The blame game...

Things went from bad to worse after Saul's partial obedience and self deception (see Tuesday's post.) When Samuel questioned the fact that he heard the sounds of sheep and cattle - the proof that Saul had not carried out God's instructions - Saul responded by justifying his partial obedience and also by blaming others for what had happened. He said that it was "the soldiers" who kept some of the animals. Notice how he uses the third person for the disobedient part - "they spared the animals" - and the first person for the partially obedient part: "we totally destroyed all the rest." He's happy to take any credit that might possibly be due, but he's not willing to take the blame or the responsibility for where there's been failure or disobedience. (1 Samuel 15 vs 14 - 21)

It can be so easy to blame others for the things that don't work out in life. We might not be so blatant as to blame them for what we ourselves have actually done,  but perhaps we try to shift some of the responsibility for a project's failure as a whole: this or that would have worked out if my team mates had been more committed; we would have seen greater success if there had been more support from our friends; there would have been a bigger turnout if the PR person had done a better job… and so it goes on.

Before pointing the finger at others, it is so important to check with the Lord what our own area of responsibility is. We all have blind spots, and perhaps God is not blessing a project or plan because of our own character weakness, or because the vision wasn't His idea in the first place. 

Let's ask for His perspective first. The good news is that God doesn't blame or shame us. Even if He points out areas where we need to take responsibility for our own sin or failure, he also offers us, at the same time, a second chance and new hope for the future.