Shifting the Blame

Life seemed a lot simpler then.  No cities.  No roads. No congestion. Just a garden. No rain. Perfect temperatures.  No crime.  No violence.  And two people.  Adam and Eve.  How could anything go wrong? Perfection in its truest sense.

Yet one day, as we read in Genesis Chapter 3, things changed dramatically.  It all had to do with an apple, a serpent, and a man and women walking through the garden.  God had given some garden rules: They could eat fruit from the trees in the garden, but they must not eat fruit from the tree that was in the middle of the garden.  They couldn't even touch it or they'd die.  Adam and Eve knew that God meant business.  But as the woman saw that the fruit of the tree was good for food and pleasing to the eye, and desirable for gaining wisdom, she took some and ate it. She also gave some to her hubby and he had a helping too!  Life as they knew it would never be the same.

All at once, God shows up unannounced.  Uh oh.  If you had siblings, you know what it was like to make sure your parents knew it was THEIR fault, not yours.  Well, Adam was pretty savvy in shifting the blame back in garden days. In Genesis 3:12 "The woman you put here with me- she gave me some fruit from the tree and I ate it." Not only did he shift the responsibility to Eve, but to God as well.
It seems there is a message for us. Why do we always want to blame the other guy?  What is it about pointing the finger to others, not to self? No one likes to be wrong, including me. I hate to have to admit to my husband one more time that he's right on a certain matter. Shifting blame to others is often a good sign that we have a prideful heart.  when we walk in humility, we find it easier to say "I'm so sorry, I blew it.  Will you forgive me?" 

 

We also are good at blaming non-humans for our actions.  Let's say you show up at a work meeting 15 minutes late.  Traffic is bad, but not that bad.  To be honest, you left 15 minutes late.  You run into the meeting huffing and puffing, blaming your lateness totally on the bad traffic, never thinking to admit you were late because you were late.  Why not accept responsibility for being late, and make a point to leave earlier next time?  We try to do everything we can to make ourselves look good, all the while lacking honesty and responsibility.

As you start this day, take some time for reflection.  How have you tended to blame others for things that really are your issues?  Acknowledge your own weaknesses.  We all have them, right? Practice the beautiful art of humility.  Own your stuff.

"When we make a conscious effort to accept responsibility for our own blunders and offer grace when others do the same we gain inner peace, freedom from the burden of guilt and become truly blameless in the eyes of God."  Rae Lynn

"The search for a scapegoat is the easiest of all hunting expeditions."  Dwight D. Eisenhower''

Nancy Abbott is the Chaplain for the YMCA of Greater San Antonio.