Not my fault?

(06.14.21– Not My Fault! – Galatians 6: 4-5)

My friend, may I ask you a question? As foolish as this sounds, are we quick to blame others for imagined or real faults that may be our own in the first place? Just like a right-handed person blaming his bad fortune on getting up on the wrong sided of the bed or because someone treated him in a "left-handed" way? Has blame consumed our lives with mistruths and broken friendships?

My friend, Life’s a story, welcome to This Passing Day.

I'm M. Clifford Brunner.

Left field gets a lot of abuse. Perhaps it's because the concept of "left" itself has been so maligned. I read recently about an old superstition that goes back hundreds of years regarding "getting up on the right side of the bed." How many times have you heard that? It goes back to a time when Christians felt that the right side of anything was the blessed side and the left side was the side through which the devil worked. Getting up on the left side of the bed opened the door to all the devil's mischief. The superstition goes back to the Latin term for left, "sinter", from which we get our English word, "sinister." But, the superstition goes even further. We often call behavior that is unfair or unethical a "left-handed" act. Once again, the willingness to label or blame bad behavior as something that originates from the left side of the body.

Here's a story from Don McCullough: "John Killinger tells about the manager of a minor league baseball team who was so disgusted with his left fielder's performance that he ordered him to the dugout and assumed the position himself. The first ball that came into left field took a bad hop and hit the manager in the mouth. The next one was a high fly ball, which he lost in the glare of the sun–until it bounced off his forehead. The third was a hard line drive that he charged with outstretched arms; unfortunately, it flew between his hands and smacked his eye. Furious, he ran back to the dugout, grabbed the left fielder by the uniform, and shouted. ‘You idiot! You've got left field so messed up that even I can't do a thing with it!'" (Don McCullough, Discipleship Journal.)

As foolish as this sounds, when we are quick to blame others for imagined or real faults, we sound just as foolish; just like a right-handed person blaming his bad fortune on getting up on the wrong sided of the bed or because someone treated him in a "left-handed" way. The problem with blame is us. We get so busy looking for faults in others that we completely overlook our own. Instead of lifting others up, we tear them down. There is only one man who ever lived who could make the claim of personal perfection, Jesus Christ. And, who knows? Perhaps He may have been, left-handed?

We pray. Heavenly Father, we so often look to others to find the fault in us that we are just not willing to see. We find it easy to do because it is so convenient to survey the faults of others and put them before our own. Forgive us when we lay the blame for our own shortcomings and mistakes at the doorstep of another. Help us dear Father to be able to be patient when things go wrong giving us a moment to self examine and discover how the fault may very well lie in our own behavior or result from our own inadequacies. Make us able to grow from our mistakes and not be quick to blame others. In Jesus name we pray. Amen!

Therefore my friend, do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry for itself; each day has enough trouble of its own. (Matt 6:34) This Passing Day. May this passing day honor our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ and be a blessing to you and everyone you meet. Find a stranger and say hello. Don't let another day pass without your day blessing someone else.

If you have a special prayer request, please send your request to ”This Passing Day!”

<thispassingday@gmail.com> From Beech Springs, God bless you for Jesus sake.

Not my fault?

(06.14.21– Not My Fault! – Galatians 6: 4-5)

My friend, may I ask you a question? As foolish as this sounds, are we quick to blame others for imagined or real faults that may be our own in the first place? Just like a right-handed person blaming his bad fortune on getting up on the wrong sided of the bed or because someone treated him in a "left-handed" way? Has blame consumed our lives with mistruths and broken friendships?

My friend, Life’s a story, welcome to This Passing Day.

I'm M. Clifford Brunner.

Left field gets a lot of abuse. Perhaps it's because the concept of "left" itself has been so maligned. I read recently about an old superstition that goes back hundreds of years regarding "getting up on the right side of the bed." How many times have you heard that? It goes back to a time when Christians felt that the right side of anything was the blessed side and the left side was the side through which the devil worked. Getting up on the left side of the bed opened the door to all the devil's mischief. The superstition goes back to the Latin term for left, "sinter", from which we get our English word, "sinister." But, the superstition goes even further. We often call behavior that is unfair or unethical a "left-handed" act. Once again, the willingness to label or blame bad behavior as something that originates from the left side of the body.

Here's a story from Don McCullough: "John Killinger tells about the manager of a minor league baseball team who was so disgusted with his left fielder's performance that he ordered him to the dugout and assumed the position himself. The first ball that came into left field took a bad hop and hit the manager in the mouth. The next one was a high fly ball, which he lost in the glare of the sun–until it bounced off his forehead. The third was a hard line drive that he charged with outstretched arms; unfortunately, it flew between his hands and smacked his eye. Furious, he ran back to the dugout, grabbed the left fielder by the uniform, and shouted. ‘You idiot! You've got left field so messed up that even I can't do a thing with it!'" (Don McCullough, Discipleship Journal.)

As foolish as this sounds, when we are quick to blame others for imagined or real faults, we sound just as foolish; just like a right-handed person blaming his bad fortune on getting up on the wrong sided of the bed or because someone treated him in a "left-handed" way. The problem with blame is us. We get so busy looking for faults in others that we completely overlook our own. Instead of lifting others up, we tear them down. There is only one man who ever lived who could make the claim of personal perfection, Jesus Christ. And, who knows? Perhaps He may have been, left-handed?

We pray. Heavenly Father, we so often look to others to find the fault in us that we are just not willing to see. We find it easy to do because it is so convenient to survey the faults of others and put them before our own. Forgive us when we lay the blame for our own shortcomings and mistakes at the doorstep of another. Help us dear Father to be able to be patient when things go wrong giving us a moment to self examine and discover how the fault may very well lie in our own behavior or result from our own inadequacies. Make us able to grow from our mistakes and not be quick to blame others. In Jesus name we pray. Amen!

Therefore my friend, do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry for itself; each day has enough trouble of its own. (Matt 6:34) This Passing Day. May this passing day honor our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ and be a blessing to you and everyone you meet. Find a stranger and say hello. Don't let another day pass without your day blessing someone else.

If you have a special prayer request, please send your request to ”This Passing Day!”

<thispassingday@gmail.com> From Beech Springs, God bless you for Jesus sake.