In my world of words and definitions, accountability fits into the same category as ‘covenant’ – little understood, rarely used. And, who’s it for? What’s it mean? What’s it ‘for’ and ‘Why”? So since I believe it is incredibly important, I’m going to share my definitions and thoughts as a counterpoint to what you may believe and think… and to start a conversation.
Accountability is primarily taking personal responsibility not only for one’s own actions and words, but also for the ‘fallout’/ramifications from those words and actions. “I didn’t mean…” is quite beside the point. The ‘how’ is that you have a team or at least one person who you trust and that knows what you are doing. Typically this means that this is done prior to taking action But this is also a two-way street. As much as you have to trust another person and let someone(s) in to your life, they have to give you space and time to do this. Their biggest responsibility is to listen to you, to ask questions, to pray to seek the Lord on your behalf but also to share what they think and believe about what you’re going to do. [See why I connect accountability and covenant?
One way to view ‘accountability’ is as a safety net. If you’re the principal person then you have a partner (the Lord) and a team, that prays for you, who have your best interests at heart. And if you are part of the team, you have likeminded and concerned people with a one-accord mindset about the person they are supporting. Both the person and the team grow over time. Obviously, a great deal more goes into the activities of the person and team.
Scripture has verses that speak to our accountability to God.
“…We are servants of Christ, not His masters. We are guides into God’s divine secrets, not security guards posted to protect them. The requirements for a good guide are reliability and accurate knowledge. … The Master makes that judgment.” [1 Corinthians 4:1-4, MSG]
In one translation it says, “…it is required of stewards that one be found trustworthy”. Do appreciate that we are stewards of what we know – remember the parable about the talents. We ALL are accountable for what we know and how we steward that knowledge and understanding. Specifically, the ‘audience’ in these verses relates to teachers but I would argue that this relates to ALL of us about our accountability on what we do/say and Who is our judge. We are not a mistake, we are where we are for a purpose, we have been created for this time but it is always our decision what we do in our world. We are accountable. End of question.
The poet John Donne wrote that no man is an island. And no man is meant to be one. We are created to be a blessing to others. We are not to isolate ourselves but to recognize that we can’t grow and continue to be effective if we never interact. And yet… it really isn’t as simple as I am saying it. Acting accountable is crucial for promotion because it is a visible witness of who we are. We need to realize that much has been given to EVERY believer. We come just as we are but we don’t stay there. And as we grow and mature and understand… we are accountable for our understanding and how we share.
