am Yours!" I pray that all of you can do that because I know that it has been a toughie for me to do lately but i am tired of being stressed out about this whole grad school business so, whatever it takes, i will give it to Him. the best person to have it in their hands and i will turn up the volume so i can hear Him sing to me.
remember God is love.
Only Hope- Switchfoot.
There's a song that's inside of my soul
It's the one that I've tried to write over and over again
I'm awake and in the infinite cold
But You sing to me over and over and over again
So I lay my head back down
And I lift my hands and pray to be only Yours
I pray to be only Yours
I know You're my only hope
You sing to me of the song of the stars
Of Your galaxy dancing and laughing and laughing again
When it feels like my dreams are so far
You sing to me of the plans that You have for me over again
And I lay my head back down
And I lift my hands and pray to be only Yours
I pray to be only Yours
I know You're my only hope
I give You my empathy, I'm giving You all of me
I want Your symphony singing in all that I am
At the top of my lungs I'm giving it back
And I lay my head back down
And I lift my hands and pray to be only Yours
I pray to be only Yours, I pray to be only Yours
I know You're my only hope.
it amazed me because right now i am under the stress about finding a school to go to for grad. school. the application process, the GRE, who is accredited by who (because apparently that matters) and so on and so on. it really has consumed my mind lately and in my last blog i said that i pray that i can just truly trust in God's will for my life. i haven't really done that yet. and i know that once i just give it up to Him, my life will be a lot less stressful but i want that control over my future. i need to realize that i can't control it. and i don't really want to when i really think about it. but the fear of the future has consumed every thought process that i could possibly have. when i'm driving, that is usually the time where i think about things and my roommate, kim, hates it because i get a really serious look on my face and i just don't talk, while she is wanting to jam out. but now, i don't think there is a minute that goes by where i'm not thinking about it because it has become this huge reality and its here. i never thought it would come. i didn't really want it to come this fast because i still have no idea what God wants me to do with my life. anywho, i was listening to this song and as i was reading the lyrics along with it, i began to realize i was trying to write out that song that is in my soul but I cant do it on my own. God is sitting there and He is singing it to me over and over again but its almost like i have put Him on mute or something or just keep changing the song (i do have music a.d.d) ;) He is singing me the song of my future but i just need to turn up the volume and decide to listen because He is my only hope. and i cannot do this on my own. i am weak. i am fearful. i am scared. but with Him i can choose to be none of those.
I challenge all of you to listen to this song and really listen to the lyrics and see what it means to you. and i also challenge you to wake up in the morning and say, "here i am Lord, i am choosing to live as an example for You, do what you want with me, I am Yours!" I pray that all of you can do that because I know that it has been a toughie for me to do lately but i am tired of being stressed out about this whole grad school business so, whatever it takes, i will give it to Him. the best person to have it in their hands and i will turn up the volume so i can hear Him sing to me.
remember God is love.
Only Hope- Switchfoot.
There's a song that's inside of my soul
It's the one that I've tried to write over and over again
I'm awake and in the infinite cold
But You sing to me over and over and over again
So I lay my head back down
And I lift my hands and pray to be only Yours
I pray to be only Yours
I know You're my only hope
You sing to me of the song of the stars
Of Your galaxy dancing and laughing and laughing again
When it feels like my dreams are so far
You sing to me of the plans that You have for me over again
And I lay my head back down
And I lift my hands and pray to be only Yours
I pray to be only Yours
I know You're my only hope
I give You my empathy, I'm giving You all of me
I want Your symphony singing in all that I am
At the top of my lungs I'm giving it back
And I lay my head back down
And I lift my hands and pray to be only Yours
I pray to be only Yours, I pray to be only Yours
I know You're my only hope.
Wednesday, September 1, 2010
here i am Lord
i have a hard time trusting in general. i have an even harder time trusting in my Lord and Savior. the one that i should trust the most and with everything because i know in my heart he has a beautiful plan laid out for me. so why is it so hard to just trust in His will for me?
today, i talked to my advisor about grad school. it kinda flipped the plans that i had set in my heart, upside down. it was really hard. i talked to my roommate about it and she was like katie, you need to pray about it and get into the Word, let God lead you. make your decision based on Him. amazing advice but so hard to do.
i pray that i can finally say, "God here I am, do what you want with me and show me your will for my life."
i just want to let go and let God.
today, i talked to my advisor about grad school. it kinda flipped the plans that i had set in my heart, upside down. it was really hard. i talked to my roommate about it and she was like katie, you need to pray about it and get into the Word, let God lead you. make your decision based on Him. amazing advice but so hard to do.
i pray that i can finally say, "God here I am, do what you want with me and show me your will for my life."
i just want to let go and let God.
Tuesday, August 31, 2010
p.u.s.h
pray until something happens.
bah. i really wish that i was more patient with prayer. being back at school i have been praying for a lot of things. i was talking to my roommate the other night and we were talking about prayer and i realized that i have neglected to pray for myself. i was so wrapped up in praying for other people that i completely forgot about praying for myself.
it is myself that i really should be praying for.
but i'm impatient with prayer. i pray about things and i just want it to happen right away. i feel like im praying for the right stuff to happen so sometimes i catch myself saying "okay God, any day now." i grow impatient when i should just be still and wait upon the Lord. sooo hard to do. i really wish it wasn't that difficult but it is. and i hate it. straight up.
i want a lot of things to happen but i think i just need to pray for my patience with it. sigh.
bah. i really wish that i was more patient with prayer. being back at school i have been praying for a lot of things. i was talking to my roommate the other night and we were talking about prayer and i realized that i have neglected to pray for myself. i was so wrapped up in praying for other people that i completely forgot about praying for myself.
it is myself that i really should be praying for.
but i'm impatient with prayer. i pray about things and i just want it to happen right away. i feel like im praying for the right stuff to happen so sometimes i catch myself saying "okay God, any day now." i grow impatient when i should just be still and wait upon the Lord. sooo hard to do. i really wish it wasn't that difficult but it is. and i hate it. straight up.
i want a lot of things to happen but i think i just need to pray for my patience with it. sigh.
Thursday, August 19, 2010
summer 2010
wow. summer is over. it seriously just felt like yesterday that it began. i began my summer going down to KC to visit my roommate right before i had to start volunteering/working for the shelter. and now it's over.
my heart has been changed though.
i can't express to you how much of an amazing experience i had at that shelter. today was my last day and i thought it would just be a piece of cake to be able to leave. i had my mind on getting off early so i could finish up some gs and some packing.. but God showed me where my heart should have been at the beginning of the day. it was incredibly hard leaving those ladies. i never thought i would get so attached. i never thought i would leave half of my heart with that place.
ugh. when i left i started crying in my car because i felt like i was just another person abandoning them in their life. one of my closest ladies there took it really hard because she def looked up to me. i gave her a lot of spiritual guidance this summer along with God helping me. i hope it has helped her out because i know that it def made me stronger in my faith. my heart just broke when i had to say good bye to her. it was probably the hardest goodbye i have ever had to go through. it was rough.
half of my heart was left at that shelter with those ladies and i dont think i could ever ask for a better place for it to be. usually i am very protective of my heart and who i share it with because i dont want people to be careless with it but that has def. changed this summer.
it is my prayer that the ladies continue on their spiritual walk with Christ and to the ladies that haven't found Him yet, it is my continual prayer that they will run into his awaiting arms.
feed the hungry. clothe the poor. shelter the homeless. and lead them to Christ.
ps. thank you Kristi for your encouraging text. it meant a lot to me! :)
my heart has been changed though.
i can't express to you how much of an amazing experience i had at that shelter. today was my last day and i thought it would just be a piece of cake to be able to leave. i had my mind on getting off early so i could finish up some gs and some packing.. but God showed me where my heart should have been at the beginning of the day. it was incredibly hard leaving those ladies. i never thought i would get so attached. i never thought i would leave half of my heart with that place.
ugh. when i left i started crying in my car because i felt like i was just another person abandoning them in their life. one of my closest ladies there took it really hard because she def looked up to me. i gave her a lot of spiritual guidance this summer along with God helping me. i hope it has helped her out because i know that it def made me stronger in my faith. my heart just broke when i had to say good bye to her. it was probably the hardest goodbye i have ever had to go through. it was rough.
half of my heart was left at that shelter with those ladies and i dont think i could ever ask for a better place for it to be. usually i am very protective of my heart and who i share it with because i dont want people to be careless with it but that has def. changed this summer.
it is my prayer that the ladies continue on their spiritual walk with Christ and to the ladies that haven't found Him yet, it is my continual prayer that they will run into his awaiting arms.
feed the hungry. clothe the poor. shelter the homeless. and lead them to Christ.
ps. thank you Kristi for your encouraging text. it meant a lot to me! :)
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