Never Forget!

In times of crisis, we can remember the power and presence of God.  Listen to the words of Psalm 77:
11 I will remember the deeds of the LORD; yes, I will remember your miracles of long ago. 12 I will meditate on all your works and consider all your mighty deeds. 13 Your ways, O God, are holy. What god is so great as our God? 14 You are the God who performs miracles; you display your power among the peoples.

What great words of assurance as we reflect on the events of this day 11 years ago.  In our times of hopelessness and struggle in the aftermath of the unprecedented attack on America, so many remembered, albeit temporarily, the hand of Almighty God.   And, even though that same spirit of dependence has waned, I believe, yet in our own lives in the remembering of 9/11, we can think how crisis can teach us valuable lessons - the hope that comes through the cross, the need for prayer, and how we can stand together to bring comfort in time of need.   May we remember - not only the tragedy of that day, but the triumph that we can experience as we hold on to God's unchanging hand.

The apostle Paul posed the question in Romans 8:35:
Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall trouble or hardship or persecution or famine or nakedness or danger or sword?  The answer is powerful and assuring, something we would do well to remember on this day and every day:
38 For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, 39 neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord.
It's the 11th anniversary of September 11th, 2001, and very few of will ever forget the events of that day, when we truly realized that at the time our nation, and our ideals, were under attack.   The fear, the uncertainly, the grief - just a few of the emotions that we experienced.

Today, one of the dominant themes is "Never Forget".   And, truly we cannot forget the events themselves.  But, I think there are some bigger ideas that we as a people - and we as Christians - should never forget.

One of those is symbolized by what is termed the 9/11 cross, discovered in the rubble of what once was the World Trade Center and now housed in the National September 11 Memorial and Museum, that atheists would like to see removed.   But, like our nation, it stands as a powerful reminder that in a time of crisis, the cross can provide hope. When people are in need, when they have suffered loss, the assurance that God sent His son, who gave His life so that we might come to know Him, can be a powerful force.

We can also think that in a time of crisis, we need to pray.   And, our nation is in crisis - 9/11 reminds us that there are dangerous people and ideologies in the world today.   Not only do we need physical protection from the multiplicity of threats, but we need spiritual protection from the moral enemies that would destroy us and lure us away from the time-honored truths and values upon which our nation was built.   We need Godly wisdom and a renewed sense of His presence with us as a people, and as individuals.  The church needs revival, and through efforts of initiatives such as "Cry Out America", we can turn our attention to our great King.

And, we can never forget that crisis can bring us together.   In times where we feel helpless, we can draw strength from that support system we have gathered around us.   And, the church, the body of Christ, can be used of God to provide supernatural comfort through kind words and deeds.   It's important that we do not face suffering alone.

Billy Graham spoke at the memorial service at the National Cathedral, and said this:

But today we come together in this service to confess our need of God. We've always needed God from the very beginning of this nation. But today we need Him especially. We're involved in a new kind of warfare. And we need the help of the Spirit of God.

As he concluded, he referred to the words of a hymn:

In that hymn, "How Firm a Foundation," the words say, "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, omnipotent hand."

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

Never forget - if we don't remember our God, then we do so at our peril.   Hope comes as we remember the Lord and how He desires to teach us, comfort us, and reinforce us, even in the darkest hours of life.