Reflecting on 9-11 ten years later

Dear Friends,

Over the last week I have been struggling with the 10^th anniversary of 9-11. I didn’t know what I wanted to do with it. Do I want to go back and relive the events of that day and week all over again? The moments of that day are forever etched as to where I was when I first heard (I was in a worship planning meeting with Ron Schuyler and Rev. Peggy when Holly called), watching the video images (our custodian, Thureen, brought a video tape of the towers and the staff gathered around a TV set in the narthex and watched it together) and then trying to track down Sarah who was on Capitol Hill at the time.

So, I began to go back to sermons, E-spires, prayer vigils, worship services and stories I had saved on my church computer and I am so thankful that I did!

If I hadn’t gone back, I would have missed the blessings of what the church and you, our people, did together to pull through this time. I had forgotten some of the powerful stories that came out of 9-11 and the focus we had on the One who gives us hope!

I might have forgotten that the story of these last 10 years is that we realized that Hope Wins!! Join us this Sunday, not to be reminded of what evil did, but what Hope did in our nation, church and in your life!

I do Hope to see you Sunday,

Barry

Here is one of the nuggets of truth I found when I looked back in my notes.

Portions from Dr.Billy Graham’s Message at National Day of Prayer and Remembrance Service, September 14, 2001

We've always needed God from the very beginning of this nation, but today we need Him especially. We’re facing a new kind of enemy. We're involved in a new kind of warfare and we need the help of the Spirit of God. The Bible words are our hope: "God is our refuge and strength, an ever present help in trouble. Therefore we will not fear, though the earth give way and the mountains fall into the heart of the sea" (Psalm 46:1,2). But why does God allow evil like this to take place? Perhaps that is what you are asking now. You may even be angry at God. I want to assure you that God understands these feelings that you may have. And God can be trusted, even when life seems at its darkest.

I have been asked hundreds of times in my life why God allows tragedy and suffering. I have to confess that I really do not know the answer totally, even to my own satisfaction. I have to accept, by faith, that God is sovereign, and He’s a God of love and mercy and compassion in the midst of suffering.

None of us will ever forget the pictures of our courageous firefighters and police, many of whom have lost friends and colleagues, or the hundreds of people attending or standing patiently in line to donate blood. A tragedy like this could have torn our country apart, but instead, it has united us and we’ve become a family.

We never know when we too will be called into eternity. I doubt if even one of those people who got on those planes, or walked into the World Trade Center or the Pentagon that morning thought it would be the last day of their lives. And that's why each of us needs to face our own spiritual need and commit ourselves to God and His will now.

Yes, our nation has been attacked, buildings destroyed, lives lost. But now we have a choice: whether to implode and disintegrate emotionally and spiritually as a people and a nation -- or, whether we choose to become stronger through all of this struggle -- to rebuild on a solid foundation. And I believe that we are in the process of starting to rebuild on that foundation. That foundation is our trust in God.

"Fear not, I am with thee; O be not dismayed,  For I am thy God, and will give thee aid;  I'll strengthen thee, help thee, and cause thee to stand,  Upheld by my righteous, they righteous, omnipotent hand." (How Firm A Foundation)

My prayer today is that we will feel the loving arms of God wrapped around us, and will know in our hearts that He will never forsake us as we trust in Him.