IT WAS ALL MY FAULT, I COULD HAVE DONE BETTER...

It is easy to point fingers when things don’t go our way. We find anything and everything to blame for not achieving what we want. Rare is the person who points inward and says, “That’s all on me…it was my fault.”

It is my experience that the more we blame circumstances for what befalls us in life, the more we begin to feel sorry for ourselves.  We feel victimized and subsequently depressed, bitter even, sliding ever deeper on a slippery slope of self-deception.

In all honesty, as I look back on a myriad of personal failures and disappointments, I can blame none other than myself (Dick Wright) for things that happened to me and where I find myself in life today. In retrospect, I could have done better in most aspects of my life and I am required to live with that acknowledgement, regretting only that as my 80th year approaches, I cannot turn back the clock and do certain things differently.  

I at least find redemption in believing now that it was in me to do better if I had only applied myself just a little more, having the foresight to take that one important step or attitudinal adjustment that could have made all the difference. With acceptance comes grace!

The Bible says in Psalm 62:12 that God renders (gives, provides, supplies) to each of us according to our own work. It doesn’t say that He gives (whether that’s money, daily provision, authority or friendships) just because we feel entitled or deserving.

This biblical verse speaks to the heart of our blame-shifting mindset.

Will there be circumstances where we put in maximum effort, yet situations do not work out as planned?  Of course.

Will we make mistakes?  Of course.  We are only human, and there is something to be said for learning from our mistakes.

You cannot account for what others may do or say. You cannot win if others are not putting in the same effort.  You can not anticipate what unforeseen events might come your way or that someone might simply be better than you.  A rational coming to terms with the facts, will always stand us in good stead in the end.

But this is an undeniable truth no matter the circumstance…You cannot succeed if you are putting in minimal effort to just slide by or to accommodate a particular moment or situation.  Work ethic is the key, determining factor in being given what you deserve.

You cannot expect to achieve satisfactory results without having been willing to do the climbing...And you cannot justly blame everything and everyone but yourself when things do not work out to your best advantage.   

Without exception, we are masters of our own destiny.  It is all about how we apply ourselves.

Of course all of this is easy for me to say now, in hindsight.  If only I knew then what I know now!!!