From The Preacher's Desk

It’s Not My Fault
When I taught social studies, I used to love to challenge my students with this question: Who was the 12th President of the United States?
The 12th president of the United States was David Atchison, a man so obscure that Chester A. Arthur seems a household word by comparison.
At exactly 12 noon on March 4, 1849, Zachary Taylor was scheduled to succeed James Polk as chief executive. But March 4 was a Sunday; and Taylor, a devout old general, refused to take the oath of office on Sunday.. Thus, under the Succession Act of 1792, Missouri Senator Atchison, as President ProTempore of the Senate, automatically became President.

Atchison was said to have taken the responsibilities of his office very much in stride. Tongue in cheek, he appointed a number of his cronies to high cabinet positions, then had a few drinks, and went to bed to sleep out the remainder of his brief administration. On Monday at noon Taylor took over the reins. Atchison did not accomplish anything worthwhile and took his responsibility as a joke.

What are we to do when given responsibility? As a society we do not like responsibility. We do not like accountability. All we must do is look at the beginning of mankind and the emphasis God placed upon responsibility. God did not create Adam and Eve to let them do anything that they pleased. They had responsibilities.Adam and Eve had the first recorded job description: 1. Garden Responsibilities – tend and take care of all of the plants (Genesis 2:15)- not to eat of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil (Genesis 2:17).2. Animal Responsibilities – name and care for every animal (Genesis 2:19).3. Marital Responsibilities – become one with one another without shame (Genesis 2:24).

What happened when they broke their responsibilities? They were ejected from the Garden of Eden and missed out on God’s best! Responsibility is God’s idea!

Rob Combs, Minister