Blessings of a no-blame mindset
Avoiding harshly blaming others not only keeps our peace from being taken from us but contributes to a more peaceful world.
When our well-laid plans fall apart, it can be easy to blame others for any disappointment we might feel. But is this a worthwhile approach to take?
Blaming others often includes anger – a state of thought that isn’t natural to any of us as the offspring of God, made in the image and likeness of divine Spirit. On the other hand, a state of thought that is Godlike includes forgiveness, brotherly love, and kindness – qualities that have their source in Spirit – and the Apostle Paul exclaims “to be spiritually minded is life and peace” (Romans 8:6).
The Bible has many examples of individuals who chose spiritual-mindedness over a blame mindset. One of my favorite biblical role models is Daniel, who, even in the face of a conspiracy against him that resulted in a life-threatening predicament, did not blame the individuals responsible (see Daniel 6). Instead, he focused his spiritual energies on continuing to worship God with all his heart, and therefore maintaining his innocence. He trusted deeply that God’s power and loving care were present to save him from harm, and proved that this was true.
When I worked as a team leader for a special project, my colleagues and I worked diligently to complete the assigned tasks. Despite our successes, personality conflicts surfaced frequently and caused divisiveness and unhappiness.
I prayed daily to know that God’s law of harmony was governing the entire project, yet discord persisted. Then one day, a team member told me confidentially that one individual was deliberately stoking discord and division. At that point I felt I knew what was really going on; in other words, I now knew who was to blame.
Without realizing it, I had adopted a blame mindset, which was contrary to the spiritual-mindedness that I was striving to cultivate in daily living. Since no solutions were forthcoming, I prayed that God would lead me to serve where I could be a blessing and feel blessed. When a new job opportunity presented itself, I gratefully accepted it and moved on.
Leaving the organization did not automatically result in a sense of peace, but it felt easier to pray about the blame I had been harboring. As I prayed, it became clear that blaming others meant that I was believing that there was a power opposed to the one infinite and all-good Mind, or God, that conceived and governs all creation. Also, that I was believing that I and others were merely mortal and material beings with mortal minds of our own, separate from God, and could therefore be inclined to be divisive and discordant.
Through my study of Christian Science, I knew that freedom from this false sense would come only by sincerely accepting the spiritual fact that because God created man (each one of us) as His exact reflection, then my real nature and that of everyone else was indeed spiritual and Godlike, expressing God’s.
As I pondered Mary Baker Eddy’s inspired answer to the question “What is man?” in the Christian Science textbook, “Science and Health with Key to the Scriptures,” this line became very special to me: “Man is idea, the image, of Love; he is not physique” (p. 475). Deep contemplation of what it means to be God’s loved spiritual idea made me feel embraced in divine Love’s ever-presence.
I felt too that I had glimpsed the significance of Christ Jesus’ command to love others as ourselves (see Matthew 22:39), and so I cherished a sense of genuine brotherly love and forgiveness toward everyone. I was no longer entertaining unproductive thoughts that tended to blame others.
Some time later, I was scheduled to give a presentation in another city, and when I arrived at my destination, I learned that one of my former teammates would be attending the event. I was delighted to receive a warm welcome note from her. She even invited me to visit with her afterward. We hugged each other warmly, and shared many good memories. There was no mention of any unhappiness, and we continue to be in friendly contact today. To me, this was evidence that I was expressing a more Christlike state of thought, which was free from any unproductive thinking.
The blessings of a “no blame” mindset are truly liberating and peace-giving. This kind of thinking is an expression of spiritual-mindedness that radiates Christly love to all. It also gives the satisfaction of contributing to one of Christianity’s central purposes – that of bringing peace on earth, and goodwill toward men.
Some more great ideas! To hear a podcast discussion about the all-knowing nature of God, and what this means for our memory, our safety, and even healing, please click through to the latest edition of Sentinel Watch on www.JSH-Online.com titled “Omniscience: What God knows, you can know.” There is no paywall for this podcast.