Where were you on that horrible day, September 11th, 2001? As for me, I will
never forget. I was driving to meet with a high-powered business man in my
community. I couldn't believe my ears as I pulled my car into his parking lot,
listening with shock to my radio. Only one plane had struck at that time. I
ran inside, straight to his office and told him what I'd just heard. He had no
idea but quickly commanded all radios be tuned to a particular radio station.
We sat listening quietly as the radios echoed throughout the building, the
only sound one could hear. The phones weren't ringing as they normally
would have been. At one point, the business man looked at me and said,
"This is worse than Pearl Harbor." After nearly an hour, I suggested we
resume our meeting at another date. He agreed. Before I left, I commented
that I felt like I needed to go home and pray. He smiled and said, "Not me.
I had enough of that hellfire and damnation stuff when I was a kid."
As I pulled into my apartment parking lot, a young lady backed her black
pick-up truck squarely into the grill of my beat-up car for which I'd paid
$500. She jumped out, crying, "I'm sorry...it's just this stuff going on in
New York...!" I told her not to worry about it and that God was still in
control. She thanked me, smiled and got back in her truck.
Once inside, I turned on my computer to check the latest news. I received
an Instant message from an 11-year old girl. She was at home, sick, and
heard the news. She was afraid. I dialogued with her for a while before I
reminded her to pray as I was about to do. She was glad I was there. So
was I.
The events of that day were a horrible kind of East meets West situation.
An attack on our own soil was a terrible and shocking experience for
Americans but it's something that other parts of the world are all too
familiar with. When the nations of the world reached out to us in
sympathy, some also sent us this message: "Now you understand what
we've been going through." We can be thankful for a strange gift we
received that day: a new kind of bridge to the other nations of the world.
Whether it's a family reunion at the expense of a loved-one's funeral, a
tornado at a mobile home park or a terrorist attack, why must it take a
disaster to pull us together and perhaps even push us in spiritual
directions? We don't know why it works that way, but we know that
9/11 didn't just happen to those on the airplanes, or in New York and
Washington, D.C. It impacted the world.
What man intends for evil, God will use for good. Jesus' death on the
cross for the good of all mankind is the greatest example of that.
The Holy Bible directs us to "Give thanks at all time." On the 6th
Anniversary of the horrible attack on America, let's all give thanks.
LET'S PRAY TOGETHER...
Father God, we give thanks to you for choosing to allow us to be
born in this great nation. We had no choice in that. Thank you for
allowing us to see ourselves as stewards of this privilege. From
those who are given much, much is required.
Thank you for giving us the grace to love our enemies as Jesus
taught us. "Love your enemies and do good to those who mistreat
you," He said. By so doing, we become a little more like Christ.
Thank you for that.
We thank you for dealing with each of us individually, and helping
us to remember to pray for those who hate this nation....and for
those who hate us personally. Thank you for giving us the grace to
forgive those as Jesus forgave our sins at the cross. Help us to take
up that cross and follow His example.
Regardless of our political party or our personal sentiments regarding
the war on terrorism, thank you, Father, for reminding us to pray for
our President and all those in authority over us, just as Jesus
commanded. We pray that you give them wisdom in liberal amounts
as they guide this nation and our troops. We pray that they learn to
seek and trust YOU in all their decisions. Thank you for reminding us
to pray for our troops, not merely declaring that were are or reminding
others to do so. We pray that they will be used, not as conquerors or
crusaders but as compassionate Christ-bearers. May every nation
who is not serving Christ become seekers of Christ once the dust of
war has settled.
Thank you that, despite so many of our people dying and being
wounded in the Middle East, the numbers could be so much worse
and aren't nearly as bad as they are here in peaceful America where
some of the war's first casualties took place from among the ranks of
Fire Fighters and police Officers. Thank you for those who live in Iraq
and Afghanistan who are glad we are there...glad enough to become
informants, warning our troops as to the whereabouts of roadside
bombs and the hiding places of our enemies, and taking up arms
alongside our military forces. Thank you for giving the Iraqis the
freedom they desire, just as you gave that freedom to our forefathers
who fought and won our own war of independence along with the help
of other nations. Thank you for allowing the Iraqi people to one day
experience the ultimate freedom - the freedom that can be theirs only
through Jesus Christ.
Father, on this anniversary of the tragic September 11th terrorist
bombing of the World Trade Center, while many of the wounds have
healed, many have not. Thank you for your Word which states, "If my
people who are called by Name will humble themselves, pray, seek My
face and turn from their wicked ways, THEN you will hear from Heaven,
forgive their sins and heal their land." Father, we need your help. We
have become too proud to humble ourselves and, therefore, require
humbling. We are too independent a people to spend much time praying;
Lord, make us a prayerful people. We don't seek your face through
relationship with you, but rarely hesitate to seek your hand of blessing
and protection. May we have relationship with You, our God, and not
settle for mere religious activities? Help our nation to receive its Savior
and the forgiveness He gained for us at the Cross. Heal our land, Father,
not only so that we may be healed, but so that we, as a people, will
become healers of the nations through Jesus Christ.
Lord, many families are still mourning, some are fearing for family
members who are fighting overseas. Thank you for comforting them,
Father. Security has visibly increased in many places and, every day, we
experience the effects of terrorism. Officials are saying that it will be a
long war and we, as Americans, are accustomed to getting things done
quickly. Thank you for maturing us through this war, causing us to grow
in grace and in our knowledge of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ.
Father, help us to resist the urge to harbor animosity toward Muslim
people. Thank you for reminding us that Jesus died for them, too. We
pray for their salvation along with anyone else's for whom we pray.
We ask all of this in Jesus' precious Name.
Amen.
AN EXERCISE IN HEALING:
Imagine, if you will, the back side of a completed jigsaw puzzle as seen
from the underside of a glass table. What do you see? Brown, odd-shaped
pieces of cardboard, right? Nothing much to look at. But as you rise from
beneath that glass table, you see the front side - the beautiful side - of
that jigsaw puzzle. Whether it's a beautiful autumn woods scene, or a field
of flowers, maybe even a beach scene with a lighthouse and seagulls,
point is, there's another side to the puzzle; A beautiful side.
If events such as 911 puzzle you, the only way we can even begin to
rejoice is by knowing in our hearts, by faith, that there is surely a beautiful
side to this puzzling situation. From Heaven's perspective, there IS!
Let us no longer dwell upon what happened on that terrible morning 6
years ago. Instead, let's focus on the good and turn toward the light.
Let's look in our collective "mirror," and think about three specific things:
Healing, Hope, and Community.
How is our shared experience of 9/11 affecting the way we as a nation -
as Christians - experience those three things today?
How has it affected our attitudes toward Healing?
How has it impacted our feelings regarding Hope?
How has it changed our Communities for the better?
(Faith communities, families, neighborhoods, civic groups, etc. -
anywhere people gather together).
Every blessing,
Michael Tummillo
A servant of God
[http://www.YouTown4Jesus.com]
His mission is to bring Discipleship and Encouragement to the Body of Christ. Since '99, he has broadcast nearly 700 inspirational articles to his online subscribers and a dozen booklets on subjects sure to interest the thinking Christian and accelerate the process of spiritual development. He is the founder of t.e.a.m. ministries. An Author, Pastoral Counselor and Teacher, his eMail broadcasts, known as "Your Town for Jesus" are read around the globe. Subscribe at team1min@our-town.com