10 Years Later…
The year was 2001. It was a normal morning. I was getting ready for work, eating breakfast with my daughter (Kaylee) and my wife. We were watching the popular TV show Good Morning America, when all of sudden life in America would change forever. One plane, then another, and another and another crashed into the World Trade Center Towers, the Pentagon, and a field in Pennsylvania. When all was said and done nearly 3,000 people lost their lives and America lost her innocence. Feelings of helplessness spread across the entire nation. It was in that moment I looked at my young daughter and realized that not only my life, but also her future would never be the same.
But then, the American spirit awakened. We realized once again, like the generations before us, that we must rise from these ashes. And yet Americans knew they could not do this on their own. So one by one the numbers swelled in the pews of churches across our land. And as a result we remembered who we were, children of God. And God began to heal our land and make our days bright again. Our faith sustained us in our darkest hour. Our faith was the catalyst for firefighters, policemen, military personnel, and the average citizen to run back into burning, collapsing buildings. Our faith compelled us to search day and night for survivors amidst the rubble. Our faith called each of us to give something more of ourselves. Our faith in God created a collective sense of unity and love for one another.
We will never forget exactly where we were on that September day. You know the place well. It is where you watched horrific images, or listened to the gasps of radio talk show hosts. Or maybe you were an eyewitness and stood among the dead that day. As we approach the 10th Anniversary of September 11, 2001, the question is no longer where you were that day, but where will you be on Sunday, September 11, 2011? Ten years ago Americans piled into churches and synagogues to seek the face of God. Today, there are 10th Anniversary plans in New York City and Washington DC that do not include a single element of faith in God, not a single prayer will be offered! Wow, what have our leaders done to our country?! Ten years ago everyone cried out to God and prayed (even our leaders prayed!). I only hope this is not the opinion of the majority of our citizens. I believe for most Americans we still place a high priority on the significance of that statement, In God We Trust.
Where will you be on 9/11/11? I hope you will gather with hundreds, thousands, and millions of others like we did ten years ago to remember who we are. We are children of God!
