Do you have an accountability partner?

Ecclesiastes 4:12 (NIV)   Though one may be overpowered,  two can defend themselves.  A cord of three strands is not quickly broken.

I met my accountability partner in Houston, TX July 2010 when I first reached my goal weight.  Jenn Krogh lives in Wisconsin and I live in Pittsburgh, PA.   We Skype together every two weeks.    Each time we skype, I am thanking the Lord for technology that allows us to bridge the distance.  We live 660 miles apart, yet Skype allows us to be in the same room together.  Our hour time goes by fast as we laugh, cry, encourage, challenge and pray for each other.  I love the treasure God has provided through our friendship.

We are both blessed big losers.  She has gone before me, maintaining a 150-pound weight loss since 2001.  You can read her story beginning on page 133 in Carole Lewis' book First Place 4 Health.  This week as we skyped, we reminded each other of the hard work and battle we are in every day.  I wish I could say it is simple to keep off the weight.  No, it is work.   Tracking our food every day and strengthening our body with exercise is the work we do. We both agreed that the overriding key is to see our bodies as God’s temple. 

Jenn shared with me a blog by PINKHOPE on SparkPeople Blog, When You Don'tWant to Lose.   Pinkhope points out that when you ask most obese and very overweight people if they want to lose weight, they will quickly answer "yes". Often what they are saying "yes" to is BEING THINNER - the "result" of losing weight. If you take the phrase "losing weight" and expound the process, some will begin to have glazed eyes and their attention will wane.  WHY? The why is that they desire the result but don't want to do the "work" required to experience it.

PINKHOPE’s goal in writing the blog is twofold: First examine yourself, are you committed to do the WORK required to achieve the result? Secondly, be inspired to get busy and not WAIT until your health issues is the motivation. 

If you want help in achieving your goal, get accountability.  Ask the tough questions of each other.  

            What do you want?

            Why do you want it?

            Are you willing to do the work to get what you want?

What are you waiting for?  Get an accountability partner. Two are better than one.

Do you have an accountability partner? How are you helping each other?

Ecclesiastes 4:9-12 (NIV)

Two are better than one, because they have a good return for their labor:  If either of them falls down, one can help the other up.  But pity anyone who falls   and has no one to help them up.   Also, if two lie down together, they will keep warm. But how can one keep warm alone?   Though one may be overpowered,  two can defend themselves.  A cord of three strands is not quickly broken.

Unhealthy, Good, Better, Best

So, since we’re out from under the old tyranny, does that mean we can live any old way we want? Since we’re free in the freedom of God, can we do anything that comes to mind? Hardly. You know well enough from your own experience that there are some acts of so-called freedom that destroy freedom. Offer yourselves to sin, for instance, and it’s your last free act. But offer yourselves to the ways of God and the freedom never quits. All your lives you’ve let sin tell you what to do. But thank God you’ve started listening to a new master, one whose commands set you free to live openly in his freedom! (Romans 6:15-18 MSG)

Today I discovered a new way of thinking with regard to healthy habits.  As I listen to the Lord about my health, He  leads me from unhealthy to good, better, and eventually to best choices.   I find going cold turkey or bare knuckling is almost impossible for me.  I am most successful when I replace with a healthy alternative. 

it is a stair step process for me. Here are some examples:

Unhealthy Couch Potato, no exercise
Good  15 minutes 3-6 days a week (3 years)
Better  30 minutes 3-4 days per week (3 years)
Best 45-60 minutes 3-4 days per week (1 year and counting)

Unhealthy enriched flour: cookies, cakes, white bread without limit
Good  50% white/wheat limit cookie and cakes on special occasions
Better 50-75%whole grain, limit cookie and cake on special occasion and limit serving size (one cookie/ small piece of cake)
Best 75%+ whole grain, special occasions are less than once per month 

Unhealthy Eating out: whenever and choose whatever
Good: Choose healthy restaurant, limit trigger foods (bread, pasta, chips, fries)
Better: Pack healthy snacks, choose healthy menu restaurants, pay extra and replace starches with extra veggies, even request no butter added.
Best ALWAYS have a Plan.  Eating out looks as healthy as eating in

Okay, your turn.  What is a step you are taking or need to take? I'd love to hear yours.

Unhealthy
Good
Better
Best

What needs to be removed in your life?

Scripture: 2 Chronicles 20:33   The high places, however, were not removed, and the people still had not set their hearts on the God of their ancestors.

Observation:  Jehoshaphat may have followed the Lord (vs. 32), he did not make all those he reigned over follow the Lord (he left the high places)

Application:  As a leader, I need to provide accountability so that people know what they are to do to follow the Lord.   How are they practicing the 3 Loves of Jesus:  Passion for God, Love for One Another, Love for a Broken World?

Prayer:  Lord, help me to see what needs removed.  What have I overlooked?  How can I help people set their hearts on you?

Obedience is better than sacrifice 1 Samuel 15:22

Scripture: 1 Samuel 15:22 22 But Samuel replied:  “Does the Lord delight in burnt offerings and sacrifices  as much as in obeying the Lord?  To obey is better than sacrifice, and to heed is better than the fat of rams. 

Observation:  Obedience is better than sacrifice.  Listening and heeding first is better than repenting and asking for forgiveness.

Application:  I see this is so many areas of my life.  In my food, I have felt that eating right and exercising regularly was a sacrifice.  In truth, it is living in obedience.  The world says to biggie size, on the other hand, I know that for myself, I need to eat a kid’s meal at the most.  In another area, I tend to paint a picture with exaggeration.  I realize this is to influence others.  I am better at this now than before I came back to Christ.  Still, I catch myself and then have remorse and it nips at my heels and gives Satan a way to attack me.  In obedience, I need to speak only the words that God provides and not my own flowery additions to things.

Prayer:  Lord, you are my salvation.  I am forgiven through Christ’s shed blood and victory of death.  I want to delight you Lord.  I recognize that obedience is better than sacrifice and that they are different.  Help me to know your will, so that I can obey.   Heavenly Father, I love you!  I Love you!  I Love you!  Thank you Lord for this understanding.

Hebrews 3:12-13 I need friends to hold me accountable

Scripture: Hebrews 3:12-13  See to it, brothers, that none of you has a sinful, unbelieving heart that turns away from the living God.  But encourage one another daily, as long as it is called Today, so that none of you may be hardened by sin’s deceitfulness. 

Observation:  We as Christian brothers and sisters need to help each other.  We need to stop each other from turning away from God.  We need to be that shepherd that is going after the one sheep.  This verse also tells us that sin is deceitful and hardens us. 

Wikipedia’s points to deception when you look up deceitful:   

Deception can involve dissimulation, propaganda, and sleight of hand. It can employ distraction, camouflage or concealment. There is also self-deception as in bad faith.

Application:   I can see in my life that when I am sinning, when I do not want to be self-disciplined, I am deceived.  I start to justify with reasons:  there is always tomorrow, just this one bite, meal, day, and then a week could go by and I am completely off track.   This applies to my life with food, exercise, daily devotions, and praying.  It all requires my discipline.  If I am not, then I start to harden. 

I need to be soft, pliable, and ready to change as God wants.  Sin wants me to be hardened and not open.   I need friend to hold me accountable.

Prayer:  Lord Almighty, thank you for your passion.  I am not worthy for your sacrifice.  I did not do anything to deserve your grace.   Thank you for supportive friends. Help us to work together through Your grace for Your glory.  Amen.

Obedience is better than Sacrifice 1 Samuel 15:22-23

Scripture:  1 Samuel 15:22-23 But Samuel replied: "Does the Lord delight in burnt offerings and sacrifices as much as in obeying the Lord?  To obey is better than sacrifice, and to heed is better than the fat of rams.  For rebellion is like the sin of divination, and arrogance like the evil of idolatry.  Because you have rejected the word of the Lord, he has rejected you as king."  (NIV)

1 Samuel 15:22-23 Then Samuel said, Do you think all God wants are sacrifices— empty rituals just for show? He wants you to listen to him! Plain listening is the thing, not staging a lavish religious production. Not doing what God tells you is far worse than fooling around in the occult. Getting self-important around God is far worse than making deals with your dead ancestors. Because you said No to God's command, he says No to your kingship.  (MSG)

Observation:  Obedience is more important than sacrifice.  Sacrifice is defined as the offering of food, objects or the lives of animals or people to a higher purpose or to God or the gods as an act of propitiation or worship.  Propitiation means the turning away of wrath by an offering.   This verse is saying that it is better to obey than to make a sacrifice later in repentance.   Disobeying what God wants me to do is a far greater sin than occult and idolatry.   In Saul’s situation, he lost his kingship.   

Application:  There an old saying I have heard in the business world: “It is better to ask for forgiveness later than for permission.”    I realize that the saying is wrong.  It is better to ask first and obey, than to seek forgiveness or give a sacrificial offering.   I see this from many sides.

1.  I have learned that it is better to not eat the unhealthy (too much or too poor a quality of food) AND to keep physically active instead of doing nothing.  These two actions equal obedience for my physical self.  If I do chose the unhealthy, that means I need to sacrifice to make up for the choice to overindulge.  When I was losing the 116 pounds, I needed to sacrifice or “uneat” (my word) the food.  I am thankful that the Lord was there to help me uneat and exercise to burn off the overindulgence in my past life.
2.  When I communicate with my words, I speak before I think.  I need God’s filter on my words.  I need to seek him and obey what he tells me to say.  I am forever working on this.  Just when I think I am better, I learn that I have stumbled.  Thankfully, God puts people in my life to help me see the truth.

I want to be obedient so that I do not have to sacrifice! 

Prayer:  Lord Almighty, forgive me for my actions and words that have negatively affected others as well as myself.  You are the Lord of my life and I want to live that out each moment.  Help me Lord to know your will.  I want to be obedient.    Thank you Lord, you have provided a multitude of blessings in my life.  Amen.

Perseverance Titus 2:11-14

Scripture:  Titus 2:11-14
11 For the grace of God has appeared that offers salvation to all people.12 It teaches us to say "No" to ungodliness and worldly passions, and to live self-controlled, upright and godly lives in this present age,13 while we wait for the blessed hope—the appearing of the glory of our great God and Savior, Jesus Christ,14 who gave himself for us to redeem us from all wickedness and to purify for himself a people that are his very own, eager to do what is good.

Observation:  First, there is the awareness of God’s grace and salvation. Then, with that gift, we learn to recognize that we need to say “No” to our sinful desires.  We are taking action in saying “No” we are obeying.  We are controlling ourselves by living upright and godly lives.  Last, the waiting until Christ comes in verse 13 is also addressed at the end of verse 14, eager to do what is good is done while we wait.

Application:  First, as we become aware, I need to read the bible, study the bible, worship and disciple in my First Place group.  The second action is to do what I learn, eagerly do good and just as important to say “No” to what is sinful.   I need to stay in tune with God so I know what is sinful.  Finally, I need to persevere, as these actions are to take place until Jesus is revealed.

Prayer:  Lord, I fall short every day.  I am not consistent.   I hear, I write, and yet I do not always do.  Lord Almighty, reveal to me always what you want me to do.  Help me so I honor you with all I do. Amen.

How is God speaking to you through this verse?