Good Morning Friends,
“God said, ‘Have you eaten from the tree that
I commanded you not to eat from?’ The man said, ‘The woman you put here with me
– she gave me some fruit from the tree, and I ate it.’ Then the Lord God said
to the woman, ‘What is this you have done?’ The woman said, ‘The serpent
deceived me, and I ate.’” (Genesis 3:11-13)
The blame game is as old as mankind and still
as prevalent today as it has ever been.
Adam and Eve faced the first sin that they
brought into the world by turning to the blame game. Adam blamed Eve – “she
gave me some fruit.” Adam blamed God – “The woman you put here with me.” Eve
blamed the serpent – “The serpent deceived me.” Everyone found someone else to blame.
I’ve played the blame game as long as I can
remember and there have always been others on whom to the lay the blame for my
sins. Early in life I had my sisters to blame. Later there were classmates and
friends. When I married Claudia I found someone new to blame for the problems that
were in me. Bringing children into the world brought new culprits to name.
Today there are co-workers, friends, parents, government, bosses, financial
advisors, and so many others from which to choose. I can blame all of them at
one point or another. As long as the blame doesn’t point back toward me I can
justify what I’ve done.
I know I’m not alone in playing the blame
game. You play it, too. We all do. We always have. And yet, the blame game
never works. It is never the solution to our problems. In fact, it heads us in
the opposite direction from the help we need. The Apostle John reminded us, “If
we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and
purify us from all unrighteousness.” (1 John 1:9)
When we choose to play the blame game, we
move further and further away from the cleansing that we need. It’s only when
we choose to step up to the plate and accept responsibility for the wrong for
which we are guilty that God pours out His cleansing.
His, by Grace,
Steve
No comments:
Post a Comment