Make 9/11 More Than A Memory

I am writing at almost the exact moment, 10 years ago, when I first saw the images of the World Trade Center towers burning. Like most of you, it started off as a normal morning. I had gone to the ice rink to play a little pick-up hockey, came home for a work-out and was just about to step into the shower when Renae called for me to come quickly into the den. All she said was, "You need to see the TV. Something has happened." The rest, as they say, is history. I remember clearly the confusion of that day, of trying to be a pastor and minister to all of these hurting people looking for comfort and answers on a day where I didn't know what to do or feel myself. Like many other people that day, I had to suck it up, do my job, and process later.

Now 10 years have passed and I've done a lot of processing. My life is certainly quite different than I ever would have imagined that beautiful September morning. So, today I see pictures with the slogan "Never Forget" and I see lots of posts on Facebook about "Never Forget" and I wonder, "So what?" So what if we remember? Remembering something is useless unless you do something about it. Are we really different than we were before 9/11? Well, sure we have annoying lines at the airports, we live in a state of semi-fear about something similar happening again, we live in a world where war and terror are a way of life. All of that is different. The carefree American life is gone. Our innocence and belief that what we see on the news could never happen here is gone. But, are WE different? George Barna, who lives and breathes statistics and surveys regarding Christianity in America, recently released a survey that said, spiritually, Americans really aren't different at all from pre-9/11.

Barna's findings don't surprise me. People rushed back to church and prayed in the days and weeks following 9/11, but once the initial shock and fear wore off they went back to their previous routines. God and church became less important once it stopped feeling like the world was about to come to an end. All of the churches who forgot denominational lines and came together in unity went back to their closed off fortresses of solitude that we can a church building. People who overlooked gripes and differences, who focused on what was truly important and forgave and loved, returned to their previous petty ways. Am I shocked by this? Not a bit. Read the Bible. The same story is in there. When ancient Israel was threatened the prophets rose up to call people to righteousness, to pray and walk in God's paths. When the threat was imminent, the people listened. But, as soon as life went back to "normal" the people ignored the prophets to their own end and eventual destruction. Since humans have been acting this way for thousands of years I'm not a bit surprised by our country's reaction to the post-9/11 life. But I am saddened by it. You would think we would learn our lesson.

What should we do about 9/11, then? Part of that is up to the individual. But I think, first, we need to stop living in fear. Whatever evil acts the terrorists can think up will never pale in comparison to the love and grace of God. No matter how horrific the event, God will never be overcome. Romans 8 promises that nothing - not life or death or demons or angels or terrorists or acts of war - can separate us from God's love. Paul also reminds us in 2 Timothy that God gives us the power of strength and courage, never a spirit of fear or timidity. If we stop living in fear, if we boldly proclaim God's love and grace, we will make a difference in the world.

To me it's a slap in the face of the brave firefighters, police officers, and military members who have given their lives during the 9/11 event and ever since in the war on terror to simply say, "never forget" and then do nothing about it. When the towers were burning, the elevators were out, and the firefighters had to climb 80 stories of stairs to get to people they didn't say, "Man, that stinks." They did something, even though it was incredibly difficult. This is how God expects us to act. And Jesus modeled that behavior. When it looked like sin and evil would win, when it looked like the human race would be lost forever in its own depravity, God didn't sit up in heaven and say, "That's too bad. I'll never forget my creation." He came to earth  and did something about it through his death and resurrection.

I know it's easy to go about your normal business when the threat is over, but don't say "never forget" and do nothing. If you truly want to honor and remember the sacrifices of those who gave their lives then make a commitment today to love more, forgive more, serve more, pray more, share more, and make a difference in the world around you, just as those who died were trying to do. Let the memory of what happened spur you to greater heights in joining God's work in overcoming evil in the world. When we do that, "never forget" ceases to be hollow, meaningless words we utter once a year and instead becomes a battle cry that pushes us to fulfill the word's of Christ in the Model Prayer - "Your will be done on earth as it is in heaven."