StemCell Therapy

As Jesus went along, he saw a man blind from his birth. And his disciples asked him, "Rabbi, who sinned, this man or his parents, that he was born blind?" John 9:1-2

In life, some things are useful and others aren't. Blaming one's circumstances, one's birth right, one's parents, one's environment, for what kind of work we do or what kinds of faults we have is astonishingly useless. It is useless, misleading and harmful because it takes a person in a direction where there is almost no help for them -- almost no way for them to claim the inner power and the freedom that God has built into their very souls.

Another thing that is often equally useless -- equally misleading and equally harmful -- is trying to determine who is to blame for another person's misfortune. How often we have seen someone on the news -- or perhaps even a neighbor -- enduring one hardship after another and then heard others talking about the situation and saying things like: "Well, it is very unfortunate, but if the family only knew how to budget better they wouldn't be in that mess."

Or "It's sad, but what can they expect, they never look after themselves properly -- and they certainly don't take care of each other."

Or "They never had a chance - their parents were just the same."

Assigning blame for one's own misfortune (or for the misfortune of others) is virtually a national sport.

Who sinned? Who is at fault? What caused the problem? These can be good questions. Diagnosis is a very important thing -- as anyone who has gone to a doctor knows. But diagnosis by itself accomplishes nothing. It is what we do afterward that matters -- what we do afterward, and, just as importantly, what we do during diagnosis and what we do even before diagnosis is attempted. It is almost like seeing a person with a flat tire and saying, "Yep, that tire's flat!" and then walking away.

Today we are surrounded by people who live in worlds of blame and bitterness. In the end, the disciples' question about the man born blind is answered in how Jesus responded to that man and what he did as he defended Jesus as the source of his healing -- and then confessed Jesus as his Lord and worshipped him. Why, was he born blind?

"That the works of God might be made manifest in him," is Jesus' response.

This week this world can be full of the news of senseless tragedies: Fault and blame can easily be assigned -- but that is not what is needed. There is blame. There is blindness. And there is blessing. The only thing that can hold us back from experiencing the healing power of God in our lives is our own attachment to blame and our fondness for bitterness.

Time to end the blame game.

Editor's note: The Rev. Dr. Scott Stewart is the pastor of Pea Ridge United Methodist Church and Brightwater Methodist Church. The opinions expressed are those of the writer. He can be contacted at revjstewart@gmail.com or 479-659-9519.

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Time to end the Blame Game - NWAOnline

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