Blame and Credit

“My” Pahthers won !!!

Well they aren’t actually my Panthers, they are the Carolina Panthers but I am going to take credit for the win. Since they won, I am going to bathe in the glory of the win and associate their name with mine. Last week though, “they” lost. Those darn Panthers lost. They weren’t My Panthers then. When they win, I am willing to take credit for the win but when they lose it is all their fault.

That seems to be the norm these days. Whenever something good happens, we want all the credit but when things go sour, it is someone else’s fault. I have a little joke that I say at work from time to time. People are always afraid of getting fired and I tell them that I am not afraid of it. Seriously I know I could always find another job but this is what I tell them.

If I quit, I have to go home and tell my wife and family that I gave up a perfectly good job and lets just say I won’t be on Their “good” list this Christmas. There might even be some negative words spoken about me in the discussion. However if I go home and tell them that I got laid off, then my boss is the bad guy. I would probably get some sympathetic hugs, a pep talk and we would come up with a plan.
If I get a raise then I earned it but if I don’t get a raise then those guys didn’t give it to me. Whenever something positive happens we are willing to step up to the plate and take full credit but when something negative happens we go searching for someone to blame.

We went to a new Church this week and I really liked it. It might be a little too modern for some and too uplifting for some others but I liked the atmosphere. The sermon was great with a Christmas theme, a good solid message and even a little humor thrown in. Part of the message though was about Credit and how we humans are willing to take credit for anything good that happens in our lives. On the other hand though, when something goes bad we turn the credit into blame and go looking for someone to blame. Often times in a crisis situation we can’t find anyone to blame but ourselves. In these times instead of taking credit or blame for our situation we often turn to God and blame him for what has happened.

People are always asking: “How could God let the bad things happen in the world?” We forget to ask: “what did I do to deserve the good things that happen in my life?” Or: “What did I do wrong to let these bad things happen?” If we turn the tables on who is to blame for the bad things that happen and who should get the credit when things go right, maybe the world would be a better place to live. If we take the blame when things go bad in our lives then we can take actions to make them better. I do want to be a better person but the only one that can make my life better is Me.

The truth is I have nothing to do with the Carolina Panthers. I couldn’t tell you the name of a single player or who the coach is or where they stand in the rankings. I really don’t watch a lot of sports at all. I don’t participate in a lot of sports because I am not very good at them. I chose to do other things besides practice. I decided not to play and it is totally my fault for not being any good at them. I concentrated on other areas when I was younger.

It’s a new day today and the sun is shining. It is a little cold for my taste but then that takes care of the mosquitoes. Today I am going to thank God for the good things in my life and not dwell on the negatives. Positive is so much nicer. I would like to take credit for the lovely scene above but instead I Thank God.