As the new year kicks off I am reminded of all the ways I would like to see improvement in my life and in the others around me. How can I continue to grow and see awesome change in the people I interact with? I believe responsibility can play a huge role in this. Often times when we hear the word responsibility we think of the things we are immediately held responsible for, whether you are in leadership of a family, a company, or even a nation, we all have different levels of responsibility we bare. From the  beginning God created humans to have and share responsibility.

And God blessed them. And God said to them, “Be fruitful and multiply and fill the earth and subdue it and have dominion over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the heavens and over every living thing that moves on the earth.” -Genesis 1:28

The problem we have, just as Adam and Eve did, is that we tend to shy away from responsibility when things go south. We hate to take ownership of short comings that fall within our responsibility and try to hide and disguise our failures. This can become problematic when it takes place across a community. Without responsible leaders we have no one to uphold justice and righteousness. Without justice and righteousness evil cannot be contained and sin can find every which way into our hearts.

The responsibility of one person is good, but the responsibility of a community is even better.

For each will have to bear his own load. – Galatians 6:5

It allows a system of accountability to take place and encourages community members to live up to the duties they have. Those duties could be everything from a neighborhood watch to leading a homeowners association. The idea is that once people truly start being responsible for their actions,  a community can be responsible as well. This all has to start within each one of us. I have to be responsible for my part which means understanding the role I have to play in my community. As you create those new year resolutions, think and pray about the ways God might be calling you to take more responsibility or possibly managing your current responsibilities better with less blame and a more humble attitude. The change can go beyond you and can have a lasting impact on the community you are immersed in.