Own It

It has become increasingly apparent to me over the last several months that among many of our world's ever-expanding lists of maladies is Pass-The-Buck Syndrome.

Admittedly, I am no more immune to this affliction than any other person I have encountered. However, it is something that, with my heightened awareness to the problem, I have consciously attempted to eradicate from my modus operandi.

The concept is so simple and easy to implement that I believe we responsively utilize its tenants to placate any chance of grief or remorse we may feel as a result of our actions, reactions, or ideologies. Compounding the issue is that passing the buck has become so commonplace that we have cultivated a benign indifference or even a gentle acceptance to others who blatantly use this strategy to explain away darn near ANYTHING.

The senior pastor at my church, Dr. Jim White, recently blogged about this epidemic behavior. You can read his blog on this matter at the website churchandculture.org. In his blog entitled McVictim, Dr. White expands on a New York Times article by David Gratzer that speaks about what he refers to as "McVictim Syndrome" which specifically points to Americans placing blame on external factors for the continuously climbing national obesity rate.

As is pointed out in Dr. White's blog, this is simply a microcosm to a larger issue that suggests American society deliberately blames other people/things for their difficulties or mistakes because then it is no longer their problem. The person then can rationalize that they no longer have to deal with the infraction but rather an outside agent must change in order for there to be any resolution.

There are too many examples of this throughout our culture, a plethora of them coming from pop culture. Recently, after dropping an arguably so-easy-a-caveman-could-do-it catch in the endzone to win the game, Buffalo Bills wide receiver Steve Johnson (who is on my fantasy team this year and is one of the only bright spots on my roster) directed a tweet to God asking why would he let such a thing happen.

Really?

No seriously, really?

The dude dropped a pass. It hit him in the hands. He SHOULD have caught it, he COULD have caught it. Instead of owning it, he decides to blame the Big Man. Now, even if the guy does thank God for every catch he makes, does he really believe God is the one catching the ball every time? That God is puppeteering him down the field on all the successful touchdowns Steve has had this year? It's amazing to me how much we make God play a secondary roll in our successes then is immediately upgraded to the starring role in our failures.

While The Creator of the Universe seems to be humanity's primary scapegoat, we have an uncanny ability to make a scapegoat out of darn near anything. Adam had Eve as his "fall guy" from the moment God asked THE question. I can't tell you how many times I've used the phrase "If I only had {this}, things would have been different" or "If only {this} would have happened instead of {that}" or "If {he/she} didn't do this, then I would have done it differently."

There are some people I've met that if I actually heard them say "I'm sorry" or "My fault", I would be...what's the best word...ah...FLABBERGHASTED. At one point, I would have said that I was one of those FLABBERGHASTERS, but hopefully not any more. The problem with actually trying to "own it" (whatever IT may be) is that you handicap yourself. While surrounded by others who are pass-the-buckers, the moment you take the blame for something they are more than willing to let you hear about it.

Integrity comes at a high price more times than not, but just think if we all actively tried to "own it" a little more. If we started being a little more honest with ourselves and were more thoughtful about the reprocusions of our actions, how much could it change us? How much could it change those around us? What if we actually realized it was us who needed to change, how much more willing would we be to go through with changes that would better ourselves?

All I can ask, friends, is that you think on these things and hold me accountable to the sentiments I've shared (cuz if you don't, it's all your fault).*

*Sarcasm used to make a point. Just in case ya missed it



What I'm into:

Bible Verse- 1 Timothy 4:16 "Keep a close watch on yourself and your teaching. Stay true to what is right, and God will save you and those who hear you."

Movie- Scott Pilgram vs The World: Okay the movie looks very silly at first glance, and honestly...it is pretty silly. But before you knock the format, look at the film for what it is- a story about a young adult learning about himself and how he effects the world around him. There's a very honest moment at the end where Michael Cera's character comes to the realization of how much of the drama that surrounds him was caused by HIM. And he owns it. *Side note, whomever the actress is who plays Knives Chow is ridiculously cute. I liked the alternate ending way better than the one they showed in theatres.

Song- Corey Smith "As Angels Cry": For those of you who don't know Corey is an avid UGA fan who sings a lot about football, drinking beer, and having "good times". However, this song is so beautiful and strangely honest that it impacted me greatly. It's all about owning it- the mistakes in our lives and how that can come back to haunt us. The second verse is my favorite:

Feels like I slip further from you every single day
It's getting harder to call your name as I bow my head to pray
And it's nobody's fault but mine
Nobody's but my own
All of the doubts in my head leave no will to carry on
And they're multiplying
Every link in the chain of consequences
Ohh, I'm beaten by the chain

Thank God that when we have moments like this we can ask for forgiveness and be granted it and given peace.