The Good of 9-11

People like to talk about where they were on 9-11-2001 when they heard about the twin towers being hit.  I was at home, getting ready to head out the door.  I had Fox news on the TV and I watched as the second tower was hit and the fallout after that.  I had the same instinctive reaction many American's had when the second tower was hit; I was certain this could not be an accident, this was planned.  Indeed it was, and the war on terror that had been raging under the surface for some time came front and center.  Three thousand people died that day, and many more since.  Was there anything good that came from it?  I believe there was.

The United States of America became united if even for a moment in history.  In the following weeks and months many people would join the military to fight terrorism and defend our country.  If I didn't have a three year old at home, I very well might have followed through on that. A sense of patriotism filled the air, stores sold out of flags, churches opened their doors for prayer, and ever so briefly politicians sang the same song, "The Star Spangled Banner."  Oh how far we have come over the last 19 years.  

I lament at the state of our country today.  Instead of holding up police officers as heroes they are being denigrated by the media and many politicians as well.  We have rioting in our streets, church doors have been forcibly shut, and flags are being burned.  On 9-11, there were not African-Americans, Hispanic-Americans, Asian-Americans, Irish-Americans, we were just Americans.  While we recoiled from the shock of this attack, we came together, but it didn't take long before division and politics crept back into our lives.  

When tragedy strikes, it is hard to ignore the real evil that exists in our world.  Today evil isn't crouching at the door, we invited it in and now it is looting our home.  What will we do?

The doors of churches opened on 9-11, including the one I was at.  

The heroic stories of 9-11 focused on first responders who were running into towers that were about to collapse to save others not knowing if they  would make it back out themselves.  Those heroes lived out this truth, "Greater love has no man than this, to lay down one's life for one's friend" (John 15:13).  What if we all had the attitude of serving one another, considering other's lives more important than our own?  What if we were able to get back to living out Biblical principals in our lives?  What if we started to bring God back into the public square?

That was at least one good of 9-11, even if it was only for a moment.  God was brought back into the public square.  It's time, right here and right now!  The church can no longer be quiet!  We can no longer sit in the background and wait for the world to come to its senses, it won't.  The apostles sat and waited for the Spirit to show up on the Day of Pentecost, but once it did they scattered, they didn't wait for the world to realize who Jesus was, they proclaimed Him proudly and loudly calling people to repentance.  There is no amount of social justice that can take the place of the proclamation of the gospel of Jesus Christ!

I remember 9-11, and I will never forget it.  But 9-11 wasn't the first time evil raised its ugly head; we see it all over the place today.  The world has been fighting and waring since Cain killed Abel.  We have found more destructive ways to do it, but the reality of great evil in this world has never changed.  No society, no government, no social program has ever fixed the evil in this world.  There is only one answer for that, and it isn't defunding police, electing a new president, or a stronger military, the answer is Jesus!  Only He will bring justice, virtue, and true unity (Rev. 21:1-4).