Accountability is inconvenient. Most of us know this. If it wasn’t, more people would be doing it. Sure, there are some incredible programs out there that make accountability much, much easier than it would otherwise be (such as X3Watch), but in general, the more accountable you want to be, the more you have to be willing to make sacrifices in the area of convenience.
It’s inconvenient to have to tell someone about your struggles and ask them to help you, to hold on to some passwords for you, or to ask you some personal questions each day.
It’s inconvenient to have software in place that limits your access to the internet or requires a little more of your time to get to the web pages you want to view.
It’s inconvenient to have to delete all of the internet-browsing apps from your phone and to restrict app downloading with a password held by someone else.
It’s true—accountability can be pretty inconvenient. Just “dealing with it” or “handling it on my own” and hoping for the best is a much easier way out.
Or IS it?
Trying to deal with sexual addictions alone may seem easier at first, but this “convenience” actually comes with a ridiculously high price-tag—from constant guilt and shame, inability to function through the day, and lack of motivation, all the way to the possible loss of your job, loss of your family, and worst of all—a disconnected relationship with God.
Considering the consequences of a life consumed by sexual addictions, which is actually more inconvenient? Is an inconvenient conversation or some extra time and effort added to your schedule to allow for accountability worth it to avoid the serious inconvenience of a derailed life? I think most of us would agree that it is.
This is what the Bible is talking about in Matthew 5:28-30: “But I tell you that anyone who looks at a woman lustfully has already committed adultery with her in his heart. If your right eye causes you to stumble, gouge it out and throw it away. It is better for you to lose one part of your body than for your whole body to be thrown into hell. And if your right hand causes you to stumble, cut it off and throw it away. It is better for you to lose one part of your body than for your whole body to go into hell.”
That’s pretty intense. Now, the passage isn’t necessarily saying that we need to literally cut off these body parts, but what it is saying is that we need to be taking DRASTIC and INCONVENIENT action to prevent the possibility of messing up in these areas. Why? Because this kind of inconvenience would be nothing compared to the inconvenience of the consequence the verse mentions—putting your eternal destiny in jeopardy.
So, what drastic and inconvenient action can you take to ensure accountability and freedom in your life? If having a computer in a private location causes you to stumble, get it out of there! If it’s having the internet available to you at home or on your mobile device, get rid of it, or take the necessary steps to limit access to it! Actions like this may seem extreme, but when compared to gouging out eyes and amputating hands… you get the idea.
These actions may sound “inconvenient,” but they’ll seem like pure joy when compared to the inconveniences and consequences you’ll be avoiding.
Are you taking these steps for accountability and freedom in your own life? What about the lives of those whom you lead/influence? Are you encouraging them to do the same? Remember, we don’t live in a vacuum; what we do (and don’t do) doesn’t simply affect us—it impacts those around us as well.
I pray we will all be willing to take these drastic and inconvenient actions in our lives. In the end—it’s not inconvenience at all.
It’s freedom. It’s hope. It’s joy.