No , not that word…

I'm talking about accountability.

Everyone loves to talk about having it, and people love to give it, but no one really wants to be on the receiving end of it. Thats natural. 

I wouldn't say I like it when my friends call me out for talking down on myself when I make mistakes (even though I took a personal vow to speak life) 

I don't like it when my husband holds me to my trading rules and promoting my products. 

He doesn't like it when I tell him he's had too many slices of cake (yes, I'm chuckling)

Sometimes, it's easy to hold yourself accountable to areas you have clarity and ease in. For instance, I held myself accountable to writing you this email. 

In other aspects, accountability sucks, especially when you're in the middle of whatever comfort zone you're riding in for the season. 

When you're called to better, that word will come for you. 

I'm a personal believer that accountability is a fruit of wisdom; however, it comes with caveats:  

Accountability without compassion and understanding can come off as abrasive and arrogant, 

Accountability without self-conviction and the desire to refine from within can quickly be received as an offense. 

Offense causes a person or group to detach and seek out people who agree with whatever for the sake of comfort. 

This is dangerous, so I believe accountability should always be paired with love. 

The truth is we all need accountability. The Bible tells us, the heart is deceitful (Jeremiah 17:9), and that a man makes his plans, but God directs them (Proverbs 16:9). No one person is without blind spots. This is why we need one another 

For me, spending time with God, testing/writing recipes, trading, and working out yields the fruit of self-discipline, the desire to refine and grow. With that, I believe we are gifted one another to help water and hone each other as we do so. 

Let's talk about honing. The scripture says that iron sharpens iron, so a friend sharpens a friend (Prov 27:17), which makes a lot of sense to me since I'm a chef. After continued use of my knife, chopping vegetables, scoring meat, etc., it begins to develop microscopic nicks in the high carbon steel (I will teach the significance of this material another day), called burrs. These burrs can build up and compromise the effectiveness of the knife. Most would call it dull. Dull doesn't mean it isn't still useful. To counteract this condition, you use a steel, a long metal rod with fine groves, to run against your knife at a 45º angle. It makes an incredibly noisy and scratchy sound and subsequently knocks the burrs off the knife. This process is called honing. After honing, you can wipe the burrs away with a towel and return to using your sharp knife. Accountability can be itchy, painful, and uncomfortable, but it makes you much more effective. 

You may not know it, but you're my accountability in sharing the wisdom, insights, recipes, etc. God gives me. 

 I encourage you to listen and spend time with your friends who hold you accountable even when it stings. They won't let you stay where you are if they love you. If you look around and see stagnancy in those around you, it may be time to re-evaluate that group and find people who are invested in your growth and their own. 

I hope this helps you in your growth journey, whatever that might be!

Until Next time...

Arica