Determination.

Determination.
With God, all things are possible. So buckle up, show up, and NEVER give up.

Monday, April 29, 2013

Personal Accountability: The Only Solution

Before I say anything to my point in this entry, let it be known that I fully acknowledge this subject matter to still be a massive work in progress for me, personally. Despite the best efforts of parents, teachers, or other role models, I have a long way to go in fully realizing the extent to which I can and should accept personal responsibility in my own life. I also lack the consistency of applying that on an everyday basis. But, that being said, I have learned something about it in recent years, and have been very encouraged by the idea that one takes more in life under their own "control" when they accept responsibility and choose to be accountable for their results. As leadership expert Claude Hamilton has pointed out (and I'm paraphrasing slightly), "If you choose not to accept responsibility for things in life, you give away all the potential to do something about what bothers you." It's also been said, by Chris Mattis, if not others, that "leaders accept all the blame and none of the praise."

The reason for bringing up this topic - which gives me cause to revisit my blog with a public expression for the first time in almost the full year since creating it - is because the lack of this seems to be everywhere in American society.

It can be found in many areas of life, if you just go around and listen to people speak around you. You'll hear people blame the economy for their crappy job. You'll hear them blame their upbringing for their poor attitude or emotional immaturity. Poor fitness? Oh, it's all those darn fast food places and relentless TV advertising getting me! Unhappy marriage? Well, my spouse does this or never does that...they don't pull their weight at home...they won't hold up their end of the bargain. Poor spiritual life and disinterest in church? Acch, I saw people "do the church thing" when I was growing up and they were a bunch of hypocrites. 

Now I'm not saying that there can't exist some elements in truth to these scapegoats of ours, when we assign the culpability to other factors in our varying demises. Sure, it's unfortunate that on every corner in any major town on the map there are tempting food venues that sell unhealthy options. Yes, you're right that if your home life while growing up was a volatile or abusive place, you've been affected negatively by that. And, absolutely, if a world full of supposedly religious people show no fruit of that faith in their own lives, people will take that as advertising to not live that way themselves. But all these contributing factors are merely stimuli that create opportunity for the development of our attitudes and, ultimately, our worldview.

The biggest example of this lack of personal accountability in America today, however, is, in my opinion, politically. I'm not even talking about whether folks choose to be politically inclined or not - though that's a deep and interesting topic for another time, perhaps. What I mean is, why is it that everyone wants to point their fingers at the symptoms in society when they make an argument for legislation or a certain aspect of the governmental structure. Our most vivid, fairly recent cases in point come courtesy of the fallout from the tragedies in the shootings this past year - the Aurora, Colorado movie theater and the Sandy Hook Elementary School in Connecticut. I can't tell you how many times I've seen clips online of politicians fielding angry comments from citizens who want guns banned from our midst. They run up against the "We can't violate the constitutional right to bear arms!" argument and they lividly insist that we should throw away such things for the sake of our children's safety.

I just wish that more people understood that, when our world has become as darkened a place as it has, spiritually and morally, there's no stopping the effects of that root cause. You take away the guns, and evil people will turn to explosives from the black market, or even more terroristic methods like chemical releases and the like. What Americans are largely not seeing today is that these horrible things that headline our news almost monthly (sometimes even weekly) cannot be silenced by simply removing the tools of destruction. This mentality makes its way into so many other areas of life, until we get to the point where anyone you bump into on the sidewalk will readily agree that our country's in a bad way, societally - yet so few will quickly follow that up with "We've got to do something as a citizenry to get values and morality back into our midst."

For anyone reading this who is squeamish over the idea of one more sermon from someone who's using the internet as his pulpit for a virtual captive audience, that's not where I'm going with this. I will say, in specific, that morality is straightened out from spiritual peace found in a firm foundation, and that, for me and millions in our country, begins with the Lord Jesus Christ, whose wisdom for living and message of forgiveness is found in the Holy Bible. But, more generally, I just want to make the point that getting back to values as a society is the only way to fight the tide of evil that's been running rampant in our country, resulting in the symptoms of horrifying crimes that wind up highlighting our evening newscasts.

So, what's all that got to do with personal accountability, Jeff? I'll tell you what. It all starts with you. And it all starts with me. The turnaround begins with each individual in this once great nation deciding to take a stand against what's easy, what's lazy, what's wrong ethically, or wrong in whatever way is currently in front of you. While it may seem hard to imagine one person changing a violent and hateful culture that wants to indulge all their dark passions, live out the fantasies of disgusting video games and movies, and simply be a retaliatory figure against all one sees that offends them, imagine instead a whole family choosing to be new in this resolve. Then a whole neighborhood or community, whose awareness increased because of that family's involvement or public intervention and love shown to others. Then a whole region or state... And with that happening in communities or states all across our nation, it can positively affect our country, in time, residually. The point is, this is where it starts. Not with a governor or congressman. Not with a Supreme Court Justice. With you, me, and all the countless people we talk to each day and have the chance to make meaningful impacts on.

How does that look in your own life? I can't possibly make that prescriptive application for you. But would it be a good start for us to take a look at the things that compose our habits and pastimes? Do we engage in uplifting activities, or do we feed drama and use getaways to medicate the stresses of life? Do we come home from that long day at work, sit in front of the tube with supper on a TV tray, and then go tuck the kids in and start over tomorrow the same....? Or do we sit down around that table and have purposeful discussion, carefully and caringly converse with and get to know our kids, passionately showing them we want to know their issues, and imparting to them the principles that bring success in life, and then reinforcing it with quality time? Do we hold a standard on what gets listened to, watched on TV, or played on a video game console? Do we encourage them to build real friendships with their peers and get into sports or hobbies that teach them personal excellence and teamwork?

Basically, do we pay attention to all the items in life that are seemingly ordinary, run-of-the-mill choices, and decide intentionally that the choice will zero in on being a part of the solution? I hope so....Because each time we make up our mind to be excellent, well-informed, and to embody the source of solution and positive influence, we create a droplet that falls into this American ocean. The droplet is small, but ripples will find beaches in all directions.

I hope this has been thought-provoking and inspirational. I hate to say that I still don't live it as much as I want to every day, but I'm a man who burns inside to see this country remain a place of freedom, opportunity, and blessing for the next generations, among which are my own two sons. I, for one, will stick my neck out there every time in efforts to suggest to my world around me how we all can do this right together, and, as Henry David-Thoreau said, "BE the change you want to see." It may sound idealistic, but there was once a time when great ideals were what led our forefathers to break away from tyranny and shed their own blood in the cause of a land of the free, and the home of the brave. Ask yourself, "If we don't try this method, has the alternative (i.e. leaving it all to someone else, government or otherwise) been working?" It's a fight worth fighting, folks. Let's make the tough choices and make a difference in our country!

Thank you for reading. God bless. If this has inspired you, please PLEASE get your hands on a copy of "LeaderShift" by best-selling authors Orrin Woodward and Oliver DeMille. There are real answers out there for all who are ready to try a new solution!