Reading Less Clutter, Less Noise, I came across a great sub-point about responsibility. Too often we feel like we are responsible for other people’s spiritual growth. The reality is that Jesus has called us to be responsible to people regarding their spiritual lives. It’s our responsibility to help others and give them opportunities to go, but we are not responsible for their growth. That’s between them and God.

Here are two quotes from Mark Waltz (as quoted in Less Clutter, Less Noise about the freedom we have when we are responsible to people, not for people:

“When I’m responsible to people, I know they must figure out their next step. When I’m responsible for people, I try to tell them what their next step is….

When I’m responsible to people, I talk to God on their behalf. When I’m responsible for people, I talk to people a lot on God’s behalf.”

Let me ask you: Do you feel like you are responsible to people or for people?