Consistency and Accountability

Three months ago my wife and I celebrated our 10^th wedding anniversary.  Planning to get away was very awkward during a pandemic, but we settled on a short trip to Collingwood.  While having dinner on a patio right by the water, a car with five young men drove in and parked.  Four passengers got out and stretched, then walked over to where the life jackets were.  They were all going jet skiing.  The driver stayed in the driver seat for a few minutes then opened the trunk, pulled out a large mat and laid it out on the pavement in the parking spot next to his car.  Just then, the other four men came back with their life jackets with one for the driver.  I sat in my seat watching them.  It turns out they were Muslims.  The five men kneeled on the mat facing East and spent a few minutes in prayer before going out on their jet skis.  To me, that was a lesson in consistency.  No matter where you are, no matter what you are doing, no matter how you feel, you can spend five times per day in prayer.

This also reminds me of a video I saw many years ago.  I have a friend from high school who is an aspiring bodybuilder and motivational speaker.  He has a strong social media presence where he talks about his journey and motivates his followers to follow their dreams.  I will never forget one of his first videos.  The exact title eludes me right now and I can no longer find it online; however, in the video he lets the viewers in on a little secret.  He even speaks to the camera in a hush whisper as if it’s just “the one viewer” and him in a two-way intimate conversation – this highlights a comedic characteristic to his motivational videos. In this short video, he explains how body builders get so big and fit; how their muscles get toned and how they exert such control over their body.  “Consistency”, he says in low whisper, as he gets real close to the camera, as if he doesn’t want anyone else to hear him.   Again, no matter how you feel, no matter what else you have going on, make time for the gym and go hard.  To date, he has participated in numerous body building competitions and is often confused for ‘The Rock’ or ‘Vin Diesel’ in public. 

In the book of Daniel, we learn how consistent Daniel was in his relationship with God.  Daniel was taken from his home land, Judah, by king Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon and brought to Babylon to work for him.   Daniel and his three friends, who were Jews, were chosen to work for the king because they were of the royal family and very intelligent.  Over the years, God showed Daniel and his three friends great favour and thus they held very high leadership positions in Babylon. 

I would like to pause here for a moment to make special mention of three things.  Firstly, Daniel was taken from Judah, not Israel.  The story of how Israel was divided into Judah and Jerusalem is a message or a write up all on its own and stresses the important of mentorship.

Secondly, Judah was raided by the King of Babylon, and Daniel and his three friends were basically taken as slaves to work for the king; however, it is very important to point out how God’s people are shown favour and blessed with influence and power even in their captivity. 

Thirdly, the names of Daniel’s friends were Hannniah, Mishael, and Azariah.  When they were stolen from Judah, the king of Babylon changed their names to be more reflective of the Babylonian gods.  Sound familiar?  Daniel’s name was changed to belteshazzar, Hannaniah to shadrach, Mishael to meshack, Azaraiah to abednego.  For the purposes of this text, I will use their original Jewish names; Daniel, Hannaniah, Mishael and Azariah. 

Now back to the story. 

Daniel was promoted so many times that he became the boss in some respects and many of the leaders native to Babylon had to report to Daniel.  They were jealous.  They sought ways to have him charged and “removed from office” but could not find anything.  Daniel was without fault. 

Daniel consistently prayed to God three times every day.  He would go up to his prayer room and pray out loud with the windows open.  The people that reported to him were aware of this and knew how consistent he was and how much it meant to him to have his prayer time every day.  They decided to use this against Daniel and approached King Darius to pass a law declaring that if anyone prayed to any god other than King Darius for the next 30 days, they would be thrown into the lion’s den.  (If you were wondering who King Darius is and what happened to King Belshazzar or Nebuchadnezzar; King Nebuchadnezzar went “mad” and Belshazzar took over, but soon died, then King Darius took over.  Yes, Daniel outlasted two kings.  Three actually, but the last one is beyond the scope of this post).  The king signed the declaration and it became law. Daniel was aware of this and yet remained consistent.  He went up to his prayer room and prayed with the windows open.  In those days, once the king made this type of law, it could not be changed.  Darius considered Daniel a friend and that night, when Daniel was thrown into the lion’s den, Darius was inconsolable.  The next morning Daniel walked out of the lion’s den unharmed. God had saved him again.  Again, Daniel was consistent, and God consistently showed his favour towards him.

As I read this story to my two youngest children before bed and teach them the importance of being consistent, I am reminded of how inconsistent I am.  I know how important it is to read to my children every day, and how much they enjoy it.  I try to read them a bedtime story each night, but depending on the events of the day, I’m tired and I don’t always read to them.  I am even inconsistent in reading my bible and praying every day.  One thing I love about the Bible.com app is that it tracks daily activity and counts the amount of times I have read the bible 7 days straight in a year. I try to read a few chapters or read a devotional and reflect and pray on what it’s saying.  Sometimes, I forget and wake up in the middle of night to read for the day or I wake up the next morning upset with myself for not reading and praying the day before.  So far this year, at the end of September I have read seven days straight 25 times and am currently on a four-day reading streak.  I enjoy writing these blogs or experiences as they force me to read, pray and reflect. 

A few weeks ago I heard a pastor mention in his message, the importance of being consistent with the four things that matter most each day.  Our health, our family and spouse, our education and finances and our relationship with Christ.  Every day we must do something for our personal health like exercise and eat healthy.  At the beginning of this pandemic a close friend of mine challenged me to do 100 push ups in 5 minutes every day.  We would record ourselves doing them and send them to each other to see each other’s progress and form.  When we started, I could only do 70 in 5 minutes. Now I am at 100 in less than 2.5 minutes.  Consistency gives results. 

My wife and I are taking a marriage course online that is curated by themarriagecourse.org through a local church.  It encourages couples to be consistent in carving out special times just for the two to talk, do something fun or have crucial conversations to maintain the spark and intimacy.  This is very difficult with home schooling two of three kids with both of us working full time, running a business, and each child in different extracurricular activities with different schedules.  However, this time around, the past few weeks have been fun and beneficial because of our decision to be consistent.

Both my wife and I work in accounting and staying current with the latest news in finance or changes to government programs and deadlines are paramount. So we try to read up on the news and stay abreast of financial updates through articles, magazines and ongoing education.  Consistency. 

And, of course, reading the bible, reflecting and prayer goes without even having to say it.  Another thing I love about the Bible.com app is the social media aspect.  The ability to invite friends to reading plans, share messages and notes are great for involving others, staying engaged and having them hold you accountable.

An effort to remain consistent requires accountability.  We all have lives and stuff happens.  Life never goes according to plan.  This is why we have friends, family and people we trust; to share our life, plans, goals and aspirations with.  They hold us accountable and encourage us. These people are necessary.  The question is, “Who do you have holding you accountable?” Because if it’s not your friends, family or someone you trust, then just like in Daniel’s case, your enemies will.

Andrew

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