Posted Sep 11, 2022 |
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Stay alert! Watch out for your great enemy, the devil. He prowls around like a roaring lion, looking for someone to devour. ~1 Peter 5:8.
While eating a bowl of Honey Nut Cheerios, I turned on the news. Having just woken up to start my day, I was still in my pajamas. My hair and teeth weren’t brushed, but I had time. Work didn’t start for several more hours which gave me plenty of time to shower and get ready before heading off. I flipped through several channels as I am not really a fan of watching the news. It has long been my belief that the media like to twist the truth around, fabricate stories to get ratings, and even catastrophize events for their viewers to stay tuned in.
There was not anything new about that morning, for my routine. Nothing was happening later in the day except for work and college classes. I wasn’t expecting that day to be any different then any other. I picked up my bowl of Honey Nut Cheerios and ate bite after bite. With each bite, a new channel turned, until they were all showing the same thing.
This day was different.
My eyes could not believe what I was seeing. Rubbing my eyes with my fists, believing that I had to have had blurry vision or had been imagining it. I stared in disbelief, with Cheerio-filled spoon poised towards my gaping wide-opened mouth. I was frozen. Unable to speak and still thinking this couldn’t be real. More fake news. So I flipped and flipped the channels. It didn’t help, this was actually happening.
The news was showing replays of a plane crashing through one of the Twin Towers, in New York. This replay was startling and made my stomach turn. Yelling out to my, then, boyfriend to get in the living room quick. He stood there unable to speak, as well. We read as the bottom of the newsfeed shared updated information of what was unfolding from the information pouring in, from those at Ground Zero. And then, right before our very eyes, the live feed caught the second plane go into the other tower.
With each passing moment came greater chaos, as the truth began to reveal itself.
Our country was being attacked by terrorists. People who deliberately woke up that morning with a very different agenda then I had that day. They were determined to change the course of history and our countries infrastructure. They were determined to take our country down. Their goal was to weaken an entire nation, physically, emotionally, spiritually, and mentally.
The enemy is good at his job. He attacks where he can find the most impact. In this situation, he created a scenario that was years in the making. Waiting for the perfect opportunity to strike because he prowls around like a lion on the hunt. On this day, September 11, 2001, he was nearly successful.
We were hurt and felt overwhelmed with trauma responses but we were not broken.
Time seemed to stand still. No one really did anything but watch the news for hours, days, and even weeks. Every form of major transportation was temporarily shutdown, as a preventative measure, just in case. I was supposed to attend college classes that day and go to work, all was cancelled. The United States stopped moving forward. We didn’t know what to do or how to react.
I was nearly 3000 miles away from the crashes and still my heart hurt with great grief. It was as though I was one of the people with ashes covering their faces from the wreckage and debris. Hurt came in all forms.
People crying, no matter where you were. Others asking where was God? Why didn’t he stop this from happening? How come our government didn’t see this coming? What do we need to do to rescue the people because there is still hope?
Question, questions, and more questions but answers were not coming.
Provision was present. God did not leave us. When things just seemed as bad as they could be, provision came in an interesting way. Our country was actually united.
I remember the president making an announcement that we should fly our country’s flag anywhere we could. He said he wanted so many displayed that the satellite dishes could see them from the sky. And so it was. They were in restaurant windows. On the antennas and rear windows of cars. Bumper stickers and flag magnets were stuck on things. People wore t-shirts with the American Flag design and “I love our great country” written across the chest.
We were smiling at one another and checking in on loved ones more. Our country was reaching out across the states to support everyone, not just the directly effected. United we stood, loving on one another and growing in our relationships. Connection was what we craved and pride in our country is what arose out of those ashes.
The Bible says that what the Devil meant to use to destroy, God will use to bring glory. Satan attacked and we could have crumbled. Our nation could have been permanently damaged. Civil laws could have ceased to function, changing us to a third-world country. But God, made a way for us to thrive when there didn’t seem to be a way.
In God We Trust!
Putting your hope, faith, and trust in God does not mean that bad things are no longer going to happen. It means that He has you when they do. He will be with you, comfort you, and help you recover to greater then you once were.
A few years ago, my husband and I had the privilege of visiting Ground Zero. Now the home of the Twin Tower Memorial. It is breathtaking to behold. There is a serene and heavy feeling when you step foot onto that square. We stood together in silence, as we did on that fateful day many years ago. Tears running down our face, the nations theme for that moment ran through our minds…we will never forget.
As we read the names listed, I thought for a moment of all the loved ones that were affected by this tragic loss. I prayed for their hearts to be healed, knowing that God’s provision is with them. Satan may have desired to rip a human size hole, through their hearts, but God can even fill that.
To all, directly or indirectly, affected by 9/11 my prayers and love are always with you…I will never forget!
