The Constitution of the United States, in the infancy of its original words, could not foresee every possibility that could arise through the years of this brand new nation. Article V gives the instructions for how a Constitutional Amendment can be made. Currently, there are 27 amendments. Our focus today is on Amendment 25, particularly, the first two points.
In case of the removal of the President from office or of his death or resignation, the Vice President shall become President.
Whenever there is a vacancy in the office of the Vice President, the President shall nominate a Vice President who shall take office upon confirmation by a majority vote of both Houses of Congress.
The Constitution had wording that seemed to lean in favor of what the 25th Amendment clarified. The 25th Amendment “was proposed in 1965 after Lyndon Johnson took over the presidency following the assassination of John F. Kennedy. It was ratified on February 10, 1967.”1
Since the inception of the 25th Amendment, it’s only been used twice. First, VP Spiro Agnew resigned, and VP Gerald Ford was put in that office. Then, when President Nixon resigned, VP Ford became President.
Why this devotional today? The National Day Calendar has declared this day as National VEEP Day. It coincides with the fact that on this day in 1974, Gerald Ford became the 38th president after Nixon’s resignation.
Ford had an unenviable situation. Agnew was forced to resign because of income tax evasion and political corruption. Ford must step into an office tainted and disgraced in the eyes of Americans. Eight months later, things get exponentially worse as the Watergate scandal unfolds. A president resigns rather than suffer impeachment. Now, the highest office in the land has been corrupted and Ford must fill that seat in the Oval Office while trying to salvage the opinion and trust of Americans in their government.
I’m thinking that if I was in Ford’s shoes, I would have been tempted to say, “Get someone else. The task is too big!”
Jeremiah, the prophet, felt the same way, too.
Israel was in shambles and an absolutely disgrace. They were living in sinful rebellion and shamefully disregarding God. In fact, they had started worshipping other gods. Every time God tried to warn them or get their attention, they openly mocked the messengers. It was into this situation that God called Jeremiah.
“Then the word of the LORD came unto me, saying, (5) Before I formed thee in the belly I knew thee; and before thou camest forth out of the womb I sanctified thee, and I ordained thee a prophet unto the nations.” (Jeremiah 1:4-5)
Jeremiah eagerly accepted the appointment and was thrilled at the challenge, right? Not at all. Jeremiah 1:6 sums up his fear of this assignment in one sentence, “Then said I, Ah, Lord GOD! behold, I cannot speak: for I am a child.”
Commentators guess Jeremiah’s age to be between 17-25. His age, though, was irrelevant. Jeremiah 1:7-8 says, “But the LORD said unto me, Say not, I am a child: for thou shalt go to all that I shall send thee, and whatsoever I command thee thou shalt speak. (8) Be not afraid of their faces: for I am with thee to deliver thee, saith the LORD.”
The same is true for every Christian on assignment from God. I am with thee are the greatest words we can hear from the Lord. No task is too big, no task too small, no task too difficult, and no task too insignificant. If God has called you to fulfill the responsibility, you do it, leaning on Him every step of the way for the strength, guidance, wisdom, and grace to serve Him.
Ed win Orr was “born and raised in Belfast Ireland, at 21 years of age he left a good paying job in the middle of the Great Depression to tour around Great Britain on his bicycle and tell any who would listen about revival. He trusted God to provide for both him and his 
widowed mother, and God came through gloriously – it was 10,000 miles of miracle through Great Britain. He wrote a popular book about his adventures in faith – so popular that some youth groups banned the book – they were afraid that their youth might take off on their own bikes without really being called by God.”2
How can anyone do such difficult, faith-stretching things as filling the shoes of a disgraced VP and President or delivering God’s message to an entire nation of disobedient Jews? The answer was given to Jeremiah and, by way of application, us, in Jeremiah 1:19. “And they shall fight against thee; but they shall not prevail against thee; for I am with thee, saith the LORD, to deliver thee.”
1https://constitutionus.com/constitution/amendments/constitutional-amendments/
2Enduring Word Commentary
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