On this day in 1949, President Harry Truman raised the minimum wage from 40 to 75 cents an hour.

One of President Truman’s most famous sayings is “The buck stops here.” That sign sat on his desk for all to see. Even though he raised the minimum wage, the saying didn’t refer to money. It meant that the President was taking responsibility for his actions.

“Passing the buck” (blaming someone else) is easy and comes naturally. This practice began in Eden when God confronted Adam about his disobedience. Adam answered, “It was the woman you gave me who brought me the fruit, and I ate it” (Genesis 3:12).

Whenever we do something wrong, we tend to make excuses or to blame someone else. “It wasn’t my fault!” “The sun got in my eyes.” “She made me do it.” “I couldn’t help it.”

That happened in ancient Israel too. Saul, Israel’s first king, grew impatient waiting for the prophet Samuel and decided to make a sacrifice to God. The problem was, according to God’s law, only a priest should offer sacrifices. When confronted by Samuel with his sinful actions, Saul made excuses, saying that he “felt obliged to offer the burnt offering” (see today’s passage). Because of Saul’s sin and his refusal to accept responsibility for what he had done, he lost the kingdom.

The lesson is clear: when we mess up, on purpose or accidentally, we need to admit our wrong and take responsibility.

“The buck stops here” means making decisions and doing the work that we are expected to do without pushing it off on someone else. Every position has responsibilities. Think about your parents. They provide for the family—food, clothes, housing, and protection. That comes with being a parent. And they don’t pass the buck.

That’s the other lesson for today: we need to do our jobs and do them well.

“So I said, ‘The Philistines are ready to march against us, and I haven’t even asked for the Lord’s help!’ So I felt obliged to offer the burnt offering myself before you came.”

“How foolish!” Samuel exclaimed. “You have disobeyed the command of the Lord your God. Had you obeyed, the Lord would have established your kingdom over Israel forever” (1 Samuel 13:12, 13).

To Do

Make a small sign with the saying “The buck stops here” and put it on your desk. Use it to remind you to take responsibility for your actions and to do your assignments.

Also on this day

1881—The famous shootout at the OK Corral occurred in Tombstone, Arizona.

1988—Two whales, trapped for nearly three weeks in an Artic ice pack, were freed by Soviet and American icebreakers.

From Betsy Schmitt and Dave Veerman, 365 Trivia Twist Devotions: An Almanac of Fun Facts and Spiritual Truth for Every Day of the Year (Cincinnati: Standard, 2005). Scripture quotations are from the New Living Translation unless otherwise noted.