Have you ever looked at a tree and thought, WOW? I find it so fascinating to think about how we coexist in a world with other living organisms. We view and benefit from built in systems of accountability around us every day. Accountability is key to our coexistence. Natural systems have evolved over thousands of years to function as a checks and balance for itself and with us in it. In order to survive, natural systems are constantly monitoring their environments and taking action when they detect an imbalance. For example, when a tree becomes too tall or too heavy it may reach out to its neighbors for support. Root systems, canopy growth and even the turning colors of a tree’s leaves are systems of accountability; it’s how a tree checks in with itself to gauge what changes it should make to ensure its own success. Similarly, animals are constantly checking in with each other to ensure that no one is in danger. When an animal senses that another animal is in danger, it may take action to protect that individual. By taking these actions, natural systems ensure that everything stays in balance and that no one is left vulnerable to predators.
Systems of accountability are vital to us too. When we have systems of accountability in place we’re able to recognize where and when our actions and behavior are causing harm or not producing desired outcomes. When we see our actions have harming consequences or are creating chaos around us, we naturally feel the impact and want to make changes. Unfortunately, many people feel like they have no control over their actions, because they believe that they cannot influence the environment or outcomes around them. This misconception is in direct opposition of the Lord God’s instruction in Galatians 6 to test our own actions and bear our own load to remain honest and accountable about our individual progress. Accountability is important. It’s a necessary part of maintaining healthy thinking and action with ourselves and in any relationship, whether it’s with a spouse, family member or friend. The purpose of accountability is to help support us in acting in our own best interest and to support healthy change and progress.
Accountability matters for your own mental and spiritual health. When you create systems of accountability for yourself so to gauge progress with yourself and other people you are showing up for those relationships and meeting your commitments. Showing up through accountability has far reaching effects on our mental health and spiritual health in several ways. First, it can help us build self-awareness by identifying our strengths and weaknesses. Second, it can help us build self-control by identifying the behaviors that need to be changed. Lastly, it can strengthen our own sense of self-worth and self-confidence by helping us realize that we possess the tools and ability to create positive changes in our lives.
No matter the relationship or the system of accountability created, the central purpose should be support and encouragement for healthy progress. Proverbs 15:22 reminds us that when we have right council around us our plans succeed. This requires that we are intentional about who we value input from and surround ourselves with. As you set up systems of accountability, it’s important to determine what checking in for accountability looks like. What is the time frame, measure of growth/progress and mode of evaluation you’ll use? Another major factor is recognizing how you interpret encouragement. Only through self-truthing are we able to vocalize and express how we receive communication for accountability. Whether it’s expressed through words, physical presence or in an actionable way how you interpret support and encouragement matters in how you respond to systems of accountability. It also helps you in deciding who and how to build accountability into your daily routines for consistency and progress.
Accountability is the only way we’re able to evaluate ourselves and recognize if/how our actions and thinking are producing and revealing fruit in our lives. Jeremiah 17:10 is a reminder that we are rewarded according to our fruit. The outcomes of our lives are directly impacted by the decisions we make and how we set and progress in our ways. Self-evaluation is the tool for building self-awareness, self-confidence and self-worth that helps push us to set personal goals and track progress towards them. By learning from our mistakes and gauging our progress over time, we become more successful in showing up for ourselves, and others. Building systems of accountability and self-evaluation is an important part of mental health and spiritual health. It’s one of the most difficult areas to begin with, but also one of the most important. It can be particularly challenging if you try to do it alone. For some people, it’s easy to justify why they don’t need to track their progress. For others, it can be harder because there’s no clear end point. And for anyone who feels like they’re not measuring up, it’s even harder. But developing a system of accountability and self-evaluation is vital in order to ensure that you stay focused on your goals and keep striving towards progress and personal growth every day.
When trying to build systems of accountability into your life, there are a few things you should keep in mind: 1) Don’t measure yourself against others – measure yourself against yourself. How are you growing, what have you overcome? 2) Be sure to consider all aspects of your life – whether it be your personal relationships or professional goals. Having a vision for yourself by setting goals will help to direct your actions and energy 3) Be realistic – knowing that there will always be periods where things aren’t going well or perfectly will help keep you focused on the long-term goal and not get discouraged when things aren’t going as smoothly as you would like them to be. 4) Make sure you’re holding yourself accountable both internally and externally to your environment by selecting accountability partners that share your desire for encouragement and growth so that you can each spur one another on toward love and good deeds (Hebrews 10:24).
